Goldfish

Goldish are the most popular freshwater aquarium fish in the world. They have been domesticated thousands of years ago in China and Now there are so many types of fancy Goldifsh out there. Some of these fancy types are very expensive and rare. Most of old Goldfish types are hardy fish who can survive even bad winters.

Since they are very popular among fish keepers These fish are available in every single pet shop out there. You won’t find a pet store without Goldfish unless they don’t sell fish at all. But of cause make sure to buy health fish by watching them carefully before picking which fish you need. Letting pet shop assistant to do it is not the best way do.

But if you have never had these fish before then there are many things you should know about which will help you to keep your Goldfish happy and healthy. There are so many wrong advice given about them such as they can be kept in fish bowls. Knows how to take care of them will help you to keep them for a very long time since they can give 50+ years!

Origin of Goldfish

Goldfish is a domesticated version of a Carp species which are native to South East Asia (Carassius auratus) which is known as Prussian carp more than thousand years ago.  But some believe it was from Crucian carp. These 2 carp types look very similar. Maybe both these types were used. In early days Goldfish were made as Pond fish. It was during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) they have begun to raise these fish indoors. In 1603, Goldfish were introduced to Japan and Japanese made so many fancy goldfish types since them such as  Ryukin, Ranchu etc. In 1611 introduced to Portugal and other parts of Europe. Around 1850 they were introduced to North America.

Size and Weight

These guys can become really big and since they are related to carp they naturally grow big depending on space and food they get. They is why Goldish is not a Bowl fish.  This fish should not be kept in bowl. It would only shorten their life span. Those single tail common Goldish can grown up to 20+ inches. In English school student caught a 16inch one which probably is the biggest recorded one in UK.  They adapt well so there must be Giants roaming in lakes around the world.

Diet and Feeding

They eat nonstop and willing to eat anything. Overfeeding is one of the biggest problem you might end-up with. It can block intestines etc. So you have to be in control when you feed these guys. It’s better not feed them more than twice a day.

Tank Sizes

Goldfish are mainly pond fish apart from some fancy types. They grown big so they need really big space.  If you really want to care about your fish then each Goldfish need at least 20 gallons of water so you can do the math about tanks.  Providing you have very good filter system 50 Gallon tank would be a good for 2 pair of Goldish even though it’s not the best.

Cleaning Tank and Water Changes

Goldfish are messy eaters. More they eat more they poop undigested food which rise ammonia levels in your tank. So it’s important to have a good filter system in your tank as well as using air pump. Like most of other fish they are happy to be in clean water. Water changes should depends on how many fish you have, tank size and your filter system. If you have a small tank like 10 gallon or 20 gallon then it’s better have your tank bare bottom without gravel or any plants driftwood easy. This way fish will have more space to swim and also it will be easy to clean the tank. Smaller the tank more often you will have to do water changes since your tank will get dirty fast. You will need to do 50% water change in every 2-3 days. It’s important to have an air pump with air stones in such small tank.  Remember Most Goldfish types grow upto 15 inches and some of those single tail types even bigger than that. So 10 gallon means quite a small tank for them. So they need a good air circulation in tank like that.