CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

Thanks for the opportunity to be able to share information on such a well organized board. I have a 6 inch Tiger Oscar named "Grouper" and have had fresh water aquariums most of my Life, although I by no means call myself an expert. I personally am not able to feed Grouper LIVE feeder fish and he has a ravenous appetite! I have just recently started feeding him meal worms but his primary diet consists of Hikari food sticks for carnivorous fish. I am interested in finding out how I can vary his diet witout feeding him live food. I am also interested in how others deal with keeping their tanks clean since Oscars are notoriously messy eaters. He is the king of his 20 gallon tank that I fear is now too small for him but making a transition to a larger aquarium is going to be difficult. I call Grouper "he" but I do not know whether he is a male or female. He is very intelligent, always interested in what is going on, who is passing by & if he's going to get fed. Recently I accidentally let his water get too cool and he let me know the temperature needed adjusting by assaulting his heater for a few days before I realized the problem. I would love to give him more to do but he'll eat any roommate that moves in, uproots plants, and likes to excavate his gravel and stones so I'd be interested in any suggestions anyone has as a cure for boredom.
There are only 2 people in our house and he can distinguish between the both of us. He is dearly loved and he's probably hungry right now, so I'll end by saying I look forward to getting new insights and have dreams of beginning a small tank I have in storage when I can afford some more time and a few more headaches! Good health & happiness to all, OriginL

Originally posted by OriginL
Thanks for the opportunity to be able to share information on such a well organized board. I have a 6 inch Tiger Oscar named "Grouper" and have had fresh water aquariums most of my Life, although I by no means call myself an expert. I personally am not able to feed Grouper LIVE feeder fish and he has a ravenous appetite! I have just recently started feeding him meal worms but his primary diet consists of Hikari food sticks for carnivorous fish. I am interested in finding out how I can vary his diet witout feeding him live food. I am also interested in how others deal with keeping their tanks clean since Oscars are notoriously messy eaters. He is the king of his 20 gallon tank that I fear is now too small for him but making a transition to a larger aquarium is going to be difficult. I call Grouper "he" but I do not know whether he is a male or female. He is very intelligent, always interested in what is going on, who is passing by & if he's going to get fed. Recently I accidentally let his water get too cool and he let me know the temperature needed adjusting by assaulting his heater for a few days before I realized the problem. I would love to give him more to do but he'll eat any roommate that moves in, uproots plants, and likes to excavate his gravel and stones so I'd be interested in any suggestions anyone has as a cure for boredom.
There are only 2 people in our house and he can distinguish between the both of us. He is dearly loved and he's probably hungry right now, so I'll end by saying I look forward to getting new insights and have dreams of beginning a small tank I have in storage when I can afford some more time and a few more headaches! Good health & happiness to all, OriginL

Hello OriginL, and welcome to the forums! Although the system lists June 2002 as the date you signed up, perhaps you should be welcoming me!:D Grouper sounds like an absolutely normal, healthy Oscar, all the way from attacking the heater (sometimes they do that even when water temp is fine) to uprooting and digging and begging and recognizing owners -- it seems odd to call them Oscars when the term Puppy Dog is available and probably more appropriate! Dig in, there's a lot of existing threads referencing some of your questions, but don't be afraid to ask if you can't find information. Again, welcome! To you and Grouper! (p.s. -- Do you have a Grouper named Oscar?!?)

--Mark:cool: