verbal
CCA Members
For a lot of people an oscar ends up being more of a pet than "just" a fish. So you might as well start off with good quality, even if it takes a little more money and effort.
Besides the often questionable quality at a petsmart, there also is the issue of what happens to the typical 2" oscar sold at a petsmart. I think Petsmart can potentially do a good job getting people started with keeping fish, but oscars are not at all a fish for beginners(unless you are starting off with a 75+ gallon tank). I think somewhere like Tropical Fish World would be a lot better place to buy a baby oscar. They also have the big boys, so people who buy there should know what they are getting into.
Besides the often questionable quality at a petsmart, there also is the issue of what happens to the typical 2" oscar sold at a petsmart. I think Petsmart can potentially do a good job getting people started with keeping fish, but oscars are not at all a fish for beginners(unless you are starting off with a 75+ gallon tank). I think somewhere like Tropical Fish World would be a lot better place to buy a baby oscar. They also have the big boys, so people who buy there should know what they are getting into.