yubonne 1 Posted July 29, 2017 How long do fancy goldfish live on average? Has anyone ever given up on keeping goldfish and switched to tropicals or other types of fishkeeping? Which is more work in everyone's opinions? 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Morgan'sMiracles 1,214 Posted July 29, 2017 Goldfish are messy creatures, and need regular huge water changes. In general, I'd say they are more work than tropicals. However, they're much more satisfying to keep.Sent from my VS985 4G using Tapatalk 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DawnMichele 6,045 Posted July 29, 2017 Hi Yubonne!!! I use to keep Goldfish and unfortunately I lost them all to Dropsy one after the other. I decided to go tropical and I LOVE IT!!!! I have a 125 gallon Oscar tank and a 55 gallon Angelfish tank. 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shakaho 6,312 Posted July 29, 2017 We estimate 3-5 years as an average life span of fancy goldfish in an aquarium. They will live probably twice that in a suitable pond. A lot depends on the variety. The fewer the number of mutations, the greater the vigor. My pond-raised fantails seem as vigorous as the "pond type" fish. A tank of small tropicals will certainly require less care than goldfish, but if you have tropicals of goldfish size, they will need the large filters and big water changes. Goldfish will actually interact with you and have individual personalities. Animal behavior scientists rank the cognitive ability of goldfish as similar to small rodents. The same may be true of the large tropicals, but I don't think they have done as much research with those. 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
koko 14,364 Posted July 29, 2017 21 minutes ago, shakaho said: Goldfish will actually interact with you and have individual personalities. Animal behavior scientists rank the cognitive ability of goldfish as similar to small rodents. The same may be true of the large tropicals, but I don't think they have done as much research with those. The only other fish I have seen that will interact with you like this is Sw clown fish. I have had Oscars but not as personal as Goldfish. goldfish are your water puppies 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FishyMandy 6,284 Posted July 30, 2017 (edited) I have a small tropical tank, and I think the goldfish tanks are more work but I enjoy them a lot more too. My oldest fancy goldfish was about 7 years old when she died. Most have died at around 5-6 years old. At the moment, my oldest is one I've had for about 3 years, though I think my Spice is a lot older than that, but I've only had him about 1.5 years Edited July 30, 2017 by FishyMandy 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Distaff 99 Posted August 7, 2017 (edited) I prefer the versatility of goldfish. I can keep them in a pond outside. My sponge filters are on solar, so no electricity use. Tropicals are tempting, but then, I'd have the stress of tanks in the house (which could leak), and another addition to the electricity bill. The house is already crowded enough with vivs and bird cages - all of which require supplemental special spectrum lights, and/or supplemental heat. Outdoor goldfish are pretty much low-maintenance. Unscrew the plug at the base of the stock tank, and water the grass. Turn on the hose, and drop in a measured amount of Prime. I net out the gunk from the bottom to feed the potted plants. If we had more space and disposable income, I'd probably have a few 200 gal tanks in the house - one with goldfish, one with discus, and an oscar tank. Oscars are one of those animals that are so ugly, they are beautiful (like hairless rats). Edited August 7, 2017 by Distaff 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
