fish-obsession:
Is not true, don’t go by that.
For example, lets take a goldfish. Most would keep this little one inch guy in a one gallon bowl because its small and thats the rule
Wrong!! The rule is actually for adult fish not juvenile ones, like the goldfish. That one inch baby grows to be 12 inches adult. 12 gallons of water is not going to let him grow to be 12 inches, he needs a nice pond for that
keep that in mind if you want to use that rule, use it lightly if you do
I think that this rule was invented by keepers of some of the smaller tropical fishes, (guppies, tetreas etc) but even then it’s really not that accurate. Guppies could do well if they were housed by the rule, but zebra danios or neons for example are much faster fish who need room to school, and wouldn’t do so well by it. The best rule is to do as much research as you can about the fish’s needs before you decide to bring it home, and provide the best possible living conditions you are capable of. :)
anunseenpath asked: The tank I have is temporary and I'm moving soon so I'm having them get used to it before traveling. There is a plant in there (only one of them likes it and uses it hide) and a filter. By extremely reactive I meant they react to things that are not in the same room as them. The water has been in the tank for 2 days and it was treated. The water level was only right there because I had just took out the ship. Also they are not all staying together.
I am glad to hear that this is a temporary tank. It is however, still quite small to keep 4 goldfish in for any period of time longer than the actual move itself. I am glad that you have a filter in there, it will provide necessary water circulation. Do you mean that the water has been in the tank 2 days as treatment prior to the fish being placed in the tank? Or that they have been living i the water for two days? If the latter, you must change it, as in a tank that small with 4 goldfish, the filter isn’t likely to remove enough waste to keep the water safe for them. Unless it is a seeded/cycled filter (which because you said this is a temporary tank i highly doubt it could be) the water must be changed every day until they are moved into their more permanent tank. Because there isn’t a lot of room inside the tank, place a dark towel around it to reduce stress, as it will be stressful enough to move them without them being stressed out before the move. Stress can and will kill otherwise healthy fish. Good luck.
calliopillar:
So does anyone know why a goldfish doesn’t need a filter and will survive in just a bowl? I’m quite curious and I tried to look it up but I couldn’t find anything
You couldn’t find anything because this is simply not true. Goldfish need large tank accommodations and heavy filtration. They are large fish that grow to be 6-12 in. long based on variety, and live an average of 15 years if properly cared for.
People spread around false information because goldfish are cheap, so keeping them in a bowl for a week looks nice and they don’t care if it dies. Once the novelty wears off, they just flush them and get a new one. Basically what is happening is that people are buying goldfish meant to be feeder fish (why they are so cheap), putting them in bowls (because they are also cheap, and the industry is promoting this sale of feeders as pets because it’s making them a lot of $$) and basically letting a baby goldfish die a slow death in a bowl because they think it looks cool and won’t cost them much. “goldfish don’t live long so why invest money in taking care of them properly”. this is false because the ONLY reason they don’t live long is because the person hasn’t bothered to do a bit of research about their proper care and needs.
m-iin:
i got a goldfish. a friend bought it. it’s not gold though. it’s black and it has a weird head. it’s living in a jar right now. and im wondering whether goldfish can die of loneliness. because if it can then ill go buy another one tomorrow.
No but they can die from being kept in a jar. That’s not a proper container for any fish, especially not a goldfish. If you want another fish please buy them a 20 gallon tank with a filter, other wise you should return the first one to the store, and not buy another. If you want to keep him, please research proper goldfish care.
(via sex-ramen-deactivated20130519)
