Goldfish as feeders or as pets?

I tried to feed flowerhorn goldfish b/c guppies were too small and instead he ignored them. So now, they are 4-5in(long tail) and are eating all my food.

So now im forced to keep the goldfish as pets because its mean killing stuff

Question is: Do you keep goldfish as pets or as feeders?

but they are just like koi fish except uglier and smaller.

i dont feed them to my fish but my friends do.

Man y'all are mean. But then again, I tried to feed my flowerhorn feeders LOL. I don't argue that they are cheap as hell and are cool to watch die, but still, 2 goldfish can produce billions of babies (to be eaten as well LOL).

Lol yeah, way cheaper just to buy the goldfish then to raise them from 0-FEEDER age. The food would cost waay more then 26 cents worth

Goldfish cant breed until they are a couple of year sold and pretty big. And if you can get them to breed they need somewhere to lay their eggs and then they have to be taken out cuz they will eat the eggs. Plus its REALLY hard to tell the difference between male and female goldfish! The only way i know to tell besides blood tests is to wait until it rains or the temperature changes dramatically in a short time then look at the gill plates. If the fish has little with spots on the gill plates (kind of like ich) it's male if not it MIGHT be female. Out of all the goldfish I have ever had I've only had 3 confirmed females. For some reason a lot of goldfish are males, I think it has to do with the temperature the water is when they spawn.

I have been keeping goldfish for YEARS and I have friends who have done the same. Mostly fancy goldfish, although i have two friends who have comet goldfish that are years old and HUGE! My friends common goldfish Bob is 5 years old and around a foot long! Another friend had a comet goldfish so big he had to move it form his 60g to an outdoor pond with some koi.

I love my fancy goldfish and koi, but i understand using comets and common goldfish as feeders. I've used them to feed turtles and snakes. However, I think that most people overlook how awesome they can be in a home aquarium. I can post some pictures of my goldfish tanks :)

As far as the pros and cons of keeping goldfish here they are:

Pros
They are pretty
generally peaceful
hardy
easy to feed
fun to watch
come in a lot of variety
Dont need a heater

Cons
They are MESSY! (need A LOT of filtration)
need a lot of space
High Oxygen needs(needs good aeration)
They get VERY BIG (although this could be a pro too)
They should only be kept with other goldfish

I have feeder fish in my pond. They are super playful and tame and come to be fed when I hang out at the pond. My very first year I had babies (so there goes the theory that they need to be older than a year). That same year I lost many fish because I accidently flooded my pond with a forgotten fill hose :(

My pond is stocked with goldfish, indigenous minnows, crayfish and a resident pair of bullfrogs that were raised from tadpoles. The male bullfrog left this year for the first time (the female refused to mate with him). I'm sure he's out looking for a more cooperative mate. Though we were told they'd eat everything in site, my four year old bullies do not eat anything in my pond unless I feed it to them.

I also have a Pacific Pond Turtle that comes and goes. She also doesn't eat anything in the pond either.

The only native critters I don't have are tree frogs (the bullies do eat those) and the pond fish eat any tadpoles that get the chance to hatch.

I have lost a few fish to birds of prey...but usually my dog scares them off before they get too comfortable.

I have a Koi pond, and in there, I have 2 long Fancy tail Comets... their tails are like nothing I have ever seen. I once spent over $40 to save these guys, when it would have been cheaper to just buy 2 more. But they are very pretty, and hold a special place in my heart. I also have a sarasas red comet-ugh- I HATE that thing, but my boyfriend loves it. They I have a fantail which has gotten extremely large in my 1500 gallon tank. And then I have a feeder. I don't really care he's in there, and half the time he just blends in with my little koi.

I will NOT feed my fish goldfish feeders. I will feed them Roseys, which are just smaller goldfish, but they hadn't developed color or anything, so I don't feel as bad.

I think that feeder goldfish is just a label. They can be pets, but at my pet store, you pay more to pick the fish you want out of the feeder bin. haha.

If you want them as pets, have them as pets, if you want them as food, feed them for food.

The spots on male goldfish operculum (gill covers) are called breeding stars.
When goldfish are mature and large enough, you can sex them by venting them. The males have a longer indented vent, which the females is shorter and protruded.

With the amount of money you will spend keeping the feeders alive while they grow, you are better off just buying them from the petstore. It's like 35 cents a doz here.

Hi Jade, I'm new to this forum but wanted to tell you that I have two goldfish, one is approximately 6-7" long. he started out as a feeder for my son's two oscars. The one oscar adopted him and he kept growing and is so large now. He is a buddy, loves to eat and has a new friend (another fan tail) who has become his best bud now. I can relate to what you are saying about them being pets.

carold

Goldfish will take food from your fingertips and develop quickly into valued and personable pets. The price doesn't matter once you realize that. They can become valued for their personalities once you get to know them. Warning: they are an obsession once you get started.

nanobelle wrote:

Warning: they are an obsession once you get started.

Where you located?

In the past i have had goldies as pets in tanks and ponds and have used them feeders, also!!!!

[b]

i kept them as pets when i was younger until they grew pretty big and started harassing their tankmates, now they are feeders to my gars, toadfish, oscar, and ebjd.

Feeders shouldn't be feeders.. well feeder goldfish shouldn't be because of their thyamine blocker. That's why such things like hole in the head occur.

I have several goldfish, and one is a feeder, but it's actually a philadelphia veil tail goldie, so for free I made out!

Goldfish are great, but they just aren't everyone's cup of tea.

I had a Ryunkin, and 2 black moore's (all imported), and they are no longer :( My darn koi decided to eat them for lunch, but they won't eat the feeder!

Goldfish make great pets and a whole lot cheaper then koi. We have 5 kinds of goldfish in our tanks and ponds, thay live just fine with our koi. We have 3 goldfish close to 10 inchs now, and thay started breeding for the first time this year. Yaaa free babys.

i just people use it as feeder cuz is one of the cheapest fish, and they produce quick... but the bad side of it is that they carry so much bacteria that it can be harmful for your fish..

Holey Rock of Texas wrote:

good point. i dont know anyone who breeds thier own feeders tho lol.

I DO! I breed guppies to feed my oscars as treats. They say goldfish carry nasty diseases and bacteria and can cause HITH disease. Therefore, I don't like the goldfish...

CajunGator wrote:

yes, be very carefull of the goldfish feeders you use... make sure from very clean environment...

Put them on the grill! lol