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I have recently purchased a juvenile oscar that is about 2 inches long. The only things he will eat is live foods or meaty really tasty foods that oscars like as a treat. Every time i feed him any pellets of any kinds he just spits em out. And no i cant afford to buy him live expensive foods 24/7. Because i am a kid and i cant afford it. [font color="#C00000"]ANY HELP WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED!!! THANKS!!![/font]

Just a few simple questions.
how big is your tank?
is it cycle?
what are the water para.?
who are the oscar tank mates.?
when was the last time the fish ate?
how often do you feed him that diet?

I had alot of trouble with my three oscars, similiar to your problem. They only ate dried krill (which was $35 a can that lasted 1 week) and goldfish.

To put it in the simplest way, dont give him anything except pellets. Oscars can last a month or more without food. Put pellets or flake, whichever you choose, everyday, just a little, till he starts eating. It took mine 1 week to start eating, yours might take longer since its smaller.

After he is done starving will he continue eating pellets?

He should, just make sure to vary his diet with other stuff-frozen brine shrimp/blood worms, freeze dried krill, shrimp,peas, beefheart, crickets, worms. Get some cooked/frozen salad shrimp. It'll cost about 6-8 bucks for a bag. Keep it in the freezer & take one out, thaw it in a bowl of tank water, cut it into bitesize pieces, and feed that. Use the pellets as the "main" food though. Also, do the same above with the peas. Feed those couple times a week. It's important to vary the diet as this 'may' be one of the causes of hole in the head disease. Feeders aren't good for them, so stay away from that, and you also end up with the same problem you're having now-they won't eat anything else.

INKO where do you live that it costs $35 a can? Geez, I just bought some freeze dried krill tonight, think it was a 9 oz can for 3.00.

"INKO where do you live that it costs $35 a can? Geez, I just bought some freeze dried krill tonight, think it was a 9 oz can for 3.00."

Its shipped from Hong Kong by my uncle, the only reason I have it is he paid for it..sent me 6 cans of this and 7 cans of shrimp. Some tetra brand available in hong kong.

The cans are pretty big though.

Edit: TS0391 - KRILL E 14.1 OZ FREEZE DRIED FISH FOOD TETRA 38.49 from http://jonahsaquarium.com/foods.htm

[span class="edited"][Edited by inkodinkomalinko 2004-08-28 00:51][/span]

another great treat for carniverous cichlids that I had never considered until I got my puffers is raw shrimp. you can buy large bags of frozen shell-on shrimp fairly cheap at the supermarket. you'll have to thaw them out and chop them up pretty small so the oscar will be able to eat it, but I'm sure he'll love it. as he gets closer to full size you would most likely be able to just throw whole shrimps in to feed him.

I wouldn't advise trying this until you get him on pellets though. once he starts eating pellets he should be fine. I'd try Hikari Gold as that is what I've had the best luck with.

Or you could order from http://www.kensfish.com. I get most of my fish foods from there now. the prices are great and shipping is minimal, but you'd have to have a credit card to make the payment. If you do decide to order from there, I'd go with any type of pellet or soft n moist krill. I've been told by an expert in the cichlid field that most food sticks are too fatty and shouldn't really be used.

[span class="edited"][Edited by jason_r_s 2004-08-28 03:14][/span]

Jason is right, I had a shrimp ring out not long ago and turned around.. My oscar makin googly eyes at me.. Fed him 2 shrimp, and the catfish ate about half a shrimp ripped into pieces.. They love it !

Which reminds me, loves shrimp pellets also..

An oscar's main diet should be high quality cichlid flakes and floating pellets.. With all those other meaty foods as supplements/treats.. Or you will end up with an overly large, slow un-interesting oscar with a shorter lifespan. If the oscar is not eating what you want, let him get a little hungrier and it will eat whatever you put in the tank.. Mine gulped a crayfish yesterday for the first time !
Also, don't be fooled into over-feeding an oscar for the same reasons as above, with their puppy dog antics this is easily done..


The Amazon Nut...