40 gallon tank stuck with four 4inch oscars...?

Question

How long do they live for? My friend gave me 4 of his oscars when they was small and I accepted, they are 4 inches each now and getting too messy for my 40 gallon tank. I didn't think they get this big and my friend don't have any room for them in his tank. I am stuck with them now and they seem to keep killing or eating any other fish I try to put in my tank. I made a bad move in accepting them...

Answer 1

i have been in that same situation. oscars grow to be about a foot long, bigger in the wild. what i did was to get in touch with a local pet shop that deals with fish. ask if they have any room for four oscars. if not, see if they will take any of them. what i did was, i sold two of my 8 inch oscars to the local pet shop. then i put out flyers for the other two. i sold them within two months. i asked $15 a piece for them, that's alot cheaper than what they usually go for anywhere else. good luck

Answer 2

Yes you have a problem.

They are still just babies, expect them to live for up to 10 years and grow to more than 12" long, in good conditions.

You have two options.

Buy a HUGE tank (100gal+), sell them, or just give them away to a good home.

A 40 gal is too small for even one adult Oscar, and the 4 small ones are starting to outgrow it about now, as you are noticing.

Ian

P.S. Are you sure this guy is REALLY your friend ;-)

Answer 3

Oscars are territorial fish and can get aggressive to defend their space.  they can also get to be over a foot long and live more than five years!!!  Also there is nowhere near enough room in the tank for all four fish, much less any more.  When it comes to aggressive fish it is best to keep them separated from other fish to avoid injury and death.  For any fish, there should be at least 1-2 gallons of water for every inch of a fish.      But fish will only grow as big as their surroundings allow.  If you are not ready to devote so much time and effort to these big aggressive fish, i would suggest trying to find them a new home or calling local pet stores to see if they would be interested in taking them off your hands! I grew up with Oscars and think they are wonderful but they are definitely not for everyone!!  If it was simple enough i would take them off your hands for you!! Good luck!