How to Care for Your Goldfish

Goldfish are the most popular of all ornamental fish and are known for their attractive bright colours. Goldfish originate from temperate climates and in the wild they live in cool streams, lakes, and ponds throughout Asia and parts of Eastern Europe. Today, there are a wide variety of goldfish available.

Goldfish are social and are regularly seen interacting with other fish friends. Goldfish have a lifespan averaging about 10-15 years. Unfortunately, many goldfish do not reach their lifespan potential due to inadequate housing conditions.

We interviewed Goldie the Goldfish to find out more about Goldfish and why they make such great pets!

Q: Do Goldfish like having friends?

A: Yes! Goldfish are social animals and when kept in groups often socialise with their fishy friends. They even learn to recognise people, too! You should have at least two goldfish in an aquarium to give them some company and stop them from being lazy, couch potatoes!

Q: Will my Goldfish be friends with other types of fish?

A: Usually, goldfish aren’t aggressive and can be kept with lots of different types of fish, as long as other fish are bigger than the size of the goldfishes’ mouth. We don’t want them to be mistaken for fish food!

Q: Are there any fish you think would be good friends with my gold fish?

A: Suitable goldfish tank mates for smaller aquariums may include white cloud mountain minnows, danios, and gold medaka. In a bigger tank, goldfish often like Murray River Rainbow Fish. It’s good for goldfish to have tank mates with the same swimming ability as them, it means they can all get something to eat, and will have enough swimming space.

Q: What do my goldfish like to eat?

A: Just like us, goldfish like to eat different sorts of food! Usually special goldfish flakes and granules are enough for a staple diet, but goldfish do enjoy a few live and frozen brine shrimp, daphnia and veggie mix from time to time.

Q: How often do they get hungry?

A: Goldfish like to have breakfast, lunch and dinner, but it’s ok if they are only fed twice a day. It is really important not to be too generous with your feeding — as it can give goldfish a bellyache and make the tank really dirty with uneaten food. Yuck!

Q: How much should they have at each meal?

A: Well, goldfish are pretty small, so it doesn’t take them too much to fill up. If you give them about the same amount of food as their eye they should be pretty happy. Another way to tell is they should finish their food in about two minutes – pretty fast eaters, aren’t they!

Click here to find out more information on how take care of your Goldfish.