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I have three oscars living in close proximity. Two of them hurt themselves by flailing around the tank. They get easily spooked when the lights go out. Well, two of them are in bad shape. Last night they were making a lot of noise, but I guess I was angry at them for not letting me sleep. This morning when I woke up their heads were pretty cut up. I didnt have time to care for them, I had to leave for school. I left the light on all day, but when I came home they were even worse. They are really hurting. Both are lying on their sides and the tops of them are REALLY messed up. I removed the hood which is what they were tearing themselves up on, and rapped it with towels. That should not be a problem now. I added a lot of stress coat, maybe half the bottle, and put some extra salt in the water. I also moved them back and forth gently in the water to get oxygen in their gills. I dont know what more to do. I dont want to sit by and watch them die. We have been through so much. I was mad at them, but I dont want them to die. Any help please. And keep the negative, "you are a bad fish keeper" comments to yourself please.

Well I think the only thing aside from what you have already done is to move them into their own tanks... some fish just dont get along and esp if they are kept in close quarters like you mentioned. I would say 3 fish in anything smaller then a 75 is bad news and will probably result in dead fish unless one is removed. The smallest tank you can do is a 55 gallon and the absolute maximum number of fish in that tank is 2 oscars period. If your tank is even smaller then 55 gallons then you are in for real problems... I would wager that the problems you are noticing with aggression is 99% possitively related to territorial issues and if given a larger tank all would simmer down and go away.

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Adam

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