Can I have a cichlid in my tank?

[jocelynmeyer]

I’m in the midst of setting up my 50gal tank. It’s cycling now and I wanted an Oscar for it.

That said, I’m questioning if my tank is too small for a single Oscar. Are there other cichlids that might be more suitable for my tank?

 

[SaraB]

Yeah 50-55 gallon tanks don't really have enough room for a 12" fish to turn around in. I'm sure there are other larger cichlids you can keep.

 

[jocelynmeyer]

Yeah 50-55 gallon tanks don't really have enough room for a 12" fish to turn around in. I'm sure there are other larger cichlids you can keep.

We’re definitely scrapping the idea of an Oscar because of the size. I had read conflicting information about their full size so now I know not to go that route.

Looking at some other varieties of cichlids in the 3-4 inch range that we can comfortable house in the tank.

 

[All_fish]

Ram cichlids are cool and you’d still be able to have some other fish with a pair

 

[jocelynmeyer]

Ram cichlids are cool and you’d still be able to have some other fish with a pair

Oh, those are neat! I’ve added them to our list of potential fish! Thank you

 

[SaraB]

I like shell dwellers. Probably not as big as you want but they are super cute and stay at the bottom so you can do different cichlids for the upper parts of the aquarium.

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

An apistogramma pair would make a nice centerpiece as well

 

[jocelynmeyer]

I like shell dwellers. Probably not as big as you want but they are super cute and stay at the bottom so you can do different cichlids for the upper parts of the aquarium.

I’m liking the idea of having a few different types of fish for the various areas of the tank. Thanks for this recommendation!

 

[jocelynmeyer]

An apistogramma pair would make a nice centerpiece as well

I had to Google these but they’re really cool! Have added them to our list. There’s so many cool fish, it’ll come down to what’s available for purchase locally. Thankfully we have a few fish stores with quite a few varieties available.

 

[PTCHALSEAS]

Keyhole cichlid or a flowerhorn would be suited to a 50 gal * may vary* you can go with dwarf cichlids to where you particulary wanting to go the american route or have you looked into africans i reckon some electric yellows would look great

 

[jocelynmeyer]

Keyhole cichlid or a flowerhorn would be suited to a 50 gal * may vary* you can go with dwarf cichlids to where you particulary wanting to go the american route or have you looked into africans i reckon some electric yellows would look great

So many options! Now I’m really curious what our local shops have stocked. We can make some final decisions from there. Appreciate the recommendations!