first off, hello! i am brand new to the board. my fiance got me a 36 gallon tank for xmas and i look forward to learning about the care for goldfish! setting up an aquarium has been something i've been wanting to do for a while now...

anyway, i haven't started my tank yet, but i'd like to know beforehand if any other species of fish or miscellaneous creatures (frogs, snails, etc) can live harmoniously in the same tank as fancy goldfish?

thanks!

Hi Sea Star,welcome to Koko's.
I don't know if you've had time to look about or not,but there are quite a few good articles about keeping goldfish that can surely make things easier for you during this.
If you get a chance,you may want to check out
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/cycle.html

http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/care.html

http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/tensteps.html

http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/comfish.html

These are all basic beginner articles with alot of good info.
As for companions for your fish,well it all depends on if your tanks allready cycled,how many goldfish/what size/if you're doing proper filtration rates,water changes,etc.
Truthfully,I wouldn't even consider any other fish etc.,until you get the tank established.You also have to realize that we start off by recommending at least 10 gallons per goldfish,because of the rate that they grow and their waste production.The less animals in the tank when you begin makes for a much easier and safer cycling. So maybe down the road,you can take a look at what you have ,along with space,and go from there.
Good luck by the way.

Welcome to koko's!

Dev's covered all of the basics =]