I am posting 3 pictures of big ranchu. The two ranchus in the tank does not belong to me.





This one belongs to me. 23 cm when she died.


A view from the top.


How big can a ranchu grow up to?

The first is the largest ranchu that I've seen! Thanks for posting. I've enjoyed all your posts.

Thank you! The pleasure is all mine.

WOWOWOWOWOWOW!.. those fish are huge!.. Ive heard orandas can grow like that to.. hmmm.. going to need bigger tank! (LOL)

wow those are huge

Over here in Singapore, there is a small debate over the use of the terms "jumbo" and "giant" to describe goldfish of such stature. What is the correct term?

I prefer Jumbo. Giant just sounds a lot bigger than Jumbo. I'd reserve Giant for a true freak of nature like Bruce.

You mean like A380?

Well the A380 is not a freak of nature as it's man-made but yes I'd use giant for truly exceptional specimens just like the A380

Man, I love pouring over the photos you post! you have had some lovely fish! -Makes me want to move to Singapore (except for the heat!), we don't get anywhere near as nice fish as that here in Australia.

bruce>>


I heard some people give fish steroids? Do they inject them? or feed them?

I fully agree with you. When we were young we complain about going to school, when we older we complain about going into the army, well as for the heat, I think that is what you guys down under and up north are craving for. You don't even need moisturiser for your skin.

you are right mads we don't get great quality we get the left overs really from other countries were the market is good such as the US and through out asia. singapore is very hot that is one of things i hated about my holiday to there but the fish are so cheap and extremely good quality

beautiful ranchu i think daryl had one which was 11" but maybe i am thinking of her lionhead ow well, i have heard up to 15" but i would say it may be possible to go bigger than that.

ahh i was right it was a lionhead not a ranchu but these days they are very similar fish and the length would still be about the same

I have a 10" white ranchu & zebra oranda. They are the biggest guys I've ever seen, I bought them from The Fish Sempai.

Boy, those guys (or gals) are big!! And I love those cheeks of the TVR - I just want to pinch them!

Wow! Those fish are huge! I wonder if any of my fish will get that big....

Here is a top view of this fella.

I read somewhere, I think another goldie site that alot of baby ranchu are fed ALOT of protein when they are young. This causes them to grow quickly, but somehow shortens their lifespan and can cause problems down the road. Has anyone else heard this?

Yes.... and no. You CAN "pump" fish by feeding them extraordinarily large amounts of high protien food from day one - but all fry do much better if given a good steady diet of protien. Algae is great for nibbling - but a good supply of live brine shrimp/daphnia/ etc. fed many times a day is still best for growing fry well.

Some breeders do grow their fish extremely fast. This is accomplished by having extraordinarily good water conditions, plenty of good food, lack of stessors and great genetics. It is worth money to a breeder to grow a fish to saleable size as quickly as possible - so they do.

It IS possible to "pump" a fish so hard and fast that some of them do seem to have life long problems. There are a few breeders/importers that supply fish that appear to have had this done - many, many very GOOD fish keepers have all experienced bad luck with fish bought from specific breeders that sell young/large fish - it is a common discussion topic at meetings - and all the fish seem to have traits in common. Whether it is a result of certain genetic makeup, "pumping" or something else, it is difficult to determine - for all the parameters are not known. But it is common enough that I would be leary of fish that are VERY large, yet young.

I would be cautious of purchasing large fish that are purported to being very young. Some of these are what I call "One-show fish". They can be groomed and gorgeous for one show, but quickly go downhill in the next weeks. But I would NOT be worried about over feeding your own fish with "too much protien"..... most likely you would be unable to do it..... With tremendous amounts of protien (and most foods) you also get trememdous amounts of waste. The amounts of water that would need to be changed, DAILY, in an indoor tank setup, make it virtually impossible to feed that way. You would poison the fish with the water parameters before the food had a chance to make a difference.

I tried "pumping" a set of fish once - 4 matched babies from a single spawning. The two that were "pumped" outgrew their spawn mates by amazing amounts. By the time they were 8 months old, they were an easy 3-5 inches.... while the others were only 2ish. They also died within a day of contacting an infection - making me question where their immunity levels were. This was in no way/shape or form a good scientific experiment - but it does make me question the whole system of "pumping" fish even more. Pumping has been reported and questioned for years and years - from many, MANY fish keepers.

By all means - feed those fry well. Protien in the form of live brine shrimp and other things is a GREAT meal - done every 2-3 hours all day long - is one of the best ways to raise healthy babies. Feed the bigger fish well, but less. Less food will keep your fish healthy, active, and swimming level and steady.