Feeder to Pet?

[black_sun]

I recently bought some feeder goldfish and with them I found this goldfish:

I really liked how the fish looked with it's coloration and long fins (compared to the other grey, short finned goldfish that it came with). And I separated it from the others, in hopes that maybe I can keep it as a pet.

So now my question is, what do I need to keep this goldfish as a pet?

 

[diavids]

just so you know, the fish will problity lose its orange colouring as it grows. to keeping goldies, the common get quite large so you need a large tank, for just the one fish, a 50 gal problity should be okay. they are very dirty fish so over filter, on my 90 I have a large canister filter, plus 2 AC 110's and I do third to half water changes every week. On the plus side, I really like my goldie's they have character. Good luck

 

[Kashta]

This one is actually Comet goldfish, not a Common. And it's beautiful. You picked out a lovely one, black_sun. Very nice.

Comets get very large. Full grown, this fish could reach anywhere between 14-18 inches long. So you'll need to give this one a lot of room as it grows. (They do that quite fast too, which is why we always let people know to expect this right away.) But your new fish will adjust quite well to having clean water and getting a proper diet for a change. Feeders are usually a bit undernourished in pet stores, as I'm sure you've seen if you've been buying them as food. So quarantine is even more important starting out. But feeders are real survivors too - they make wonderful pets.

Basic care requirements for feeders are pretty much the same as with other goldfish. Slightly cooler temperatures compared to tropicals. And choose a good quality goldfish food to keep him or her healthy. In just a few months, you can expect to see him just about double in size from what he looks like now. The finnage will develop even more too. All goldfish, even the fancies, start out as juveniles with the wild-type greenish gold coloring. This fish has already done most of the changing. You might see some minor changes still, but that basic orange and white color pattern you see now is already established.

 

[joestyx]

nice lookin' fish

what kind of fish are you feeding the feeders to?? just wondering

 

[black_sun]

14-18" hmm. What size tank will s/he require at their max size? The largest tank I have currently is a (roughly) 120gal. I think that may be a little small for it?

Could s/he potentially live in an outdoor pond? My mother is planning on building an outdoor pond in our backyard in the near future and if, when large enough not to be scooped up by birds/etc, I'm sure she'd love to have a fish in it. We always loved the koi in the outdoor ponds when we lived in Japan, but that was a lot warmer weather than here in NJ. Would it be too cold here?

As for food, currently s/he is eating Aqueon Tropical Flakes and various crumbled up Hikari pellets (sinking, algae and carnivore).

But I've found a few stores locally that sell the following goldfish foods I could pick up today, are any of these good choices for them (if not, what should I buy?):

Aqueon Goldfish Granules
Aqueon Color Enhancing Goldfish Granules
Tetra Color Fin Sinking Granules for Goldfish
TetraFin Goldfish Crisps
TetraFin Goldfish Flakes
Wardley Essentials Goldfish Flakes
Wardley Essentials Goldfish Crumbles
Wardley Essentials Goldfish Pellets


Oh, I pick up Mysis Shrimp and Blackworms periodically for other fish and inverts I have, would the Goldfish enjoy these, too or no?

And on the flip side of the carnivores, I pick up various vegetables and plants for some of my fish and inverts, would the Goldfish enjoy these, too or no?

 

[black_sun]

nice lookin' fish

what kind of fish are you feeding the feeders to?? just wondering

After quarantine and treatment, they'll be fed to the following (along with Rosies, Livebearers, etc):

-Butis butis
-Polypterus senegalus
-Polypterus delhezi
-Hybrid Ameiurus
-Ameiurus natalis
-Horabagrus brachysoma
-Assorted Crayfish

 

[cam191919]

i have several feeders in one of my ponds, they really are pretty

 

[phi_betta_kappa]

I've read that goldfish will overwinter if the pond is at least 24 inches deep. I've also read that ice on the pond should be broken for O2 exchange. Hope that helps.

 

[McLendon]

Tank size.one comet to a 20gl would be ok
Food.good shimp pellets green food(fresh or pellets) and live food.do not mix comets or koi with fancy type goldies

 

[thebrandon]

20 would be too small IMO.