Does my Oscar have HITH?
- Thread starter User
- Start date
Agree with
tlindsey
the holes/scars won't regress unfortunately, much to my chagrin.
However they can stabilize quickly with good clean water.
tlindsey
the holes/scars won't regress unfortunately, much to my chagrin. However they can stabilize quickly with good clean water.
Agree, that looks to be HITH, and unless you get to the root of the problem it will continue as a chronic disease, and all the medication in the world is just a temporary bandaid.
To stop it in its tracks, you need to do enough water changes per week (in fact daily) to reduce nitrate to below 5ppm, and clean filters often enough so they don't spew nitrate back into the tank, and they do, when not regularly cleaned.
In a tank as small as a 55 gal, daily 25% would not be overkill.
In fact in such a small tank, 50% or even 75% per day water changes would not be overkill..
The daily waste output of even 1 oscar, without any other fish in a 55, will easily overwhelm that tank and cause chronic HITH.
To stop it in its tracks, you need to do enough water changes per week (in fact daily) to reduce nitrate to below 5ppm, and clean filters often enough so they don't spew nitrate back into the tank, and they do, when not regularly cleaned.
In a tank as small as a 55 gal, daily 25% would not be overkill.
In fact in such a small tank, 50% or even 75% per day water changes would not be overkill..
The daily waste output of even 1 oscar, without any other fish in a 55, will easily overwhelm that tank and cause chronic HITH.
Okay thanks for all the replies, it seems that I'm going to do a lot of water changes daily,
and also, how big of a tank will I need to purchase to not do daily water changes (weekly)
and also, how big of a tank will I need to purchase to not do daily water changes (weekly)
If you're looking to keep it in the same area of the house, 4 foot by 2 foot 100+ gallon could work, provided the Oscar remains peaceful (they get crankier as they get older). A 180 gallon (6'x2'x2') would be better, but you want a really wide footprint if you want to keep the Oscar healthy and happy. My biggest tank is 135 gallons (72"L x 18"W x 24"H) and I don't keep Oscars anymore because they make it look cramped when they get truly large. They slow down growing, but never stop and I've had them live nearly 20 years.
Honestly, if the HITH is this far along, you're really going to struggle keeping him healthy in there. Daily water changes can work great, but they'll speed growth back up, increasing bioload and aggression and expediting the space issue for him in general. They also can screw with your water chemistry if your water source isn't great. Some fish also get stressed by constantly having people in the tank.
I strongly recommend getting a tank at least twice as large or rehoming the Oscar. The parrots can stay and you can even add a school of tetras and small catfish like corys, while only needing to do weekly water changes (though maybe more like 35+%).
I strongly recommend getting a tank at least twice as large or rehoming the Oscar. The parrots can stay and you can even add a school of tetras and small catfish like corys, while only needing to do weekly water changes (though maybe more like 35+%).
Last edited:
Got it , actually planning on getting a 300 gallon pond soon, so ill just put him there
If you do, you'll have a very happy Oscar on your hands.
Quality advise here and the very best of luck with him. Water quality is absolute key to happy healthy fish, also of course coupled with a quality diet. Nail these two things and you'll never have issues, unless introduced via an external source.
Quality advise here and the very best of luck with him. Water quality is absolute key to happy healthy fish, also of course coupled with a quality diet. Nail these two things and you'll never have issues, unless introduced via an external source.
