Red Cap Oranda question!! Help me please!

[katierae]

Hello, work at a small family owned pet store and about 4 months ago we got in a shipment of goldfish which included several orandas, each about 2 inches long. about 2 months ago i got the last one and he has grown about twice his size since then and is quite happy, anyway...back onto subject...my question is about his "cap"... Orandas caps are supposed to be big and bulging right? well mine's is almost flush to the rest of his body... it always has been....will it grow?!! i am concerned about it and i haven't been able to find much information on this anywhere. any tips or info would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

 

[cgrabe]

I've been reading up on goldfish lately and plan to get a few pretty soon. My understanding is that the cap grows thoughout the fish's life. I can't find any links at the moment to back that up though. I'm not a big fan of the growth myself.

EDIT: A short quote from http://www.petstation.com/goldfish-varieties.html :
"The relative age of an Oranda can be estimated based on the size of the head growth."

 

[Cearbhaill]

It's purely genetic.
Super well bred Oranda will have large, well balanced and correctly shaped caps, while many pet shop bred may not show much cap growth at all. There is also the possibility of this one fish being a "sport" or just a genetic anomoly- especially if the others in the batch look different.

As long at it looks clean and healthy (with no flaking or sloughing bits) I really wouldn't worry.

 

[aquariumfishguy]

The wen (or "cap") grows rather slowly and usually doesn't appear until a year to three years. Just keep your Oranda healthy and if he thrives, so will his body. While genetics do play a role, I rarely see an Oranda who doesn't have a wen growth... that would have to be a real shady breeder IMO.