ColdGold
New Member
Hi, I am new here and this looks like a great place to get good advice about looking after fish. (There is an awful lot of misinformation on the net about keeping fish.)
I have 3 goldfish in an outdoor above ground 340-350L pond. They spawned for the first time last Oct/Nov right in the middle of a water change.
I wasn't prepared for it - should have been. The female was in hind sight, full of eggs.
I have a 100L pond sitting next to the large one which I keep in good condition in case I need to quarantine a fish. I moved a plant with eggs on it to the small pond to try to save some form the parents. I put mote plant into an area of the big pond - maybe some eggs would survive to hatch - and went google goldfish fry. Found out th water should only be about 6" deep. Read don't move the eggs, do move the eggs, move the fry, don't move the fry. Decided OK... they won't survive but I will be ready next year.
The fish trashed the planted area in the big pond. Some tree frogs took over the small pond.
About 6 weeks ago the pH started to drop in the small pond and all the plants were being eaten. I found tadpoles in there. A few days later I found one dark little baby goldfish. Then one little goldfish just starting to change colour. Then another dark baby goldfish. I thought I would leave them in that pond ( I have increased the filtration) over winter and then move them to the bigger pond when they are big enough to compete for food with the adults. They don't hibernate here (Australia), just slow down a bit.
TODAY I found a baby in the larger pond darting around with the big fish. It obviously has managed to get enough food etc. It is the same size as the other babies. All the babies are just learning that when someone bends over the pond food is possibly on the way.
SO - What do I do? Should I put the other small one into the bigger pond so they are all together? If so, how do I do it? The water in both ponds around the same pH wise. The smaller pond has bigger temp variations than the big one due to volume differences. Do I need to float them or gradually change water between the ponds to make it the same or can I just move them? OR - should I just leave them where they are until they are bigger?
Fortunately I had already planned to get a 650L pond next Spring so I will have enough space for all of them for a while anyway. Anything bigger will have to go in the ground.
I have 3 goldfish in an outdoor above ground 340-350L pond. They spawned for the first time last Oct/Nov right in the middle of a water change.
I wasn't prepared for it - should have been. The female was in hind sight, full of eggs.
I have a 100L pond sitting next to the large one which I keep in good condition in case I need to quarantine a fish. I moved a plant with eggs on it to the small pond to try to save some form the parents. I put mote plant into an area of the big pond - maybe some eggs would survive to hatch - and went google goldfish fry. Found out th water should only be about 6" deep. Read don't move the eggs, do move the eggs, move the fry, don't move the fry. Decided OK... they won't survive but I will be ready next year.
The fish trashed the planted area in the big pond. Some tree frogs took over the small pond.
About 6 weeks ago the pH started to drop in the small pond and all the plants were being eaten. I found tadpoles in there. A few days later I found one dark little baby goldfish. Then one little goldfish just starting to change colour. Then another dark baby goldfish. I thought I would leave them in that pond ( I have increased the filtration) over winter and then move them to the bigger pond when they are big enough to compete for food with the adults. They don't hibernate here (Australia), just slow down a bit.
TODAY I found a baby in the larger pond darting around with the big fish. It obviously has managed to get enough food etc. It is the same size as the other babies. All the babies are just learning that when someone bends over the pond food is possibly on the way.
SO - What do I do? Should I put the other small one into the bigger pond so they are all together? If so, how do I do it? The water in both ponds around the same pH wise. The smaller pond has bigger temp variations than the big one due to volume differences. Do I need to float them or gradually change water between the ponds to make it the same or can I just move them? OR - should I just leave them where they are until they are bigger?
Fortunately I had already planned to get a 650L pond next Spring so I will have enough space for all of them for a while anyway. Anything bigger will have to go in the ground.
