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.

The size of the tank that you will need depends a lot on how many goldfish you plan to keep in it. You should allow at least 7 gallon of water per goldfish.

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.

Also aim to keep the water temperature between 65 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Special aquarium thermometers are very cheap to buy and will allow you to easily monitor the temperature. Maintaining the right water temperature will greatly help your goldfish to stay disease free.

Ensure that you purchase a quality filtration system for the tank. When choosing a filter take into account the size of the aquarium and try to pick one that will be easy to clean. If you are keeping fancy tailed variety of goldfish in the aquarium, it is very important that the filter will not provide a very fast current. Fast flowing water will cause this type of goldfish to have difficulty swimming around.

The main causes that a goldfish does not reach its live expectancy are overcrowding, overfeeding and bad water quality. To give your goldfish the best chance at a long a healthy life provide a good filter, complete regular water changes and don’t allow uneaten food and other waste to build up in the tank. Waste in the aquarium will cause the water to become toxic which often proves deadly for goldfish.

If you follow these few simple guidelines, your goldfish should provide you with a a happy and rewarding hobby for many years to come. These steps require little work and maintenance, yet they will have a very positive outcome for you and your goldfish.

Tags: Fish

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 25th, 2009 at 1:28 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.