Comet Goldfish

[RedStarFishy]

Ok, this is prolly the wrong spot to ask this question, so please forgive me if you have to move this post. i wasn't sure what area comet goldfish belong in.

that said, i have a question about comet gold fish. my boyfriend uses them as feeders (as long as i stop saving them and adding them to my tank! ). we never seem to be able to keep them for long, tho everything in their tank is at the standards they need. i am not near the tank right now, but if it will help, when i get home i will read of temp, etc to you guys.

every day there is a good three or four dead. what could be killing them off? are they hard to take care of?? now, i will say this, and it could be the complete problem. we get them from petco, ie pet chain store, and we don't know their health. i know the problems with this, please don't tell me, its my boyfriend who doesn't want to breed. but it seems odd to me that every single batch always turns out this way, with deaths usually every day.

i should also say the ones i have kidnapped have all survive, actually one is becoming quite the porker and enjoys having the run of the tank.

so i guess my question is, does anybody else have problems with comets and any suggestions? is there any goldfish related problems or solutions that might help keep em alive? i feel so bad that this keeps happening and i would really like to fix it as soon as possible. nobody wants any unnesscary deaths!

 

[sylvia]

They would go under coldwater fish. Is the tank(s) you are keeping them in cycled and how large is it? (read link in my sig. for more information on this) Comets are usualy very hardy. Is your boyfriend aware of how dangerous feeding store-bought feeders to his fish can be? They carry all sorts of terrible diseases that could kill the fish he is feeding as well as the goldfish themselves. You said he doesn't want to breed - and I don't blame him as goldfish are quite time-consuming to breed. However, has he considered using guppies instead? They are tropical fish but breed like rabbits and you'll have lots and lots of babies to feed your fish with. Also, by breeding them yourselves, you can ensure that they are healthy before risking your other fish's lives.

 

[WILDER]

what are your test results in ammonia,nitrite,nitrate,and ph, what size is the tank, how big are the fish and how many, and what size filter is it.

 

[HotStuffGal]

They are not made to be kept as pets hate to tell you. They live very short lives because they are bred and raised in tight quarters and are not made to live by themselves. I would not bother keeping them anymore as 'pets' though valient efforts have been tried I think its time to give up, there was nothing wrong with your tank,

 

[SnowyzMom]

It is my understanding that even if goldfish are kept in small quarters and do not appear to outwardly grow, their insides keep growing and so they end up with blockages etc. and die prematurely young. If the feeder comets are kept in tight quarters this unnaturally shortens their lives. Goldfish grow BIG and need to be kept in big tanks. They die so often because we don't do that. I sympathise with you over wanting to save the fish. I guess feeder goldfish are like the cattle of the fish world. Cattle go into the burgers we eat every day and feeder fish go into bigger fishy tummies. Sad but true. (and many cows have beautiful cute eyes!)

Sylvia has a very good point, you could use home raised guppies to ensure your boyfriend's fish stay healthy. Only the fastest and smartest of my guppy fry survive to grow up, the tetras get all the slower, dumber ones pretty quick. Hope you have more luck with the feeder fish but as the stunting has already been done to them the damage has already been done probably and hence they will continue to die off. Sorry to hear it. They are a cold water fish for sure. There's lots of info under that topic forum. Good luck!

 

[nino]

if you are buying them and then they die a few days later, that has nothing to do with stunting. they could just generally be unhealthy fish, overbred, inbred, etc. and the trip from the store to your home stresses them out enough that they succumb.

 

[RedStarFishy]

They are not made to be kept as pets hate to tell you.

i know this sounds miserable, so please don't yell at me. but we are not keeping the comets as pets, just as feeders, so we would like them to live at least the couple of days until they are food. i know that's harsh, but its the sad fact of having a fish that eats fish exclusively. i have rescued two from his tank, and put into my "community" tank so those are pets, and are doing fine so far. They were the best looking of the ones he had and i couldn't help myself and scooped em out. but i know they've been breed for feeders, so i won't be rescueing anymore. wouldn't want any problems passed on to my tank. i heard goldfish are pretty messy too, can't have them messing up my tank!

they are usually put in the 55g tank. But i think Snowyz is right, something along that lines. I really don't know how long they have been living in the pet store, so being in a small aquarium for maybe most of their lives could be why. i never knew about the insides growing and the outsides not, but it does make sense.

i will mention to him about growing guppies, hopefully we can start. maybe if i take it under my wing and start the colony, he won't mind feeding them instead of the pet store's. worth a try at least... well i guess i should start looking on raising guppies. thank you guys!

 

[LiquidLife]

Goldfish need clean dechlorinated water, plants, filtration (water movement), light, regular feedings of goldfish-specific food, regular tank cleanings, and are cold water fish. They will die if their water gets warm. They can be kept as pets but Comets will grow to be 2 feet or larger very quickly and you'll need to keep them in a HUGE tank (or pond) which is why they aren't recommended as pets. (BTW, Comets are considered koi, not goldfish). Your boyfriend's "feeders" are probably being kept in overcrowded conditions which not only stress the fish but also pollute the tank super fast (goldfish emit a LOT of waste). They're not given much consideration by anyone so they get manhandled horribly--since they are only going to be food for some bigger fish (who doesn't care if his dinner is bruised or maimed). We have 3 feeder goldfish that are 4"-5" long now that we've had for a few years. If you give them the same kind of care you would a prized fish, they continue to live just fine (as long as you keep them cold during heatwaves--we lost a few to sudden heatwaves when no one could get home to put them into an ice chest).

 

[NinjaSmurf]

Livebearers make for the easiest fish to breed for feeders for tropical fish. Mollies, platies, guppies, swordtails... it all depends on how big you need them. What kind of fish are you feeding these to?