Questions on my goldfis

[MrJim]

I've got 2 comets~one in particular has a spectacular tail. They are buddies~one is never far from the other. My son "won" them at a carnival or something and brought them home in a little round bowl~summer of 07. Having had an aquarium for a few years a couple decades ago I knew a fishbowl wasn't the answer, so I picked up a 2.5 gallon tank to keep them in, figuring they were just feeders and would die soon.

Well they didn't, they just kept growing. I did put a heater in the little tank, neat little automatic submersible keeping the tank around 76 or so. I added a cory cat and flying fox and life was good...except the goldies got bigger.

So I got a 10 gallon last spring, added a few more folks, and all's been well~so I thought. I reading a lot about the goldies being coldwater fish, and that maybe the higher temps are the best for them.

I'm wondering that now that they've been in a warm tank now for 16 months or so if it is still advisable to move them into a roomtemp tank? I'm going to have to expand at some point~maybe making a cold tank for the goldies would be the way to go...

**Goldfish get no respect~I think they're cool though...

[smaug]

Ok then,I know that you know that goldys do not belong in a 10 gal tank,they should also not be in a heated tank either,nor should they be in there with tropical species such as the flying fox,which btw way is also in a much too small tank.Sorry to give you no good news but what you need is this.A minimum of 30-50 gal CW tank for the comets,the fox needs to be in a 35 gal because they get big,mean and territorial.
btw,the fancy tail comet is a sarassa.Hope this helps,it does need to be done soon though.

[Sharon]

"WINNING" fish at the carnival can sure be an expensive venture...(ghost)

[MrJim]

Ok then,I know that you know that goldys do not belong in a 10 gal tank,they should also not be in a heated tank either,nor should they be in there with tropical species such as the flying fox,which btw way is also in a much too small tank.Sorry to give you no good news but what you need is this.A minimum of 30-50 gal CW tank for the comets,the fox needs to be in a 35 gal because they get big,mean and territorial.
btw,the fancy tail comet is a sarassa.Hope this helps,it does need to be done soon though.

That fox is only 1" long~gets that mean huh? I was surprised to see it classed as a catfish..

I was looking at a 29gal tank today for the goldies...one is 2.5" and other is 4". Thought I read that corys were ok for cold tanks~they all get along well-one cory has been with the goldies almost since the beginning and I think he thinks he's a goldfish; only problem I've had was a chinese algae eater I had would suck onto the side of the goldfish...algae eater ended up dead--unknown cause, figured the goldfish had him rubbed out ;)...

[Fishguy2727]

Actually a long-tailed 'common' goldfish is a comet. Comets are long-finned normal-bodied goldfish. Sarassas are red and white long-bodied goldfish.

Goldfish are actually fine in the warmer temps. They are a wide-range temperature fish, not actually coldwater. There are a few things to be aware of though. One is that it raises their metabolism. This means they need more food and will produce more waste. This means more water changes and better filtration are needed. In addition to this their demand for oxygen is raised which means it is even more important to have a good air stone in there.

How long are they?

If they are a year and a half old and still fit in a 10 gallon they are severely stunted. I have had my fancies for a little over a year and they are now baseball size. If they were long-bodieds they would be way too big for a 10. Mine are in a 150.

Comets/long-bodieds can be over a foot and like to school. A school is generally at least 6. So that is six foot-long fish. This puts them in the absolute minimum of a 125. If you want to stick with just the two and you provide adequate filtration and water changes they may be fine in a 55.

Check out the sticky goldfish article.
Check out the sticky article on stocking an aquarium.

[MrJim]

Actually a long-tailed 'common' goldfish is a comet. Comets are long-finned normal-bodied goldfish. Sarassas are red and white long-bodied goldfish.

Goldfish are actually fine in the warmer temps. They are a wide-range temperature fish, not actually coldwater. There are a few things to be aware of though. One is that it raises their metabolism. This means they need more food and will produce more waste. This means more water changes and better filtration are needed. In addition to this their demand for oxygen is raised which means it is even more important to have a good air stone in there.

How long are they?

If they are a year and a half old and still fit in a 10 gallon they are severely stunted. I have had my fancies for a little over a year and they are now baseball size. If they were long-bodieds they would be way too big for a 10. Mine are in a 150.

Comets/long-bodieds can be over a foot and like to school. A school is generally at least 6. So that is six foot-long fish. This puts them in the absolute minimum of a 125. If you want to stick with just the two and you provide adequate filtration and water changes they may be fine in a 55.

Check out the sticky goldfish article.
Check out the sticky article on stocking an aquarium.

One is 4" and other is 2.5"~~this doesn't count the tail length-maybe they're not comets? If it wasn't for the tails I'd say they were just common goldfish-exact same body shape. I did read those articles~wish I'd read them a year ago...

[MrJim]

"WINNING" fish at the carnival can sure be an expensive venture...(ghost)
http://bestsmileys.com/lol/12.gif got that right...

[MrJim]

from wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldfish):


The collective noun for a group of goldfish is a "troubling"
thumbs2:

[Fishguy2727]

If they have long fins they are comets. If they are short then they are just common goldfish.

What do you plan to do?

[MrJim]

If they have long fins they are comets. If they are short then they are just common goldfish.

What do you plan to do?

Nothing right at the moment~have to do some figuring.

[Fishguy2727]

They would love a big pond, even indoors.

[MrJim]

They would love a big pond, even indoors.

I went and put a ruler on the tank~the big one is 3" and the other is 2"...indoor pond would be neat though.

We have a trout nursery in our town~they have to put netting over it 'cause the herons found it was a smorgasbord..

[Fishguy2727]

They are definitely stunted. A larger tank with lots of water changes would be great. Start watching craigslist and keep an eye out for a good deal.

[MrJim]

They are definitely stunted. A larger tank with lots of water changes would be great. Start watching craigslist and keep an eye out for a good deal.

Is "stunted" a permanent thing or would they then continue to grow?

[Fishguy2727]

They should grow more, but will probably not get as big as they would have or live as long. And the longer they are stunted (it is still happening) the worse it will be. It is like keeping a kid locked up in a closet.

[MrJim]

OK got it..tanks