dodgy Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 i recently aquired a pair of red oscars that i was hoping to breed,but i am unsure how to tell the sex of them. they are both about 24cms long and very similiar appearance. any advice would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simonauv Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 The only way I know to reliably sex adult oscars is to vent them. You should catch them in a large net and keep them in the net, hold them upside down so their belly is exposed from the net, and check out their vent region with a torch or other good light source. There are two 'holes' near the base of the anal fin. One is the anus and the other is their genital opening. In females the one closest to the anal fin is the genital opening and it will be larger than the anus. In males both the genital opening and the anus are a similar size. The closer they are to reproductive age and condition the more obvious this is. Check out this page for illustrations: http://www.malawimayhem.com/articles_venting.shtml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 Dunno about oscars in particular but I can see the "running gear" of my other americans of similar size in the tank without taking them out & flipping them over. The boys pointy triangular bit poke out a little, girls are more a chunky rounder bit, if that makes any sense? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simonauv Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 Yeah - usually that's only really possible when they are ready to spawn - their 'running gear' gets lowered for action. Catching them and flipping them over doesn't do them any harm if you keep them wet, are quick, and are careful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorman Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 When your vent sexing a fish you dont have to rush at all You comfortably have 3 or 4 mins as long as u keep the fish nice and wet When you rush you have alot more chance with a larger fish that it might get away from you in the net and fall on the ground. When the fish is removed from the water the gills have 20 times more available oxygen in the air then what is in the water. Take your time and make sure the fish is handled safely and with wet hands This information was received by a leading Vet from Aquarium Industries which is Australia largest wholesaler Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simonauv Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 Yeah - when I said quickly I just meant not to dawdle - not to quickly rush it carelessly ... the fish will react to carelessness by thrashing... and as far as having 20% more oxygen available to them they also have less surface area through which to absorb it because the gills collapse on themselves and this absorption depends on the gills also staying moist enough (which in 3-4min they will of course) - kinda negates any increases in absorption due to higher oxygen concentrations in the air. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodgy Posted April 21, 2006 Author Share Posted April 21, 2006 i will definitely have a good look tomorrow fingers crossed i hope they are a breeding pair thanks everybody for your advice dodgy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodgy Posted April 25, 2006 Author Share Posted April 25, 2006 hi all have checked the vents on both of my oscars and they are both males all i need to find now is a female and hopefully i can breed them. see yas dodgy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phatoscarlover Posted April 26, 2006 Share Posted April 26, 2006 Hey dodgy, most oscars arnt as easy to breed as putting a M & F together, playing a bit of Barry White and hoping for some TLC. Its not to say its impossible but you will have much better chance of your oscars pairing up if they have grown up together. It might be worth "starting again" and getting 4-5 oscars to grow out together and begin to reduce the numbers when you can sex them. What size tank are you hoping to breed them in? When your sexing them if youve got a male and female to compare you will see there is a fairly noticeable diffrence in there vents. Good luck! Cheers Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simonauv Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 Hey dodgy, most oscars arnt as easy to breed as putting a M & F together, playing a bit of Barry White and hoping for some TLC. Barry White never worked for mine - my female use to love Melissa Etheridge though lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 Did you have a pair of girls taking turn laying, Simon? Edit: fixed punctuation to make it less sus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simonauv Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 I think I liked it the other way better ROFL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodgy Posted April 29, 2006 Author Share Posted April 29, 2006 hi all, they are in a 500ltr tank so they have enough room to play. problem i have now is that they are starting to fight so i will have to seperate them thanks for the advice andy i think i may have to try your suggestion. how long would it take to grow them from juvenile to adult stage and do you know of a good breeder so i could possibly obtain some. thanks dodgy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted April 30, 2006 Share Posted April 30, 2006 they'll hit 20cm within a year from 5cm juvies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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