Help! I'm A Reluctant Goldfish Owner....

[FishySarah]

A few days ago I purchased a tai devil crab, and was having trouble coaxing her to eat. On the advice of a pet store owner, I puchased three small comets as feeders (they are about 3/4 of an inch long each) Well, I put one in with my crab and it chased her all around her tank. (try to picture a miniscule goldfish running after a huge well-armed crab...) anyway, I don't think she is interested in eating the little guys.

And to tell the honest truth, I'm getting a little attached. They are cute.

Right now they are in a five gallon tank. The store won't take them back, they have a no-return policy on fish. I absolutely can't bear to flush those poor little things down the toilet or euhthanize them. I've even (stupidly) named them.

Now I'm reading this and I'm finding out that these little guys get a lot bigger than anticipated. I had intended to buy a ten gallon tank setup for a long time, and thought that would be enough for them. I guess not.

A friend of mine wants one, but her tank is only 20 gallons and she already has three goldfish. So I'm not sure if that's any better. I DO have a friend who has a pond, but she's three hours away and I only see her a few times a year. I'm sure I could arrange giving them over to her eventually, if she'll take them. Which she may.

In the meantime though, I think I can only manage a ten gallon tank. I have a 29 gallon, but its occupied by other fish (tropical) Now, I've wanted a big tank for a long time, but I don't have immediate plans to get one. So how long can I realistically keep my three little fish in a ten gallon tank, how much time do I have before I need to seriously start looking for new homes for them?

And also- they are not eating. I think they were fed pellets in the store, becuase they do not seem to know what flakes are, or to recognize them as food. they are very shy, and will not swim to the top of the tank. When they see me coming they freak out and panic, swimming away. I've never had fish that didnt' like being fed before. I am thinking I will not feed them for a few days, then start up again, and maybe they will be hungry enough to investigate the flakes. It could be they are still adjusting to their surroundings.

Any advice?

 

[Colin_T]

If the goldfish are small (less than 2inches) they can live in a 10gallon tank for a couple of years. In fact people keep them in that size tank for many years and don't have any problems. The smaller tank will however stunt their growth so instead of them growing big they will stay small. Just keep the water clean and look after them, and when you can move them into a bigger home.

Crabs don't normally eat live food. They are scavengers that eat anything they find on the bottom. Occasionally they might find a live fish to eat but not often. The shop should never have sold you goldfish to use as feeders for the crab.

If the crab and fish are not eating, and the fish are acting nervous and skittish (panic whenever you go near them) I would say there is something wrong with the water quality. If the tank is newly set up it could be going through the filter cycle and this would upset the creatures in it and prevent them from feeding.
Check the water quality for ammonia, nitrite & PH and only feed them once every few days. Remove any uneaten food and do some 30-50% water changes each day for a week or so.

 

[black angel]

woah

***If the goldfish are small (less than 2inches) they can live in a 10gallon tank for a couple of years.***

no they cant. a goldfish does its main growing in the first 2 years and to advocate stunting is awful. you can buy tubs that should be big enough to accommodate them. at least 10 gallons each for the first 6 months and then you will need more. a goldie in the first year can grow to 5 or 6 inches. a filter with a large amount of media too.

try and buy the biggest container you can find and advertise them for a pond. one goldfish full grown will need 100 gallons.

 

[GShorty1981]

woah

***If the goldfish are small (less than 2inches) they can live in a 10gallon tank for a couple of years.***

no they cant. a goldfish does its main growing in the first 2 years and to advocate stunting is awful. you can buy tubs that should be big enough to accommodate them. at least 10 gallons each for the first 6 months and then you will need more. a goldie in the first year can grow to 5 or 6 inches. a filter with a large amount of media too.

try and buy the biggest container you can find and advertise them for a pond. one goldfish full grown will need 100 gallons.

Agreed totally,sick of peoples theorys on abusing goldfish.

 

[Honeythorn]

Go to Wilkinsons and get 3 big plastic storage tubs, One for each fish, the biggest tubs you can get, they're about £5 or thereabouts each. Use those as tanks until you can give them to your friend for her pond.

 

[Colin_T]

There are only 3 fish and they are tiny, less than an inch long. They will be fine in a 10gallon tank for a while until you can find them a new home. And although fish do most of their growing in the first few months of their life, if they aren't fed properly and don't get enough water changes, they won't grow anyway. And since most people don't feed their fish properly, (no offence to FishySarah, you’re probably doing your best) I doubt very much the goldfish will outgrow the tank in the near future.

As for buying 3 big plastic tubs and putting one fish in each, goldfish prefer to have company and sticking them on their own in a big plastic tub will only stress them out. Better to have them all together so they can interact and not go insane.

For everyone who is sick of peoples theorys on abusing goldfish. Have you ever kept a fantail or blackmoor, how about a ryukin or pearlscale? Those fish have been seriously deformed for people's amusement. If you think keeping a couple of small goldfish in a 10g is cruel, then perhaps you should write to the Asian fish farmers and local fish shops and tell them not to keep or breed fancy goldfish. I believe that is a bigger issue than a small tank for small fish. Especially when you consider the bodies have been deliberately shortened compressing and squishing up the fish's internal organs to a point where they can no longer swim the way they were meant to or digest their food properly.

