? fat Goldfish
 

I have been trying to find any site that deals with the care of goldfish that I can post pics' and get answers to questions but I can't find a good one in all that are out there. Maybe someone on the QB is a fish whisperer and can help me. I have three GF, 13 years old. For ten of those years they were in a ten gallon tank and very stressed, had lost all of their color and were almost pure white. I got them three years ago. Moved them to a thirty six gallon tank and I could see an immediate improvement in their behavior. Now I have two concerns. Are they in a proper size tank and are they getting fat. The fish are about hand size or a bit bigger in 36 gal. tank. My DH feeds them three times a day as the directions indicate but I think they look pudgy. Any help would be welcome.[ATTACH=CONFIG]324118[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]324120[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]324121[/ATTACH]

I had feeder goldfish which grew quite large. I think they grow as large as they tank they are in will allow. The one with the red lipstick has a lovely tail. Maybe you write to Marc Marroone on Martha Stewart. He has a pet show and anwers questions. Good luck.

My mother has a goldfish that is about 10 or more years old. It was actually a golden minnow mixed with Shiners my dad bought. He looks exactly the same, has lost all gold and is now white. He is about 6 inches long.

Those double finned ones do have that pudgy belly... the one on the right side does look a bit pudgy though. No advice though. Do they act normal?

Our goldfish is 25 years. This is the average age. I checked it out. We feed once a day in the morning. Was gold when purchased. Now white.

I only feed mine once a day they seem to do okay I think they are too fat

Your pudgy ones are Fantails, Other one might be koi. Please stop feeding them three times a day, will not be good for them. Remember, what goes in comes out and they will be swimmin in their own waste, even with good filtration. Ours eat twice a week, sometimes three times a week. A fish dealer that had tons of tanks of beautiful fish said, too much food and they be swimming in their own waste. We have had fish for many, many years. Tank Goldies and pond Goldies. We do not even feed the pond fish in the summer, they eat whatever gets in the pond. Skeeter larvae, tadpoles, etc. about a 50 gallon pond. Once in awhile I toss in some bread crumbs if I am sitting there eating a sammich, otherwise they forage. Go online and search for feeding Goldfish and get some tips.

Check out http://www.koiphen.com They are a Koi site but everyone talks all kinds of fish.

I had salt water tanks for years, I don't know alot about fresh water but if they are all hand size a 36 gal may not be large enough . I also agree that three times a day is probably way too much depending on how much you are feeding of the food if it is only a flake per fish it may be a diffrent story . I know many of my salt water fish only required one flake per fish per day . I am glad you rescued them though, Fish are very relaxing to watch I miss my fish they each had their own personality :)

Yes- they are fat! Feeding once a day is enough, or sprinkle a Little bit twice a day. The bigger the tank, the bigger they will get. They need at least 6 gallons of water per fish and good filtration. I have a natural 1 acre pond next to a lake. People used goldfish as bait in the 40's and 50's, and the leftover bait was dumped into the pond and lake. The goldfish are a foot and more in length, and I've never fed them. They live on pond weeds, esp duckweed- a real pest. I have bullheads (catfish) that come over to be fed, but the goldfish are aloof. They are spectacular when they jump out of the water catching dragonflies, and are welcome to all the mosquito larvae they can eat. I do have occasional Kingfishers, Osprey, Herons, and even a bald eagle poaching fish.