my kid brought home a goldfish from camp

[Dave Peck]

My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.

Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
much money or hassle?

my girl is 2 and loves our hobby tank, yells EAT FISH EAT FISH at feeding
times, and is very excited to have MINE FISH MINE MINE MINE or else LFS
would have one more goldfish to sell.

I am surprised at the camp for sending home fish because they have an
aquarium in the office w/ some nice gouramis and a red finned black shark.

it is a sad day in the neighborhood cause there will be fish dying all
around. I have asked my wife to tell her friends that the LFS will take
them but I am afraid the prevailing attitude is this is a good way to
discuss death with their kids. Certainly won't help me sleep tonight

Thanks,

Dave

[Rick]

" Dave Peck" > wrote in message
link.net...
> My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.
>
> Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
> much money or hassle?
>
> my girl is 2 and loves our hobby tank, yells EAT FISH EAT FISH at feeding
> times, and is very excited to have MINE FISH MINE MINE MINE or else LFS
> would have one more goldfish to sell.
>
> I am surprised at the camp for sending home fish because they have an
> aquarium in the office w/ some nice gouramis and a red finned black shark.
>
> it is a sad day in the neighborhood cause there will be fish dying all
> around. I have asked my wife to tell her friends that the LFS will take
> them but I am afraid the prevailing attitude is this is a good way to
> discuss death with their kids. Certainly won't help me sleep tonight
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dave
>
goldfish are cold water fish and will not do well at all in a tropical tank.
They are messy eaters, create a lot of waste which may equate to an ammonia
spike which although the goldfish will survive you other tropical will most
certainly die. . I don't believe that a good way to discuss death is to
watch an animal die.

Rick

[axeman chris]

" Dave Peck" > wrote in message
link.net...
> My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.
>
> Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
> much money or hassle?
>
> my girl is 2 and loves our hobby tank, yells EAT FISH EAT FISH at feeding
> times, and is very excited to have MINE FISH MINE MINE MINE or else LFS
> would have one more goldfish to sell.
>
> I am surprised at the camp for sending home fish because they have an
> aquarium in the office w/ some nice gouramis and a red finned black shark.
>
> it is a sad day in the neighborhood cause there will be fish dying all
> around. I have asked my wife to tell her friends that the LFS will take
> them but I am afraid the prevailing attitude is this is a good way to
> discuss death with their kids. Certainly won't help me sleep tonight
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dave

If you can swing it, you need a 10 gal. tank & a filter even for one little
goldfish. Check out rec.aquaria.freshwater.goldfish or
for more in depth information. Your LFS was right,
they won't like the tropical tank that much.

Good luck!

Jacqui
>
>

[luminos]

IMO all of the children must be made to understand that each creature has an
environment it needs, and this can only be provided by the LFS in this case.

Goldfish are the most misunderstood (as to requirements) of pet fish.
Ornamental goldfish are as sensitive as fish come.

[Toni]

" Dave Peck" > wrote in message
link.net...
> My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.
>
> Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
> much money or hassle?
>



http://puregold.aquaria.net/pg/care/care1.htm#essentials
is an excellent page listing the essentials needed to care properly for
goldfish.
Good luck...



--
Toni
http://www.cearbhaill.com/goldfish.htm

[sophie]

In message . net>, Dave
Peck > writes
>My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.
>
>Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
>much money or hassle?
>
>my girl is 2 and loves our hobby tank, yells EAT FISH EAT FISH at feeding
>times, and is very excited to have MINE FISH MINE MINE MINE or else LFS
>would have one more goldfish to sell.
>
>I am surprised at the camp for sending home fish because they have an
>aquarium in the office w/ some nice gouramis and a red finned black shark.
>
>it is a sad day in the neighborhood cause there will be fish dying all
>around. I have asked my wife to tell her friends that the LFS will take
>them but I am afraid the prevailing attitude is this is a good way to
>discuss death with their kids. Certainly won't help me sleep tonight

as someone who started off all wrong, fairly recently, and is currently
engaged in putting it all right, I think these are the basics:

at least 10 (US) gallons per fish

good filtration (goldfish are really, really messy) and water hygiene
(regular changes)

DON'T OVERFEED IT! it will claim to be hungry every time it sees the
person who feeds it. it lies. it's stomach is the same size as its eyes,
and a lot bigger than the (probably non-existent) bit of its brain that
tells it when to stop eating. It will eat till it makes itself ill if
you let it. (I can't remember where I got that from, but I find it
helpful to remember it at all times)

a varied diet is good. some flake/pellets, some veggies, some live food.
mine like skinned peas and small white worms.

goldfish will tolerate a wide range of temperatures - you need to
realise that they live outdoors in ponds in environments where the
surface may freeze in winter and get good and warm in summer. What they
won't enjoy is a sudden jump either way - room temperature water is
good; if the temperature in the room changes it's not too much of a
problem as long as it does it slowly.

don't overfeed it.

don't overfeed it.

as I said, I'm an utter newbie, but those are the things that I've
learnt. I hope they help.

