At the lfs there are the little baby goldfish, about 1 inch long and then there are the full grown ones. Which ones are better to buy? I'm talking fancy goldfish...fantails, moores, bubble eye. The babies are much cheaper.........are they as hardy as the adults?
Which is better?
- Thread starter Erynn
- Start date
Hi Erynn, it all depends on what you are looking for. You can go out and buy one of the bigger ones pay a little extra and get the features that you want in a fish or you can get pay a lot less and get a baby that looks like it has great potential and feed an nurture the fish and watch it grow, the only draw back to this is the fish you get might be a runt and not grow much more than what it is at the time of purchase or it does not turn out to be the fish you wanted originally. I like to get both; it is fun to watch them grow and it is also fun to admire the prize you have bought.
Avoxo
Avoxo
GF do change colors over time and your young GF will be more likely to look different than they do now than a more mature, older fish. I used to buy them younger, but now that my six are all about 5-6 years old, they are fairly big and I find the little ones just "too little"... I am setting a tank up for a friend and I'm getting the bigger ones for her. If the entire set up runs over $100, the fish at $6 a piece are still a rather small part of the big picture. But, if money is a factor, get the small ones...
Val
Val
Ok, so my next question......I am planning on buying the bigger ones.....so after my tank has cycled can I add all of the goldfish or is it still better to add one at a time? Also, can I combine little ones and big ones together???? I will only have 4 goldfish....big or little....but I was thinking I might want two big ones and two little ones to watch them grow. If it's not a good idea to get a mix then I will get all big ones.
THANKS!
THANKS!
First of all how big will your tank be, remember at least 10 gallons of water per fish, anything bigger than 5 inches of fish you will need 20-30 gallons per fish.
I would add the fish one at a time; you need to let the cycle catch up with the extra bio load. Another thing you should consider is getting a quarantine tank, one of the biggest mistake that we a hobbyist make is to add a new fish to our already established tank. The new fish can bring all sorts of diseases to a well running tank. Quarantining is one of the most important things you can do to insure the safety of your fish.
Mixing the big and little guys should not be a problem but at times the bigger ones will pick on the little guys. If that is the case try moving around the tank decorations that will mix up any boundaries that have been established. Good luck and have fun.
Avoxo
I would add the fish one at a time; you need to let the cycle catch up with the extra bio load. Another thing you should consider is getting a quarantine tank, one of the biggest mistake that we a hobbyist make is to add a new fish to our already established tank. The new fish can bring all sorts of diseases to a well running tank. Quarantining is one of the most important things you can do to insure the safety of your fish.
Mixing the big and little guys should not be a problem but at times the bigger ones will pick on the little guys. If that is the case try moving around the tank decorations that will mix up any boundaries that have been established. Good luck and have fun.
Avoxo
Definitely add them slowly. You may want to start out with a pair of the smaller ones, since they will be cheaper. GF are social fish, so two will be better than one. As for tank aggression, I haven't much experience there. Only once have I had tank mates where there was any size difference and the big fish was the king of the tank in that s/he constantly swam along the front of the tank displaying for me. But did s/he keep the two smaller ones from eating? No.
BTW, I recommend pellets as opposed to flakes. GF feed at all water levels and they will sink slowly, which if you happen to have a GF that prefers feeding mid-level, can only be good for him. Another good food, blanched peas. Take a couple of frozen peas, boil them for a minute and then remove the shells. The boiling is credited with doing one of two things: helping them sink and killing any bacteria that may be on them. Then mince the peas, I used a parsely shredder. You can also do the same with lettuce or spinach and I'm told that a piece of zucchini is a big favorite, which I will try later this summer when ours comes in.
HTH
Val
BTW, I recommend pellets as opposed to flakes. GF feed at all water levels and they will sink slowly, which if you happen to have a GF that prefers feeding mid-level, can only be good for him. Another good food, blanched peas. Take a couple of frozen peas, boil them for a minute and then remove the shells. The boiling is credited with doing one of two things: helping them sink and killing any bacteria that may be on them. Then mince the peas, I used a parsely shredder. You can also do the same with lettuce or spinach and I'm told that a piece of zucchini is a big favorite, which I will try later this summer when ours comes in.
HTH
Val