PLEEAAASE HELP!!

[Never2Bknown]

My friend, who has always been ignorant when it comes to fish, got a four-inch fantail goldfish in a fishbowl the size of a cup from as a gift from a friend who is apparently just as, if not even more, ignorant about fish.
Feeling sorry for it, I gave my friend a two-gallon to keep it in--still WAY too small, seeing as a goldfish should have at least 20 to 40 gallons of space if not more, but still better than the fishbowl (not saying much!).

Anyway, the goldfish, speckles, became more than she could keep so she gave it to me for safe-keeping. Not having anywhere else to put it, I've been keeping it in my Green Frog's tank ('bout five to 7 g space). However, considering how delicate frogs can be and how much waste that fish puts out (I have to do a complete water change once a week--or more) I'm starting to get worried that my frogs are going to get ammonia poisoning.

So, instead of dooming poor Speckles to a fate worse than death, I've been trying to convince my friend to let me put him in my mother's fish pond (8X12 ft, 4 ft deep), where he'll have clean, circulated water, plenty of food, and all the space he could ever want. He'll even have a few other goldfish for company.

BUT, due to the chance that he might not make it through the winter (he should), my friend wants to take him back. In otherwords, she wants to stick a now five-inch long fish into a space that he can barely even turn around in to live for the rest of his shortened life in his own waste in a tank not one tenth the size he needs. Personally, I'd rather be shot in the head than be forced to endure that, but my friend won't be convinced.

PLEASE, PLEASE help me to talk some sense into her!!!!

 

[daniodude]

I would............... but how?

 

[Never2Bknown]

Just add a reply telling her how bad it would be to do that to her poor fish. I might be able to just print it out later and hand it to her and say, "This is what all the people who REALLY know fish have to say about it!!!" Who knows? Maybe she'll actually get the point this time if I'm not the only one telling her that it's not a good idea to treat her fish like that (kinda hard to knock any sense into her sometimes!!).

 

[daniodude]

When I ask my partents if I can get a bigger tank, they say, "you already have a 10g, why do you need another one?" and I tell them that I wanna get bigger fish, and they say" the fish'll adjust to the size of the tank." UNTRUE!!!!!!!!!
Every time I have to point out that, just because the outside of the fish'll adjust doesn't mean that the inside'll adjust. the inside of the fish will get too big for the outside of its body. Therefore you are causing the fish a painful death. You don't want that on your consience do you?
also, goldfish an large tank partially because they are very dirty fish or they need a really powerful filter, really really powerful. All that ppl say about "goldfish bowls is A LOAD OF CRAP!!!!!!!!!! they are goldfish torture chambers.

all in all, let never2bknown keep the fish or get ur own large tank.
PPPPPPPPPPPPPLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!!!!!!

 

[cat.fish]

danio dude took the words right of my keyboard

 

[The-Wolf]

Taken from my pinned topic in coldwater forum

Goldfish can live for 20+ years and reach sizes in excess of 15"

You need 20 U.S. gallons for the first fish
and 10 U.S. gallons for each additional fish
This means that in order to keep 5 goldfish
in a tank you would require 60 U.S. gallons.

A goldfish will not grow to its enviroment.
Its' body may, however the internal organs will not.
This can lead to serious problems with deformaties and death.

HTH

 

[Arfie]

If you don't understand the needs of an animal and can't be bothered to research it, you are ignorant, if you ignore the advice of a friend who is knowledgeble about the animal in question, you are stupid and shouldn't be allowed to keep any animals.

Would you keep a dog in a cupboard? I mean it could turn around and you can feed it, oh you could leave it in it's own bodily waste for a couple of weeks at least.

Goldfish need lots of space and powerful filtration or they will die .... painfully at that, mine lived for 18 years in a 12 gallon tank and grew to about 9 inches each.

Look it up yourself here http/www.aquahobby.com/gallery/ggoldf.html.

If you cant be bothered, give the fish a chance and give it to never2bknown, who will take good care of it!

Print that out for your fish torturing friend

Arfie

 

[daniodude]

Good job.
I agree

 

[Angry_Platy]

Just put it in the pond and tell your friend it died!!

 

[daniodude]

o thanx so much (sarcastic tone) now never2bknown has to print that out.
lol jpjp

 

[luxum]

Your friend gave you the fish for safekeeping. So keep it safe from the biggest danger to it, which is unfortunately your friend, not the winter. Goldfish are coldwater fish, and so long as the pond doesn't completely freeze over, it will be fine. If the other goldfish in the pond are comets or koi instead of fancies, it may need to be handfed to ensure it doesn't get outcompeted, but that's the only real issue. I guarantee putting it back in a bowl is a death sentence, and it probably wouldn't take very long. In a pond it will have a chance of living out it's normal lifespan, which should be around 10 years for a fancy goldfish.

Look at it this way, if you had been taking care of a friend's dog, the friend wanted it back, but you knew it was going to be put into an abusive or neglectful situation, would you return the dog? I wouldn't.

 

[clutterydrawer]

how deep is the pond?

 

[jacblades]

when i tell people that goldfish cant go in bowls, they say something like, "well i had them all the time when i was little" or "my friend has had one in a bowl for 3 months"
well, goldfish are supposed to live 20+ years. keeping one for 3 months is not an accomplishment. sadly, they dont usually last much longer than a few months if they even last that long.

i was stubborn when people bashed me for keeping a goldfish in a 2 gallon tank, but they finally convinced me to upgrade. i can definately tell a difference in my fish too.
sadly, i had to kill several before it went through my head that a tiny tank is not the best place for them.
i know i was selfish and i didnt have the life of the fish at heart. i was just concerned if the fish would look pretty on my kitchen table. i knew he needed a bigger tank but i rationalized. animals are not decorations and should only be bought if you are willing to do whatever it takes to meet their needs.

im sure every person on thsi board has had at least 1 goldfish in a bowl in their lifetime. we have learned the cruelty in that though and would like to prevent others from making the same mistakes.

 

[gaya]

If it were my friend, I'd go out and get a moving box and tell her to get in and see how she likes it (though she may not stay my friend)

 

[Never2Bknown]

Thankyou, Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou so much for your replies!!! She CAN"T ignore me now!!!