[Cwhite]

Hi everyone

I have an Oscar who is about a year and a half old. He lives in a quite bare 55 gallon by himself. I rescued him when he was very small (1 inch) and had almost no fins due to being attacked by a tankmate. He was almost dead but pulled through somehow. Here is my question, I want to get him a 75 gallon tank in a year or so when we move, but for now he is in the 55 gallon. I clean his tank twice weekly to keep nitrates below 10 ppm. He seems very happy (excited about feeding, brightly colored, active). I have had a couple people get really angry on forums and tell me it was animal cruelty to have him in a 55 gallon tank. This seems to be a touchy subject, what does everyone here think? He WILL be moved into a 75...it is just a matter of living in the top floor of an apartment complex for now. As a great lover of animals and proponent of animal welfare it really upset me to be told I was being cruel to one of my animals...what does everyone here think?
Thanks everyone!

 

[shef]

My oscar used to live in a 55gal, he now is in a 70g. I personally don't think a 55g is being cruel, a lot of sites will say that a 55 is the minimum. Bigger is always better, but as long as you feed him well and keep the water clean, I don't think a 55g is cruel. I've heard of people keeping them in 30gallons, now that to me would be cruel!

Although I'm sure some people would disagree with my opinion.

 

[Big Vine]

Didn't you post this not too long ago on the oscarfish forum? :wink:
Either way, what you are describing is far from being animal cruelty. You've been providing your oscar with a good home. Tank upgrade to 75 gal. sounds good too. He'll appreciate the extra space.

Your best bet from now on is to just ignore anyone who makes such ridiculous claims with regards to keeping an oscar in a 55 gal. tank (not to mention you've already stated your intent to upgrade tank size). Granted, a monster-sized oscar is likely to be cramped in a 55 gal., but by the sounds of things you'll have upgraded your tank long before he can grow that big.

Nice work on the upkeep as well...keeping nitrAtes down around 10 PPM or less in an oscar tank takes work that the vast majority of folks aren't willing to do. Good job! :thumb:
BV

 

[DirtyBlackSocks]

To be honest, while it's not ideal, an oscar could live out it's entire life in a 55 gallon just fine, you just won't see the same behavior you would out of an oscar in a larger tank.

As far as animal cruelty...well....you're keeping a fish in a tank of water - so that doesn't hold much weight as an argument.

 

[Natalie]

Your treatment of your O is far from cruelty. You saved him in the beginning, so a 55g tank is far better than the other fate he would have suffered. It's great that you're so diligent with the water changes. He will love the 75g tank eventually but for now you're doing a great job!