graceless Posted June 18, 2004 Share Posted June 18, 2004 Hey guys, i have an oscar that has been living with my brother for a few mnths now, but i went and saw him again last night and i'm concerned. i got him when he was about 2cm, and he's now about 10cm, so obviously he's growing - BUT ever since he was a little bit bigger (say 5cm) he's had a deformed mouth - his bottom jaw protrudes more that his top mandible - and he can't eat pellets it's totally sad watching him sped 45 mins on a single pellet. he eats flake food, but that's it. he can't get his moth around anything else. i would have expected that now he's at least a year old he should be bigger than 10cm?!?! what can i do? i get him back tonight. Grace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fixem Posted June 18, 2004 Share Posted June 18, 2004 Hi Grace Just to give you some comparitive sizes. I got my 3 Oscars 15 months ago at 4cm and they are now about 24cm. It's entirely up to the individual owners what they do about deformed fish and especially one that cannot eat properley. I would, if it was mine, put it out of it's misery and move on. In nature it would not still be around. Do what you think is best for the fish. Regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phatoscarlover Posted June 18, 2004 Share Posted June 18, 2004 Hey grace, Sounds like your oscar isnt doing to well. If the jaw is so deformed that it cannot eat pellets or cubes of frozen food there may be nothing you can do to help it. A large oscar will need more than just flake food to survive. Have you tryed "sticks" or some of the larger pellets?? Any chance of a pic its hard to understsand in which way his jaw is deformed? IMO he should be nearly double the size he is now if he had been able to eat properly(around 15-20cm). Sorry i cant be of more help grace im just not sure of what advice to give you. Cheers Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gutty Posted June 18, 2004 Share Posted June 18, 2004 An Oscar needs meat to grow ! Flake simply will not do IMO. If you can't bring yourself to put it down maybe try feeding it bloodworms etc It really comes down to what he can actually keep in his mouth. You're just going to have to experiment on that one, but deffinatly try some soft meaty foods that it won't have to crush or chew on but will still give it all the nutrition it needs. Good luck Grace Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cannula Posted June 18, 2004 Share Posted June 18, 2004 Hi Grace, i am very sorry to here about your oscar. I had one that had a little deformed lower jaw, but he had no problems eating. Maybe you could try mince, cooked chicken? Good luck with it, and i hope that you are able to find a food that is suitable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katanaone Posted June 18, 2004 Share Posted June 18, 2004 is he by himself, if he is just continue what you are doing and listen to the suggestions of others here and you should be fine. by the way its kinda nice to know that some people try to do everything possible for their pets and only use the hammer, fridge or any other tool of death on extreme situations when all other options are exhausted good on ya mate! (sorry for the morbid tone) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OziOscar Posted June 19, 2004 Share Posted June 19, 2004 It sounds like that Os growth is stunted due to feeding issues. Frozen 'fish dinner' and the like works well for these ones because it's basically mushed meat / fish / stuff and when it warms up in the water the Os can easily consume it. After all, they don't realyl have teeth like other fish but more of a grinding plate inside their mouth. I have had a couple like that over the years and the bad news is that they have a short life, only about 2 years tops. If he is well loved, keep up the good work to improve his quality of life, else, well, you know what to do. Lots of luck. Cheers - OziOscar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graceless Posted June 19, 2004 Author Share Posted June 19, 2004 Well, we (my brother and i) ahve decided to keep him and get him back into good health. running a treatment at the moment for what i think is some sort of fungal infection, and have already been feeding him minced chicken and mean which he loves. we have also found him a new tank (a 6 footer all to himself apparently) so once that happens, he should have a happy remaining year or so of his life. Cheers to everyone for their help. Grace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.