Fancy Goldfish Stocking limits

[Squatching_Fish]

I am working on my new tank currently (Tropical). But I always find myself drifting off to the idea of how much I love fancy goldfish. The funny way they swim. They're fat and goofy. Love it. Curious about this for the future when I get to this start this tank. I know they take big dumps and need lots of water / filtration.

What would Y'all say the stocking limit is and I'll give an example chart below. (This is just guess work, Please correct me)

10 gallon - X nope

15 gallon - X nope

20 Gallon = 1x maybe 2x ??

55 gallon = 4 - 6x

75 gallon 6-8x

100 gallon= 7-10x

 

Just curious. Love this fish.

[MWilk]

I wouldn’t keep one in anything smaller than a 29 gallon personally. They get very large. 

[Tony s]

A pair in a 40g. A 55g is mostly the wrong shape. It’s too tall and narrow. And they’re not good swimmers. Better would be a 60g breeder. Long and low. You could probably do 4-6 in there. I’ve been thinking about orandas a lot lately and doing research.
 

the thing with goldfish is they’re prolific waste producers. You’ll need a good filter without creating a lot of current. The more you have in a tank, the better filter you’ll need.

 

[Justnotrook]

I would keep a single one in a 30 gallon, then it goes up from there. 20 gallons is too small for me.

[mynameisnobody]

30 gallon minimum for 1 

[Squatching_Fish]

Dang. Ok so these fat boys need some serious space from to back and lengthwise. Sounds like 25 gallons per fish would be a ROUGH rule of thumb. and really heavy duty filter. Got it this gives me some perspective on this future prospect. 

 

Thank y'all

[mynameisnobody]

@Squatching_Fish if you can eventually make it happen, it’s very worth it. Do it right and it will repay you with hours of enjoyment. My goldfish are my fave of everything I own. However, I also learned that as much as I loooooooove fancy goldfish, it is very difficult and stressful. However, any single tail goldfish will thrive and are insanely hardy. I have a mix of shubunkin, wakins, and watonai. 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

#1 I love goldfish and carp species. We are talking fancy goldfish correct? Black moors, ranchus, etc? 

#2 I would agree start with a 29 g and 1-2, 40 g 2-3/4, 60 g 4-6, 75 g 6-9, 100 g 10-14. 

I did koi as a kid, in Southern California when I was growing up there were Japanese goldfish farms operating very similarly to some of the breeders in Florida. Many had an attached tree farm and strawberry patch. I had a place I went to and the owner would help me ID young and promising fry 1-2” and I’d raise them in my 75 g and then sell them at 4-6” for dollars. I did this from 11-14. Before that I did fancies but they had bad genetics then and I know that hasn’t improved. 
 

If I did it again I’d do a 60 g cube with 3-4, I’d filter it with an FX4, I’d do bare bottom with wabi kusa planters to help keep the fish out of the plants. Feed a couple times a week cooked unshelled peas to keep their digestive systems clear. 
 

Currently have a Sarasa Comet and 2 black moors in a 150 g pond. Nothing like seeing them in that volume of water being free and happy slurping algae and plant matter. 

Edited October 1 by Beardedbillygoat1975
Love not live! Autocorrect!

[Squatching_Fish]

On 10/1/2024 at 4:57 PM, Beardedbillygoat1975 said:

#1 I love goldfish and carp species. We are talking fancy goldfish correct? Black moors, ranchus, etc? 

#2 I would agree start with a 29 g and 1-2, 40 g 2-3/4, 60 g 4-6, 75 g 6-9, 100 g 10-14. 

I did koi as a kid, in Southern California when I was growing up there were Japanese goldfish farms operating very similarly to some of the breeders in Florida. Many had an attached tree farm and strawberry patch. I had a place I went to and the owner would help me ID young and promising fry 1-2” and I’d raise them in my 75 g and then sell them at 4-6” for dollars. I did this from 11-14. Before that I did fancies but they had bad genetics then and I know that hasn’t improved. 
 

If I did it again I’d do a 60 g cube with 3-4, I’d filter it with an FX4, I’d do bare bottom with wabi kusa planters to help keep the fish out of the plants. Feed a couple times a week cooked unshelled peas to keep their digestive systems clear. 
 

Currently have a Sarasa Comet and 2 black moors in a 150 g pond. Nothing like seeing them in that volume of water being free and happy slurping algae and plant matter. 

Yeah Fancies. This is some damn good insight to the wide world of Fat Fancy goldfish. That sounds like a fun upbringing. The fatter and stupider and long flowing tail the better. Solid advice on the peas. Yeah, they are kind of hills have eyes genetics from my understanding and if that helps them take bigger dumps and clears their tubes, I'll keep that under my hat for a rainy day when I do get them. 3x or 4x 60 gallon cube. Boom! That's the ticket

[gardenman]

Fancy goldfish is one of those rare areas where I advise against buying young fish and watching them grow. There are so many genetic issues with fancy goldfish that most young fish will develop issues over time. If you buy a more mature fish, you're less likely to have those issues arise later. The genetically weaker fish will have developed their issues already and be out of the market. A common straight-body goldfish at maturity can be 18 inches long. And most of that is the body. When you take all of that body mass and compress it into the more typical three to four inches of body length you see in an adult fancy goldfish, things tend to go poorly.