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I recently purchased an oscar, about 4".  I decided to get him a pleco (the pleco is about 4" as well) and my oscar will not leave him alone, constantly biting and chasing him?? What will happen?? Arent plecos dangerous if provoked enough??? And will the Oscar kill him?? What should I do
HELP!! Thanks

I had the same problem a few years back.  Once my Oscars outgrew the Pleco's (I had 2 of them) they ate them.  I ended up getting a huge Pleco, probably a good 10 inches long and that was the end of that problem.  Ended up being able to only keep one Oscar due to fighting and he ended up being around 10 inches long as well and never had any problems with them.  Hope that helps.

[quote="Lindsay "]
I recently purchased an oscar, about 4".  I decided to get him a pleco (the pleco is about 4" as well) and my oscar will not leave him alone, constantly biting and chasing him?? What will happen?? Arent plecos dangerous if provoked enough??? And will the Oscar kill him?? What should I do
HELP!! Thanks
[/quote]Plecos are excellent hiders -- they love to go into tight spaces and under things and inside things. So the thing to do [b]right away[/b] is to complicate your aquarium with caves, plastic plants, rocks, flowerpots, all kinds of stuff so the Pleco can hide. Additionally, the change in scenery will make the Oscar insecure for a few days (he'll lie on the gravel, may stop eating for a day or so, etc. -- normal signs of Oscar self-pity) and will change the way he responds to the Pleco. This is your best bet for peace in your aquarium. In the future, establish your aquarium [i]before[/i] you introduce the Oscar -- an Oscar in a new aquarium is very insecure and usually won't bother that fishies already there. However, once he's used to his surroundings, he can be aggressive towards new fishes.   --Mark

Hi, Lindsey.  As Mark suggested, be sure your pleco has some places to hide.  What size tank are your fish in?

Hello guys, thank so much.  Yes I have 2 or 3 nice caves in the tank, it is a 29 gallon (which we plan to get a 55 gallon around the end of the year) The oscar just ended up turning over the caves and getting the pleco that way,  i just ended up giving the plec to one of my friends, which he is doing great now, I just need to clean the tank every 3 days now!! he is VERY MESSY!!!
thanks agian!!

how big is your tank and how offten do you change the water? my Oscar does the same thing to my pleco as long as they are the same size and the pleco has a hiding spot they will be fine

Help! My Oscar does not have new tank mates and has 3 large plecos that have been with him for years in my tank and he is all of a sudden chasing and biting and picking on one only. My Oscar is around 6-7" and the pleco being chased is around 8" or more but the pleco is still eating and doing his own thing most of the time. Just wondering why out of nowhere my Oscar is being a jerk!? I haven't tried to move decor around yet.