# HELP, oscar has been attacked!!!!



## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

our auratus cichlid has suddenly turned and savagely attacked our tiger oscar...hes pretty battered, his anal, tail and dorsol fin is really tattered and hes missing a fair few scales. is there anything i can put in the water to help speed up his recovery? ive had to seperate my guppy tank and put him in there while he gets better so the quicker i can get him out and back in the big tank the better. thanks


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

It's a basic that you cannot mix east African Lakes cichlids with South Americans. The levels of aggression are completely different, and an auratus can (and will) slaughter any SA cichlid five times its size. So, first, you have to fix that mistake. Those fish will never again be able to coexist. 

The Oscar needs a clean tank with good filtration, and lots of water changes. He/she should rebound, depending on how clean the water is and how bad the beating was. 

I would put nothing in the water but more clean water - 25% changes daily wouldn't hurt, and keep a close eye on the damage. If it becomes infected, that's another issue, but cleanliness is your best chance. Oscars are a rainforest fish that don't encounter salt in the wild. That could be your second line of defence, but you are better to avoid salt unless you see a reason for it. Big predators like oscars tend to heal well.


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

she is turning black (the auratus) which i didnt think would happen as shes the only one of her kind in the tank. we have a prized JD in the tank (the first fish we got) and hes 3 or 4 times the size of the auratus so tonight when i get back im going to put a tank divider in and seperate the americans and the africans untill i can go pick up a new tank.

so another question, once the tank only has 3 JDS, 2 plecos and a fire mouth left, will the oscar be able to go back? its a 300litre tank.

ive managed to find a 100litre full set up someone is selling locally to me for £50 so when i can ill go get that and put the auratus, fuelleborni and jewel in there. (all of them are under 2.5 inches)


i was going to take 5 fish back to the shop tomorrow, the 3 gouramis and 2 livinstoniis to help chill them all out anyway.....sorry if my post sounds a bit hectic, ive been reading sooooo much information on the cichlids to figure a way of hopefully keeping them all but in seperate tanks and its a nightmare!!!!

ill do what you said re the water changed etc, he seems to be doing ok, hes tured back black (he was light grey when i took him out the tank) so fingers crossed he'll get back to full health. hes my little baby!!!!!! and regarding the beating like i said its pretty bad, his anal fins are little stumps his tail is in tatters, the dorsol isnt to bad, just a bit freyed. hes about 80% covered in random missing scales.




if any new fishkeepers are reading this.....listen to people when they say fish cant go togeather!!!


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

Well, you learned a hard lesson kid but we all do at some point. Navigator is right though you need VERY clean water, try to keep the temp perfect, and don't let him get stressed at all. Then start hoping. He is pretty banged up but if you can bring him back from this it will be a good experiance for you.


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

i really hope he will pull through!!! i just did not expect this to happen so suddenly.... thought we'd have time to start getting rid of some of the fish! ive covered 3 sides and half the front of the tank so he feels more secure. this morning when i went over to check him out he popped up from behind the blanket slowly, looked at me then started swiming up and down the glass like he ususally does when i sit next to the big tank. might sound stupid but i swear he recognises me!!!

whats the best temperature for him right now? everywhere gives temps between 72 and 82.


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

I keep mine around 82-85 but I wouldn't move the temp just yet, give him some time to heal first.


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

its around 77 at the mo as he (fred) is in the guppy/danio tank. really cant wait to get home and see how he is...ive been dreading all day getting home to see him floating at the top


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

that is pretty low, oscars like the temp to be 80-85F and the low temp may stress him further. I would try to slowly bring it to at least 80.


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

ill do that as soon as i get in. do you think if i were to move the segregation to give him run of the full 100litre he would get more stressed? im not to worried about him eating the other fish but i dont want him to get in a mood coz he cant catch them.


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

no that won't stress him, just give him time


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

ok ill remove the segregation tomorrow and turn the heat up a little today. thank you so much for your help!


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

no problem, pm me anytime if you need some help


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

I can only agree with the others, some of the best medicine is simply clean water. I hope your fish recovers, and in the future it is always best to research compatibility between species before trying it. Best of luck


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

when we got the tank i knew nothing of fish, its just since research ive found the big problem of getting fish because i like the look of them! im rectifying this all now and i can happily say the oscar, hes called fred, is mending very will....his fins are no longer tatty and the broken bits are starting to fix togeather and his scales are looking so much better thanks to everyones advice! once hes all happy and well and looking pretty again ill post a picture of him.


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