With the ever expanding range of gold fish in today’s market, it’s no wonder more and more people are “re discovering the gold fish”. From the freaky bubble eye, to the majestic Ruykin, to the humble comet, there is a gold fish to catch the imagination of any fish keeper, from beginner to advanced levels.
Some people would query….phfft…goldfish hah they are easy what can I learn from them, where is the challenge, all you do is throw them in and they will be right…….. Wrong! It is usually these very people that come complaining the fish they brought 4 weeks ago must be “faulty” cause they all died but the 2 they had in their tank are still alive, so it can’t be the water!, We wish we had a dollar for every time I heard this.
Gold fish need their environment to maintained with in the ball park, base parameters are good quality chlorine neutraliser, some people don’t use this, but fact is chlorine will damage gill membranes, which eventually will kill the fish.
- Ph 7-7.4
- GH 250-300pmm
- ammonia >.5ppm
- Nitrite>1ppm
- Nitrate>40-50ppm
- Testing to be carried out at least fortnightly until your tank has stabilised .
This is usually why 95% of the time fish keepers newly acquired fish die. They go into water that is not in the parameters, consequently stressing them, while the original fish in your tank have been slowly acclimatising to the poor water quality, they might be surviving, but they certainly are not thriving!. Remember fish can’t talk, and gold fish, especially comets and shubunkins will tolerate very poor water, but eventually they will succumb to disease, and by then it is usually too late. We have seen people bring in fish doubled in half, and even after they have balanced the water, they wonder why the fish isn’t fixed. There is no magic cure, but by using practical husbandry, problems that can arise will be minimal.
Things that can also cause death in your tank are
- Fighting amongst tank mates
- Outside toxins such as perfumes, hairsprays, paint, and metal
- Oxygen levels
- temperature range
Good aquariums are not there just to suck money out of your pocket, we want you to be successful at keeping fish, so you stay in the hobby, if a product has benefit, we will tell you, if a product is a gimmick, we will tell you, at the end of the day, listen to the people in the shops for there is a wealth of information at your disposal.
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Page updated:
2 July, 2008
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