Goldfish Noob with many general questions

Lupin

The only plants that would not be harmed easily are hornworts, Java ferns, Anubias and possibly vallisnerias. It really depends on the personality of the fish but my two fantails, Felix and Alessandra destroyed my Egeria densa much to my chagrin. The pearlscales have yet to nibble them but they're new to my family of fish. Haha! I caught Bubbles eating the stray leaves though but that's not a surefire way to say they will eat my plants as well.

adiumroot

My Goldfish leave the Amazon Sword plants alone. However, they get uprooted by the fish, especially when newly planted. But once they take root in the gravel, it's mostly okay.

I also recommend Anubias. In fact, I'm planning to get some of them when I have the money, since they're much more expensive compared to amazon swords.

onekatietwo

Thanks! I'll write all these down and start ordering or see what the local stores have.

Also, an update on my search for a tank: I found a GREAT 55 gallon with EVERYTHING i could possibly want from Craigslist and then shortly afterwards, somebody else offered me a 30 gallon for free as long as I take the fish. Haha! I mentioned in my ad that i wanted the aquarium for Goldfish and they said that they just wanted them to go to a good home because they didn't have time for them anymore.
In the 30 gallon they have 2 "large Goldfish" and a "large" Koi.
I didn't know Kois could even be indoor/aquarium fish.

Should I be looking into finding somebody with a pond for the Koi?
Anyway, I'm excited to get it all set up. They'll have to stay in the 30 gallon for a couple weeks longer until I can pick up the 55 gallon, and then maybe another few weeks or whatever while I cycle it, but then I bet they'll be pretty excited.

That also leaves me with a five gallon, a 30 gallon, and a 20 gallon if i end up picking that up (also free from a friend.)

I think I'm going to have a happy betta...
and a hard time moving when I go back to school. Haha. I already have a dog that takes up the ENTIRE back of my car.

Lupin

The Koi needs to be rehomed to a pond.

onekatietwo

Well, just got them home and all set up. Poor things had a long, bumpy ride and their water got a little warmish too :(
However, I acclimated them slowly and used a fair amount of the original aquarium water and now two of them seem very happy and fine, and one maybe seems a little off, but I can't be sure because i haven't had Goldfish since I was litter.

Unfortunately, they're GIANT. I was going to try to find somebody with a pond to take the Koi, and then keep the two Goldfish in a 55 gallon that I would get in a month or two. However, I don't think they're even suited for a 55 gallon tank. It might be best to find ponds for them, too. They're just so big. It doesn't seem like they have enough room to swim around and the like.

But, anyway, I'm pretty satisfied for now and if I find ponds for them, I'll be excited to get some fancy Goldfish too.

Pictures to come soon.

adiumroot

okay~ I'm looking forward to the pictures.

Around how many inches do the Goldfish and Koi measure?

onekatietwo

Well, I suppose I may have made them sound a lot larger than they really are, but to me at least, they just don't look like fish that should be kept in a 30 gallon tank.

These aren't accurate measurements at all, I took them while they were in the tank swimming around but the smallest appears to be six to seven inches, the next one 8 or so and the Koi looks to be around ten.
The woman said the Koi was about 4 or 5 years old and the Goldfish were just a bit younger.

I called the aquarium store and they said they'd probably take the Koi and also give me credit towards other fish for him, which is a definite score. I hope that works out.
And then I guess I'll keep the two Goldfish in the 30 gallon for a month or two. I guess they've lived in there for a long time already, a few more months with one less fish won't hurt them at all. I guess they also used to have one more fish in there that was even bigger than the Koi. Yikes!

onekatietwo

Another update! I got rid of these guys. I found the most amazing home for them. I GIANT pond with three waterfalls and plenty of room and more pondmates. Not to mention the guy who took them LOVES his fish and will care for them a lot. They won't know what to do with so much space to swim around in!

So now I'm in the process of making sure the water is good and looking for some good fancy Goldfish. Unfortunately, they're not easy to come by around here, but I'm hoping I'll see something good soon.

adiumroot

I'm glad they found a good home. They'll be living the good life from now on.

What type of fancy Goldfish will you be getting again?

onekatietwo

Well, I'm not sure yet. I've found that my options are limited where I live (though a new fish store just moved in a couple days ago that I have yet to check out)
I might order one online if I get this job I'm hoping for, otherwise, my budget won't allow for that.

Anyway, i've mostly ruled out Orandas, pearlscales, ranchus and bubble-eyes, because I'm not a fan of how they look.
I like shubunkins a lot, but I think I've ruled them out since they seem a little bit larger and it sounds as if it is difficult to keep many of the other 'fatter' fancies with them.

I guess of varieties that I am likely to be able to find, I most like Ryukins and Moors. I definitely plan to get at least one Moor.

I also just picked up a teeney-tiny fantail from walmart. I don't know why, but he really struck me out of all the other ones they had.
He has a bit of Ich and is currently living in a tiny, empty hex tank while he's "treat" (primarily with clean water).

Once I'm sure he's well, he'll go in the 30 gallon and I'll get him a friend.