Goldfish are a very popular pet, yet surprising very few people know that their little friend can actually live for over 10 years! To be able to achieve this they need to be provided with the right conditions and proper environment.

Many goldfish owners mistakenly believe that their fish only needs a little bowl to live in. Due to this common presumption, many goldfish will not live as long as they should. If a goldfish is confined in a small bowl and not provided with a quality water filter they need daily water changes. Unfortunately few owners are able to maintain this and the goldfish health becomes threatened.

Goldfish need a tank big enough to provide at least 7 gallons of water per fish. So if you wanted to keep 4 fish you would need an aquarium that holds at least 27 gallons.

When deciding which tank to buy for your goldfish the most important thing to consider is that it allows plenty of air to get into the water. Goldfish need well oxygenated water to stay healthy, so a long tank is much more suitable than a tall tank. A long tank allows more air to touch the surface and more oxygen to enter the water which is very important to the health of goldfish.

You should aim to maintain the water temperature in the tank at 65 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit, as goldfish like fairly cool water. Keeping a thermometer in the tank will help ensure the temperature stays ideal. This is an important step in keeping your goldfish disease free.

A good quality filtration system should be set up in the tank. Be sure to buy one that is suitable for the size of the aquarium and don’t use a system that causes too much current; if you plan to keep fancy tailed goldfish. This special type of goldfish will have trouble swimming around in fast flowing water.

Often goldfish will become sick and not live as long as they should because of poor water quality, overcrowding, and overfeeding. Be sure to maintain your goldfish health by providing adequate filtration, maintaining regular water changes, and not allowing waste such as uneaten food to build up in the water. The build up of waste in the tank causes the water to become toxic, and threaten the fish.

With very little work and maintenance you and your goldfish will feel the benefits for years to come. Keeping goldfish can be a very enjoyable and rewarding experience, and doesn’t have to be short lived.

Tags: Fish

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 25th, 2009 at 1:38 am and is filed under Fish. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.