Talked My Co-Worker Out Of More Goldfish

[number20121]

A couple days ago when I bought the pickling salt for the tank, Miss Shelley and I started talking and she told me that she too has a goldfish "tank". She said they had it for a few years now, they used to have three fish in there but recently two died, the third one is still doing fine.

The thing is though she said she keeps them in a small Octagon tank in the bathroom, the way she described it I think it has like 5 gallons of water... but at least it has a filter. I told her how her fancy goldfish needs 10 gallons at least for himself. She was all surprised and said she is not going to get him a new buddy then, she figured out quickly on her own that the reason the other ones died was the massive overstocking, and she felt bad about it.

Unfortunately I couldn't convince her to get a bigger tank as she isn't into fish keeping. The fish originally were for her son and now she is stuck with it since he moved out.

But she was very interested in learning a bit about goldfish and I got the impression that she will do more water changes now too as she used to change half of the water once a month

I know I didn't get to change the conditions for the fish to be perfect, but I am glad that I could hopefully improve them a little bit.

[Sakura]

That's wonderful I like it when people are receptive to learning proper goldfish care rather than thinking you're completely insane!

[number20121]

Me too. Miss Shelley is a very nice person, and as bad as I feel for the fish, I understand in a way that she does not want to invest in a larger home for him. It is not her fish and she is stuck, and she doesn't want to get any more. She just wanted to get one so the current fish isn't alone, which sure is a nice gesture.

If I had that 1500 gallon tank mentioned in another thread I would have bought the fish off her. Then again, if I had the money to have a 1500 gallon tank I sure wouldn't be working at a grocery store, even if it is a supervisor position

[kshepherd87]

Good for you Fang It's great your co worker was open to advice and that fish will have a better quality of life because of you

[Guest amynicole]

Good job. Being all alone with weekly water changes will hugely improve the water quality for that fish.

[fruitloop1]

I dont think 1 in that tank is that bad but would be nice to see bigger

good on you

[dogsbykat]

Great job! Improvement is always worth celebrating

[shellbell4ever]

I agree any improvement is better than non at all Way to go Fang!!!

[mjbubbles]

As they say in my line of work...education leads to change. Sounds like you've already helped your co-worker improve conditions for her fish.

As a newbie - I was completely surprised when I learned how much room goldies need for optimum health! I thought you just stuck them in a tank with a filter and fed them. So it sounds like you're helping step by step.

Edited November 19, 2010 by mjbubbles

[Erica Stolte]

If it's a 5 gal tank, maybe you could convince her to just re-home that goldie. If she still wants fish, a betta would do great in that setup.

[number20121]

She is attached to the fish which is why she was thinking about getting him a buddy. But she is not attached enough to spend a lot of money on a larger tank.

They also keep this "tank" in their bathroom, so you know that there is no room for a bigger tank.