Does anyone own a goldfish?

~Kat~

Is it a pain in the butt? DS loves fish, but I don't want to have to maintain and buy a big tank. I was thinking that a goldfish in a bowl would be easier. I really don't want pet that I am going to resent though. Tell me about your goldfish.

PiperBride

I haven't had one for a while but I have had several as a young adult, including petstore goldfish, fan tails, and koi I got from a co-worker who breeds them.  I really love fish and I am going to sound like a crazy fish person!

Goldfish (or koi, depending on what you get) actually need a lot of oxygen and a decent size tank with regular water changes to stay healthy and alive.  If you're planning on having a goldfish or two in a small bowl and infrequently change the water, you will have to buy new fish all the time.  That makes me sad. 

I actually think the proper care of fish (bowl cleaning, water changing, ph balancing, temperature feeding, etc) is more work than having a dog.  I have two dogs but it's a totally different type of commitment to fish.  And you can't move them all over, you have to watch sunlight exposure, you can't go on vacation without a plan for them, they are very involved if you want them to live. 

Did you post a question on the pets board?  There might be some fish people over there with advice...good luck!

~Kat~

OK, well your answer settles it. I am not going to get something that requires that much time. I don't want to be a fish killer!

mags2041

We have 2 goldfish now and they're a pain.  We had a beta before and he was much much easier on the upkeep.  For some reason, the goldfish just get our little tank dirtier much faster.

Littlejen22

Just a warning, my brother's goldfish that he got his kids is probably 4 years old or older.  While most don't last long (probably the owners fault) it might be a long commitment, lol.  And it's not a fancy kind, just the "typical" goldfish.

PiperBride

I'm sorry!  Maybe someone will post that they have fish they can't kill and they'll share their secret.  I just think pets are a ton of work, no matter what kind you get.  I've had birds (LOVE THEM), fish, dogs, cats, and hamsters.  All work.  I've never had lizards, turtles, frogs, etc. but I imagine that the commitment it takes to keep any fragile little beings alive is a lot to take on.

And it's ok not to have your own pet, you can always volunteer to walk dogs at the humane society.  Or pet cats, keep animals company, that type of thing.

 

hero

You could get a beta/siamese fighting fish. The males are beautiful but because they will fight to the death, you can only have one in a tank. They can live in small bowls and don't require an air pump or filter. They don't have a long lifespan, I think it's only 2 years.

mags2041

OK, to add, we don't really "monitor" the pH of the tank, just add dechlorinator after we clean the water.  We don't monitor water temps either as the fish are cold water fish and it doesn't get *that* cold here in AZ.  And if we go out of town for only a couple of days, they're okay without food.  These just need their water changed a lot more often than the beta fish.  Thats what makes them a pain for me, not all the stuff Piper talked about.

hero

mags2041:

We have 2 goldfish now and they're a pain.  We had a beta before and he was much much easier on the upkeep.  For some reason, the goldfish just get our little tank dirtier much faster.

Goldfish are one the dirtiest fish. I'm don't remember why at this time.

~Kat~

Hmmmm. This is all very interesting. Somehow we ended up with a very high maintenance cat and dog, so I really don't want to add another high maintenance pet to the mix. My sister had a beta fish for like 5 years or something. For some reason I was thinking that a gold fish would be just as easy as her beta was. I had no idea that they were "dirty" fish.

mrsflanigan

Get a beta. They are super easy. They prefer a small tank- think very small, and they are beautiful fish. The downside is that they don;t really swim around a tank, they just kind of sit in one place. I have been thinking about getting one for my DD for a while.

dnagal

They are dirty, but can be kept a long time in a reasonably clean tank if you get a "real" tank (10 gallons) with a really good filter.  But, you need to keep changing the filter cartridges and it can get expensive.  I had one that lived for 7 years and others that lived 4-5 years- some "regular" goldfish and some fancy.  I usually don't have more than 3 in a 10 gallon tank.-2 is better.

This site is a bit over the top, I think, but it is informative:

https://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/4468/faq.html 

Jen2004

Yhey are a pian..But I love them.. I had one that lived for 10 years I won him at a fair too. I had 3 clasroom gold fish that I bought in 2005 and my friend took them home for me last summer she just told me 2 of them died and #3 looks like she is going to stay around for awhile.