Hey peoples! I just bought a small tiger oscar. He's adorable. The thingis, he tends to hide behind a particular plant in his tank. I was hoping maybe he would be a bit more friendly and ham it up. According to my friends who have had these kinds of fish, they tend to be outgoing, sometimes to the point of letting you pet them, and being able to teach them tricks. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to make him less shy? Could it just be because he is in a new home and needs to get the feel for it? Should I make a point of spending a lot of time with my face near, and my hand in, his tank?

Thanks!

Almost all fish require some setteling in time. From what I understand about Oscars they have intence personalities and some will sulk for hours if they feel they have been ignored or mistreated, so being sensative fish they may require more time to adjust to their new surroundings. I would not suggest having your hand in the tank any more than nessesary especially during the first couple of weeks.
What size is he and what size tank is he in and is there anything living with him?

He is about 2 inches long, I would say. Right now he is in 20 gallon tank (I know, small, but I'm going to upgrade very soon). He actually has two tiger barbs in with him (a friend told me that his oscar didn't get pushy with his barbs, so I thought I'd experiment), as well as a small pleco. The oscar seems to like the company. They swim around with each other and none has nipped the other yet :) I am keeping a very close eye tho, and if I see one get hurt I'm isolating the oscar.