Oscar Fish HITH

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Tim Wheatley

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Jan 24, 2011
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Hey folks,

I have an Oscar that I got the other day. I noticed a small hole in his head when I got him, but am not really too concerned as my maintenance is pretty darned good and from what I've read that is the real deciding factor along with food quality. He came from a small tank and was fed nothing but feeders.

He's been in the tank for 4 days now and the aggression with my other Oscar has subsided (for now). (S)he's doing well and has already been weaned off live food (via starvation) and is now eating Cichlid Gold. I do at least 1 50% water change per week and clean uneaten food daily (I work from home and sometimes I have to leave my desk or I go insane).

We're talking about 2 oscars in a 75 gallon and a few dither Silver Dollars (they are to cleanup food the Os spit out, and also seem to help to dissipate aggression).

Can anybody confirm if they think this is actually HITH? My other Oscar is about exactly the same length, but has a much higher head while this one has a much pointier nose and has this visible pit in the top of it's head. I believe that the differing shape of the new Oscar is due to stunting?

Thanks!

Tim
 

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In oscars it is almost always head and lateral line erosion (HLLE) and not HITH.

It does look like it, and goes with the story of being fed feeders.

What is you nitrate concentration?

I recommend New Life Spectrum, it is better than Hikari's best food (which is the Bio-Gold, not the Gold).
 
Thanks very much. Is there anything apart from food and water which might help? I don't like treating medications if I don't have to but will if it'll help him/her. I have Melafix and Pimafix here and salt but could order anything you recommend. I read that (seeing your avatar) Discus get it too, or is that the other type you mentioned that they get?

Nitrates 10ppm
Nitrite 0ppm

Last water change was only yesterday though.

I haven't seen Bio-gold anywhere. Is it sold in chains or would I need to buy online? I bought the Gold online because nobody that I could find was selling the large size, so I don't mind doing that.

Here's a pic of my other Oscar who I grew from about 1-1.5 inches, he is looking good at this point, right?
 

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He looks good.

Order New Life Spectrum online, that is the best food you can possiblt feed them.

Water quality looks good, improve the food and there isn't much else you can do.

Discus and angelfish get HITH, not HLLE. Since it is the parasitic form you treat with metronidazole, but in your case meds won't help. The only one that may is Melafix because it helps with healing, but if I remember right it will also screw up your nitrifying bacteria and won't be worth it.
 
Okay. Awesome, thanks so much for your help and info. Really, really appreciate it.
 
So, um, what are the chances that I lucked into a pair?

See attached.

They spend all their time together. There's occasional fin shaking, there's been some lip locking but there's a massive difference between what they keep doing and actually trying to kill each other.

It's crazy if I managed to get a pair. That means I have two convict pairs, an Angelfish pair and my Cory cats just threw eggs everywhere in their new tank, too. Wow.
 

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Thanks guys :) please check out my flickr page if you want to see more, I post photos just about every day.
 
They may not be a pair, but as long as they get along you should be happy.
 
I have another question... Some weird behavior from the Oscars...

They keep sitting on the gravel, just laying there, side by side.

I worried about it at first and did a 50% water change every day for the last 3 days, but whenever I walk up to the tank they immediately 'wake up' and come to see me... Water parameters seem stable with no nitrites or ammonia, and because of me constantly cleaning to help with HLLE Oscar the tank nitrates are minimal.

I'm getting less worried about it because of how they keep waking up and coming to see me. Right now, for example, they're swimming around normally, but every so often they go lay down together, maybe 30% of their day. Are they resting? Breeding? Sick? Their color is awesome, their fins are normal (active, not clamped down) and they are usually perfectly vertical (not on their side)... It's weird.

The HLLE Oscar is eating really well, spends most of it's swimming time begging me for food now. The old Oscar who I have had for months seems to be a little less interested in food, but still ate this morning. When they do swim, they don't seem to have an issue doing so...
 
I don't think I would worry. My two oscars hang out under one of my rock caves together all the time. They just kind of lay there and rest (vertically). They also swim together all the time like your other picture. I would say mine isn't a pair and they exhibit that same behavior. Nice looking fish though.
 
Ah, thanks. I have wondered too if Oscars would feel any benefit from a cave. I actually have a cave with a flat back in the tank that I could pull forward a bit and it would allow them to go back there. Do yours really seem to enjoy that?
 
Yes they enjoy it quite often. That is where they hide out when i am cleaning the tank (they don't enjoy that at all) and when they sleep. I'll try to remember tonight to take a picture and post it for you. I'm not sure what to do soon when they out grow it. They are getting rather large.
 
Well my old Oscar died (see my thread on it). I think bloating. He was sitting on the bottom and I thought it was something to do with the new fish, but I am sure it started before the new fish arrived. There definitely was no fighting, infact the old Oscar was definitely the boss.

The good news is that this rescue new Oscar is doing great. (S)he has immediately assumed command of the tank after the death of my old Oscar and is now busy re-arranging objects. Attached is a photo of the Oscar when I got it and today.

When I got it:
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=32169&d=1301104198

Today is attached. As you can see the hole in the center of the forehead is now completely healed over. :)
 

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