--
sophie

[Dave Peck]

I agree. I was hoping to avoid the fish deaths both here and around the
neighborhood.

--
Dave Peck
"Rick" > wrote in message
...
>
> " Dave Peck" > wrote in message
> link.net...
> > My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.
> >
> > Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
> > much money or hassle?
> >
> > my girl is 2 and loves our hobby tank, yells EAT FISH EAT FISH at
feeding
> > times, and is very excited to have MINE FISH MINE MINE MINE or else LFS
> > would have one more goldfish to sell.
> >
> > I am surprised at the camp for sending home fish because they have an
> > aquarium in the office w/ some nice gouramis and a red finned black
shark.
> >
> > it is a sad day in the neighborhood cause there will be fish dying all
> > around. I have asked my wife to tell her friends that the LFS will take
> > them but I am afraid the prevailing attitude is this is a good way to
> > discuss death with their kids. Certainly won't help me sleep tonight
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Dave
> >
> goldfish are cold water fish and will not do well at all in a tropical
tank.
> They are messy eaters, create a lot of waste which may equate to an
ammonia
> spike which although the goldfish will survive you other tropical will
most
> certainly die. . I don't believe that a good way to discuss death is to
> watch an animal die.
>
> Rick
>
>

[Dave Peck]

Thanks.

I'll price the tank, etc.

My wife is leaning towards the LFS donation thing. I think my 2 yr old
would get over it in about 2 minutes.

--
Dave Peck
"axeman chris" > wrote in message
...
>
> " Dave Peck" > wrote in message
> link.net...
> > My LFS says she won't like the water temp of my tropical tank.
> >
> > Y'all have any good web sites or advice to keeping a gold fish w/out too
> > much money or hassle?
> >
> > my girl is 2 and loves our hobby tank, yells EAT FISH EAT FISH at
feeding
> > times, and is very excited to have MINE FISH MINE MINE MINE or else LFS
> > would have one more goldfish to sell.
> >
> > I am surprised at the camp for sending home fish because they have an
> > aquarium in the office w/ some nice gouramis and a red finned black
shark.
> >
> > it is a sad day in the neighborhood cause there will be fish dying all
> > around. I have asked my wife to tell her friends that the LFS will take
> > them but I am afraid the prevailing attitude is this is a good way to
> > discuss death with their kids. Certainly won't help me sleep tonight
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Dave
>
> If you can swing it, you need a 10 gal. tank & a filter even for one
little
> goldfish. Check out rec.aquaria.freshwater.goldfish or
> for more in depth information. Your LFS was
right,
> they won't like the tropical tank that much.
>
> Good luck!
>
> Jacqui
> >
> >
>
>

[Geezer From The Freezer]

To add to sophie's post which included most (and was excellent)
Goldfish are not really coldwater fish. Sure they can live in cold
temps. Fancy varities actually do better in warmer water mid
to high 70s

[Geezer From The Freezer]

Dave Peck wrote:
>
> Thanks.
>
> I'll price the tank, etc.
>
> My wife is leaning towards the LFS donation thing. I think my 2 yr old
> would get over it in about 2 minutes.

Personally I find goldfish more rewarding than tropicals - they tame so
easily.

[TYNK 7]

>Subject: Re: my kid brought home a goldfish from camp
>From: Geezer From The Freezer
>Date: 6/23/2004 8:44 AM Central Daylight Time
>Message-id: >
>
>
>
>Dave Peck wrote:
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>> I'll price the tank, etc.
>>
>> My wife is leaning towards the LFS donation thing. I think my 2 yr old
>> would get over it in about 2 minutes.
>
>Personally I find goldfish more rewarding than tropicals - they tame so
>easily.

Don't forget many Tropicals tame quickly, and easily too....
::looking at her Angelfish and Bettas::
= )~
I hear that Oscars tame too.
What other tropcials tame easly as well?

