Keeping Color

[euglossa]

Last time I ordered from Goldfish Connection, I bought a canister of color food, then almost immediately read that color food can cause color change in some fish-chocolate and black particularly. So I haven't been feeding it to my chocolate ranchu, but have been handfeeding a pinch a couple times a week to my calico ryukin and red cap.

I now have four fish. I got a new arrival yesterday, now in QT. Prawn is the most intense red/orange fish I have ever seen-photos simply don't do it justice. Is this a fish that would benefit from an occasional pinch of color food? Prawn is a red eggfish with pom poms. There is a little black on the body and fins and pom poms. I expect it will eventually lose the black, which would be a pity, but mostly I want to keep that intense red.

Having read that sunlight helps keep color, I wondered if sunlight coming in through a window and hitting the tank for a half hour or so a day would be of help? I normally keep the window curtained to prevent the light from heating up the room in summer. The window is across the room from the tank, so it wouldn't heat up the tank, but would the light do any good? But glass doesn't let uv in and is it the uv that helps with color retention?

I also wondered if full spectrum light, like an Ott light would help with color retention?

And I wonder what would happen if you moved the fish to an outdoor pond for a short vacation during early or late summer, when it isn't so hot. How much sun, for how long would be useful for strengthening color. And how much can sunlight trump genetics?

 

[reptileguy2727]

It is the UV that triggers than black to stay (like humans getting a tan).

My 150 is across the room from two windows that get daily sun, and my fish still drop their black.

For general colors, especially orange/red, I stick with New Life Spectrum. I have had yellow-orange fish become almost red (red red, not just reddish orange) on this food alone. It really is all that is needed and the best food I have found so far. It also allows me to keep their tank very well planted.

 

[euglossa]

so what we need are tanning beds for goldfish :evil_lol: There's a project for the DIY folks.

I renamed my new fish. I was going through garden seed catalogs and found a pumpkin variety with the same color: Rouge Vif d'Etampes.... now I just need to learn how to pronounce it.... I expect it will shorten to Tomp or Tom

What if any effect do you think new life spectrum food is likely to have on a chocolate colored fish?

thanks,
Ellen

 

[Inka4040]

Any food containing astaxanthin (including NLS) or spirulina can cause a shift in black, bronze, blue, or brown fish towards a brassier orange tone. It is best to avoid color enhancers all together when dealing with fish in those color ranges.

 

[reptileguy2727]

Darken it a little, at least that is all it has done with all the chocolates at my work.

 

[reptileguy2727]

Where have you read that?
What foods don't contain any color enhancers? (And what will the fish look like?)

 

[Inka4040]

Astaxanthin and spirulina are two common culprits who often come up when goldies begin rapidly losing their darker colors. If used indiscriminately or in lower quality forms, they tend to have muddying and tinting affects on fish of all colors. Beyond discussions concerning grooming goldies on several message boards, I have seen the deleterious effects these ingredients can have on goldfish color in my own tanks. Hikari Wheat Germ foods don't contain either ingredient, nor do they contain any ingredients meant specifically to enhance colors. It is also a good staple food for those hoping to maintain darker colored fish, or fish with a high percentage of white, where yellowing is to be avoided.

 

[reptileguy2727]

Isn't wheat germ mainly used to condition fish in and out of winter?

I have a moor and calicos and all of them have very dark black, no fading or anything.

From what I have read the only thing that seems like it may be linked to losing black besides sunlight is KH, and that is in early experiments.

 

[Inka4040]

Moor black is entirely more stable than it is in other varieties of goldfish, and calico black is a completely different story, depending on which layer the black is showing from. I've no experience with blues, but with lavenders and chocolates, the bronzing out phenomenon is definitely very noticeable, and as far as black oranda/ranchu I've had in the past, the use of color enhancers has never done anything but hasten the probably inevitable process of demelanization from the belly up.

 

[Flaringshutter]

I definitely agree with Inka on this subject. Color enhancers in any food will shift dark colors toward bronze, but they can be very useful for brightening reds, yellows and oranges. I think they are best used in moderation, in a rotating diet that also includes fresh vegetables, live/frozen foods, and non-color enhanced staple pellets. Overuse of color enhancers will cause dark tones like chocolate and black to turn brassy, and whites to yellow up.

The best color enhancer is pure, unaltered sunlight! So I think spending part of the year in a pond would be an excellent alternative to color enhancing food. The UV is precisely what causes intense colors, so sunlight through glass won't provide the same benefits.
Another upside to putting your fish 'out to pasture' for part of the year is the natural variety in diet. In a pond, goldfish have access to flying insects, worms, crustacea, pond plants, etc. Although time in a pond can increase the possibility the fish will bring in some sort of parasite or bacteria, regular preventative measures like a yearly dose of prazi when it comes in from the pond and some medicated food for a few days should keep any bugs from taking hold.