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Jack dempseys are very aggressive and pugilistic fish. I'm not suprised that yours seems to cause problems. I would take it back, and forget about the oscar, too. They need tanks of at least 75 gallons or so to be comfortable. I would go for a school/shoal of smaller fish in the 29 gallon, that would be better for that tank.

EDIT: Ooops, I guess Jason is right. I tend to give fish extra room, though. I like for them to be happy.

Last edited by sirbooks at 28-Oct-2004 14:42

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

You can essentially get away with a 55 GAL (4ft) for one Oscar. We have 2 Red Oscars in a 110 GAL tank (4x2x2)

and forget about the oscar, too. They need tanks of at least 90 gallons or so to be comfortable.

Assuming we're talking about standard 75 and 90 gallon tanks, a 75 would be ok for an oscar. the extra 4" height won't make too much difference to an oscar. sure it would provide a little extra swimming room, but wouldn't make enough difference to say that a 90 is ok but a 75 is not.

Not sure if you have decided what to do with your Jack Dempsey. I have a Jack Dempsey and Oscar in the same tank and they get along great! They actually hang out together which is pretty cool. But yeah, you would need a larger tank which you already know.......

yea i know a pet store that actually sells kribs but i doubt they would even give me anything for my jack dempsey. Only prob with this place is their actually a local business and their tanks don't seem to be to "clean" looking. I think i got a fish with ick from them before.

A pair of kribs would work well in the 29 gallon. You might ask the LFS to take the JD for a pair of kribs.

Kribs are very easy to take care of, and you'd make a small profit from selling the fry back.

Also what would you recomend for a 29 gallon (quantity/type) of fish. I like the smaller cichlids like rams and kribenisis but as i stated before i don't know where to purchase rams

If your trying to look for a tank, first thing I'd do is the classifieds in your area, and petco. Petco usually has large tanks for $100-200, usually 100-150 gallons. No stand or anything, which means you need to build or buy a separate stand (either way, it usually turns out cheaper).

I personally dislike larger fish, basically cause you put money in, and usually wont get any out. Other fish, like frontosa, will allow you to sell the fry to help support your hobby. Just my opinion, im sure others will differ. If you do like the fish, go for it

I would return the Jack demspey, and try to work out a trade with the LFS for some suitable fish or supplies.

Where are you located? Have you considered mail order for the rams?

Yea i'd love to have some rams in my 29 but i have no idea where to purchase them around here. Only problem with the 75 is i already have it pretty much maxed. I have like 6 various cichlids all 6" and under when full grown. 3 silver dollars, 4 giant danio, Violet goby, and 3 clown loaches. I plan on getting a bigger tank in the near future so i figured since my fish are all small now its ok to have them all in the 75. Also any suggestions on a "big tank" at a decent price which could hold some of the bigger fish like clown knifes?

Is a 29 gallon tank to small to keep an oscar in? I have a Jack Dempsey in there right now with a raphael catfish and a pleco. I could move the catfish and pleco if necessary, but since the jack dempsey is beyond aggressive he pretty much trys to attack anything. So i figure he would be able to live with an oscar. But yes, is 29 g to small for an oscar?

We need more aquarists like you! Open minded and accepting information

Personally I'd return your Jack Dempsey , or keep it in the 75 gallon.

29 Gallons has can be kept for various cichlids (leleupi, brichardi complex fish, shelldwellers, compressiceps, calvus, electric yellows, pair of rams, pair of angelfish, festivums, acaras, the list goes on!). I'd convert the 29 to a breeding setup.

What's in the 75 gallon? Theres alot more options of big fish in that rather than the 29. You'd probably get away with keeping a JD and an oscar in the 75 with tip top filtration and water changes. Of course , you can already try getting another JD and pairing them off in the 75 gallon.

Yea my jack dempsey is awsome but theirs no way i can put him in the 75 with my other fish i seriously think he would cause all kinds of problems.

A 75g is a nice size tank. How about just donating the jd back to an lfs, you might not make any money, but it would off your hands.

Can you sell any of these fish to a local fish store? They should at least give you store credit for them, so you'd basically be trading in one big fish for some smaller ones.

That's okay, at least you are learning. I didn't know very much about fishkeeping a few months ago, either.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

well its not really bad news i know that they all will outgrow eventually. I have a 75 gallon tank as well but i keep this running with these fish for right now. Was just wondering if it was possible to keep a bigger fish in a 29. I'm learning as i go along, alot of these fish i got when i started last year and then found out how big they got. I was thinking of giving away my dempsey but i have no one to give it to.

To be honest, that tank isn't big enough for any of those fish. Oscars get very large, plecos grow to at least a foot and a half, raphael cats get to be seven inches or so, and jack dempseys grow to eight or nine inches. None of your fish would fit in there long term. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but that's the way it is.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

There are going to be about ten replies of yes, so I though I get mine in first


A 50 g is pushing for an oscar IMO

Last edited by openwater at 27-Oct-2004 19:52