[sophie]

In message >, Geezer From The Freezer
> writes
>
>
>Dave Peck wrote:
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>> I'll price the tank, etc.
>>
>> My wife is leaning towards the LFS donation thing. I think my 2 yr old
>> would get over it in about 2 minutes.
>
>Personally I find goldfish more rewarding than tropicals - they tame so
>easily.

mine chew my fingers if I put them in the tank - is this tame or just
very worrying?!

--
sophie

[Andy Hill]

" Dave Peck" > wrote:
>I agree. I was hoping to avoid the fish deaths both here and around the
>neighborhood.
>
Note, 'tho, that "donate to the LFS" is almost certainly death of a different
sort -- these fish will probably just be put back in the feeder tank where they
almost certainly originated. Cleaner death than death by ammonia poisoning, but
death nonetheless.

[N.Thurlow]

Not all fish shops treat their goldfish like that. We refuse to sell feeder
fish at all and any fish donated to us is rehoused properly. Goldfish
deserve the same treatment as any other fish does. We are also trying to
get a campaign going in the UK to ban fairs etc from giving goldfish as
prizes, its cruel to keep a fish in a bowl, they need a tank with a filter
like any other fish does. I would be more concerned about the fact that
they are giving living creatures to kids as toys. If someone gave my kids a
animal at schoool I'd go nuts. The parents of these kids would be better
teaching the kids about life and respect for living animals than using a
living animal as a teaching aid to death. Teach the kids how to look after
things not how best to kill them

Sorry for butting in but just a note that not all fish shops are the same,
some actually care for the fish they sell.

Nicola
Aqua Area


"Andy Hill" > wrote in message
...
> " Dave Peck" > wrote:
> >I agree. I was hoping to avoid the fish deaths both here and around the
> >neighborhood.
> >
> Note, 'tho, that "donate to the LFS" is almost certainly death of a
different
> sort -- these fish will probably just be put back in the feeder tank where
they
> almost certainly originated. Cleaner death than death by ammonia
poisoning, but
> death nonetheless.
>

[NetMax]

"N.Thurlow" > wrote in message
...
> Not all fish shops treat their goldfish like that. We refuse to sell
feeder
> fish at all and any fish donated to us is rehoused properly. Goldfish
> deserve the same treatment as any other fish does. We are also trying
to
> get a campaign going in the UK to ban fairs etc from giving goldfish as
> prizes, its cruel to keep a fish in a bowl, they need a tank with a
filter
> like any other fish does. I would be more concerned about the fact
that
> they are giving living creatures to kids as toys. If someone gave my
kids a
> animal at schoool I'd go nuts. The parents of these kids would be
better
> teaching the kids about life and respect for living animals than using
a
> living animal as a teaching aid to death. Teach the kids how to look
after
> things not how best to kill them
>
> Sorry for butting in but just a note that not all fish shops are the
same,
> some actually care for the fish they sell.
>
> Nicola
> Aqua Area


I don't necessarily agree 100%, but I think your approach is admirable.
I only stock 1 size of feeder (small), keep them in humane conditions
(until recently in identical conditions and treatment as any other
tropical fish, but I've now moved them into a backroom), and I steer
customers towards other sources of food for their watersnakes, turtles
and carnivorous fish. On all other points I agree that their treatment
should correspond to their size & metabolism, as with any other fish.
Allowing ourselves to treat a particular species badly, does a disservice
to the entire hobby.

On the flip side, I need to respect the environmental requirements of the
creatures my customers keep (whether they should have them at all is
another question), so some source of an acceptable food supply remains a
requirement. I'd be far more comfortable with using a lower life form
(invertebrates such as shrimp or something from nematodia), and will
continue looking for a commercially viable substitute.

For the record, feeder fish do not generate profits for the fish farmers,
importers, wholesalers or retailers. We would all love to have nothing
to do with them. They meet a customer demand and bring in some related
business (some type of dry-good sales). For their benefit (other sales),
they are still not worth selling (due to the overhead of maintaining
them, fish losses, customer dissatisfaction with quality, disease
vectors, ordering irregularities, low margin on bagging & handling etc
etc). Commercial transactions with feeder fish do keep some fish
industry connections alive, which would otherwise not exist. As they are
practically loss-leaders, no one ships only feeders, so by offering them,
they guarantee some other sales. Not to condemn or support the practice
of feeder-fish (just an FYI), but I think many of the mom & pop
wholesalers would not survive without feeder fish business to piggyback
their other sales on to, so I hope they can participate in whatever
substitute is found.
--
www.NetMax.tk