Hello, when buying goldfish at one shop i was told that it was a bad idea to mix normal goldfish and fancy goldfish. some people say this isn't true. what are people's comments on this? is it true or can i mix them?
annie

I think it's like mixing Tuna and Blowfish. One is the fastest fish, and the other is about the slowest.

Think about that when it's feeding time....

Cheers.
the lady in the shop did say somethin about the goldfish being like bullies to the fancy fish, and that they'll bite their fins.......

well, common/comet goldfish can sometimes be agressive to fancy goldfish. also, the common/comet can swim alot faster so they will get the majority of food.

Did you come home with any fish?

btw,

I did it I mixed a small fantail with a sarassa Comet and some commons and a London Shubunkin and the fantail seems to be doing pretty fine. The Fantail (Ultimo Dragon) is usually stays at the bottom and gets leftovers.

thanks for the replies, yes i did come home with fish, i have a mixture of common goldfish, a ghost carp, some comets and some shubunkins too i think. but the lady convinced me not to buy any fan tails or fancier fish. but i think i might buy one or two and see what happens. cheers annie

I have a Comet with a Red Cap Oranda and they get along fine. There's no competition for food, no bullying or anything.
I guess it just depends on the circumstances.

I have mine mixed. One common, an oranda, several Lionheads, a Ruykin,,,well you get the idea! I don't have any problems with any of them starving!

Annie, what size is your tank. the fish you mentioned get pretty good size!

hello, my fish tank is 76cm long, 38cm high and 30cm wide, so its pretty good size. and i think i will go and buy some more fancier fish, as lots of these comments have said that it can be fine to mix them. cheers annie:)

So your tank is about 20 g. I'm sorry Annie but I think right now you're WAY overstocked. You said that u have some commons, some comets, some shubunkins and a ghost carp. Each one of these fish needs 15-20 g EACH when fully grown. So your tank is actually only enough for ONE fish. I suggest you refrain from buying anymore goldfish.

If you could kindly answer the questions below it'll greatly help us in assisting you:

- How many fish have you got and what are the varieties and sizes?
- What kind of filter have u got in there?
- How often do you do waterchange and how much?

well thats a bit weird because the place where i bought some of my fish, had about 30 fish in a large tank. my tank is not that much smaller than that tank,and my fish are much smaller, so how can i have too many fish? i always go to fish shops and see tanks with loads of fish in them, my tank is no way as overcrowded as they are.
I have 13 fish in my tank, most of them are between 6-9cm.
About 5 common goldfish. 2 shubunkins- i think they are. 1 ghost koi. and these other 3 which could be normal goldfish, or comets not sure. the filter i have is quite a good one, don't know the make of it. and i change about a quater/half the water every 1-2 weeks. then clean it out properly every 3-4 months.

what do you think?

Here's what I think,

You are VERY overstocked. Why? Here's why:

1. In most fish shops, they have a HUGE centralized filtration system that filters ALL tanks at the same time, therefore allowing them to stock more fish in a much smaller tank. Regardless of the filtration, the quick turnover rate of goldfish in fish shops ensure that the fish are always small ones. They sell them fast therefore they get new stock constantly.

2. Each one of your goldfish has the potential to grow up to 14-18 inches long. Your koi will grow up to 30 inches or bigger. Can you imagine all of them fitting into your 20 g tank? As I said before, each goldfish will need 15-20 g each, and the koi will need at least 250 g by itself.

There are a lot more reasons on why you're overstocked, which will be too long to list here.

You're not the one to blame. I believe that. I blame the ignorant fish shops for not informing customers of correct gf keeping methods. Many goldfish faces premature death because of misinformation and their misleading reputation as "cheap, hardy fish that lives in a bowl".

Now what can you do to rectify this situation?
Firstly, u need to assess your capacity. Are you capable of providing the total gallonage needed to keep all 13 fish (which is about 500 g)? If not, I'm afraid you need to return some of them to the shop and keep what u can keep.
Secondly, have a read of the articles in the links provided below and more. Have a browse around the site & forum to expand your knowledge of goldfish & goldfish keeping in general.
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/care.html
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/Filtration.html
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/tensteps.html
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/ftypes.html

We're here to help you, so don't be shy to ask questions

Keep us updated!

is this a new tank? if so, the cycling will be very dangerous.

Hi annie_spayne nice to meet you

I am afraid it is true, many of us were so delighted and excited to get our first fish (or 2 or 13) and listened to the shop owners. This is only natural as you think you can trust them.
Unfortunately as stated above most employers (not all) but most are hired to SELL stock therefore sell as many fish in a cheap tank to as many customers as possible.

Imagine a mum buying a first pet for a 4 year old and the shop says.....if you want 4 fish you need a filter at $300, a tank thats a good 4 foot long thats another $300 so I hope you have a large wall space, and you need......etc etc etc as he lists the rest of the equipment and prices")

The prospective buyer will take one look at the 4 year old and say no fish, lets get a puppy!

get what I mean?

The truth is they sell goldfish bowels and to many fish to get the profits. It is a business after all and most staff are not trained in the care of the fish or the requirements.
Ask one how long a fish should live...they will probably tell you "oh a good year or 2"
Fact is your goldfish if kept in the correct conditions should live over 20 years, the oldest know is over 40 years old!
I am hoping mine will move into the old age nursing home with me when my kids stick me in one LOL

anyway I share your enthusiasm with buying the fish....I want more myself. I hope by reading some of the links d_golem posted will help you. It sure helped us and remember at any time ask questions, I asked so many at first and everyone was so good to me. They will do the same for you too
Best of luck and keep us posted on your family"



Carmel I had to add................ your fish in your sig are the cutest I have ever seen!!! love them

Hi annie_spayne & a very warm welcome.

Rest sure that this forum offers the best advice to most goldfish questions. Coldwater fishkeeping needs much more space per fish than keeping tropicals to run a healthy setup. G_golem and LuvMuhFred has given you the best possible advise. And surely I would rule out the company of a Ghost in a 20 gallon!

Take care & good luck.