 

[Honeythorn]

If you put the tubs next to eachother the fish will easily be able to see each other.

Since the OP has read some info on goldfish and seen the light or reason so to speak , I would have thought she will feed them correctly which means they WILL grow. So a ten gallon for 3 , however small they are at the moment is useless within a few of months. She's already said it will take quite some time to get them to her friends pond. The tubs are cheap and easy, and can be used for something else when the fish are rehomed .

I have certainly never seen lone goldfish become stressed by lack of the company of other goldfish, plenty of silk plants to hide in, and possibly even some white cloud mountain minnows in each tub if there really seems to be a genuine want for company. The minnows could also be fed to the aforementioned crab afterwards if it is quick enough to catch them , seeing as goldfish appear to be too large or bolshy for it.

 

[Colin_T]

I have certainly never seen lone goldfish become stressed by lack of the company of other goldfish, plenty of silk plants to hide in, and possibly even some white cloud mountain minnows in each tub if there really seems to be a genuine want for company. The minnows could also be fed to the aforementioned crab afterwards if it is quick enough to catch them , seeing as goldfish appear to be too large or bolshy for it.

Here you lot are complaining of animal cruelty because I suggest keeping a couple of small goldfish in a 10g tank, but none of you are concerned about the goldfish (and now white clouds) being used as live food for a crab. Crabs are nasty when it comes to feeding and will rip apart whatever they catch. Then they eat the fish while it is alive. How can you think that isn't cruel but small fish in a small tank is?

 

[Honeythorn]

The fish could easily be quickly euthanised and then fed to the crab if live feeding is an issue. Things eating other things is not cruel. It's life. I also wasn't jigging for joy at the thought of the minnows being eaten by the crab, I simply suggested it since the OP appears to feed her crab live/freshly killed foods. If that is what it needs or will only accept, then it has to be done for the crab to survive.

Keeping 3 large growing species of fish in a ten gallon tank for months is really quite likely to stunt their growth somewhat. We all know the detriments to the health this causes. To knowingly do this basically a prolonged and deliberate method of causing health problems. Far worse than a quicker death by crab or the knife.

 

[Colin_T]

Assuming the tank is kept clean and the fish are well fed, the only side effects to keeping goldfish in small tanks is they don't grow as big as they could in a larger environment. They don't get sick more frequently or develop any other disease simply from being stunted in size. They just stay small.

 

[black angel]

colin. you talk about the deformities fish keepers breed in to these fish. could say the same for dog breeders who breed for a certain look, but this isnt the place to go in to that. to a certain extent i see the problem fish have with breeding for certain attributes as for dogs, cats etc, but the issue is stunting and growth.
yes for the most part most goldfish kept in home aquaria will die within a year. even with the right equipment tank etc the mortality rate is high simply because these fish are bred in vast amounts and kept in huge shoals in very little water so they are probably stunted even before they get to your home. some of these fish that are a couple inches long are around 2 years old already so the damage is already done, but does that mean we should give them a tiny home and let them get on with it? no we at this forum strive to get the message out that tanks less than 10 gallons are not acceptable living conditions for a fish with the potential to grow to 12 inches and more.
I for one would gladly see a ban on goldfish (not fancies) being sold for home aquariums and for ponds only..but i doubt that will happen.

 

[Honeythorn]

I too doubt it will happen, I always think the signs on tanks with large growing species should be much larger and clearer so that people can blatantly see how large they get . It may encourage them to think before buying. I also don't think goldfish should be sold as starter fish , or for children. I really hate that when you overhear people saying " oh it's for the kids! " and there they are with a bowl/foot long tank, or worst of all one of those horrific little mermaid "tanks" clutched under their arm along with a little orange goldfish in a bag . It's a living breathing functioning animal not a childs toy!

At the end of the day, if you don't have the space for a tank to accomodate the adult size of the fish to start off with, or at least something big enough to allow it growing space for a month or two while you save for the correct tank, then don't have the fish.

I've been to a house party tonight and a couple there told me about their goldfish. The poor bugger is 16 years old, about 4 inches long and lives in a 2 foot tank. No filter, plain untreated tapwater. The woman said straight out that his tank is filthy, loads of crap ect. She was flabbergasted when I explained how big they get, what they need and how long they really live. But her attitude was of the couldn't care less variety so I doubt his situation will improve.

They're tough fish and can take a lot of abuse. But that's no reason to deliberately keep them in such unsuitable conditions.

 

[ColdGold]

Assuming the tank is kept clean and the fish are well fed, the only side effects to keeping goldfish in small tanks is they don't grow as big as they could in a larger environment. They don't get sick more frequently or develop any other disease simply from being stunted in size. They just stay small.

They don't "just stay small" they get twisted and deformed inside and are more prone to lots of illness. That is why so many tank kept goldfish have such short lifespans compared to pond kept goldfish.

I tend to agree with you though about most fancy goldfish but that doesn't justify the dreadful treatment most goldfish have to endure.

fishysarah
I would keep them in a 10g tank for a couple of weeks at most and then take them to the friend who has a pond. Comets and common goldfish belong in ponds.