Goldfish????

Question

I have 2 goldfish in a 10 gal. aquarium. One is a 2 year old Pom-pom Goldfish and the other is a 6 year old Calico goldfish. I was just wondering how big do they get and I wanted to get them a 16 gal. and my mom said they grow to the size of their tank, is this true?

My Pom-Pom is about 4 inch and My calico is a little over 3 inch

My parents were thinking about a pond in the summer since we just got rid of our swing set. I also have a 25 ga. long but I have lots of other fish in it.

I don't really have room for another tank because my mom dosn't want are hose to have fish tanks all over the place. I have a 55 gal. which is my biggest but it is taken with 8 hermit crabs (3 big, 5 small) And they wouldn't be together if I had to use their old homes. Or else I'd move all my fish in my 25 to my 55 and move my goldfish to my 25 and get more little fish for my 10. I also have 2 other 10gal. aquriums and a 2.77 gal. but I don't want to separate them.

1 of my 10gal. is emty*

Answer 1

My goldfish supposed to be a foot long, but stayed 2 inches long in a bowl. I suppose goldfish will grow in relationship with the space they have. They will not grow any bigger after they exceed the size that allows they to swim comfortably.

Answer 2

A pom pom should be able to reach 6-8 inches in length and a calico... well, calico is a color and lots of goldfish types come in that color. I think shubunkins are sometimes called calicoes though, and a shubunkin should reach about the same size as the pom pom.

Don't bother with the 16 gallon unless you can separate them, one in each. The two of them would be too much for anything but a 20 gallon at the least.

It is true that goldfish will stay smaller if kept in smaller tanks, so your mom is right on that count. What she's probably not telling you (because she probably doesn't know) is that it's called "stunting" and is a result of stress hormones which impair the fish's development and immune system, leading not only small size, but shorter life spans.

Yes, your fish stay smaller, but it's because they're damaged and unhealthy. It's just a mean, irresponsible thing to do on purpose.

Good luck!

Answer 3

The myth that they grow to the size of their tank is just that, a myth. The fish puts out a hormone that tells it to slow down as it grows, so that it can adapt better to the surroundings. There have been tests done on betta, and there was a betta that was over 4 inches long from daily water changes!

Its a good idea to get a larger tank, but I would go with a 20 long or a 30gal tank, because goldfish are supposed to have 50gals of water since they are so messy and (no offense) gross. Yours sound like they've been well taken care of, so I would say a 30gal would be ok for the two of them. You could also try doing an outdoor pond, but thats a big chore.


Good luck with the goldfish!

Answer 4

Your 6 year old calico should be full sized already, which should be more then 8 inches, since it is only 3 inches it is stunted. If you upgrade to a larger tank it will grow but it will never grow to full size, the older they get the slower they grow too. Each fancy goldfish needs 20+ gallons once they reach adult hood, so by the time they are around 2 years of age they should already have the 20+ gallons. You can see what keeping one in something too small has done to your calico, just image how much worse it is for them keeping 2 in there.

Answer 5

i have a goldfish water garden outside so i did alot of research on them a despite how big they get each gold fish needs 30 gallons....because goldfish produce alot of high ph...its not gonna kill if you kept em in the small tank but they will do better if you get a large tank and besides goldfish usually stop growering at about 6 inches.....good luck

Answer 6

I found a Goldfish in a drainage ditch several years ago. It was 3 inches long. I bought a 20 gallon tank and the works.

Two years later, it was 5 inches long.

When we moved I gave it to my neighbor that had a Koi pond without any fish. .

That fish is now 12 inches long and is changing colors!

My neighbor told me that it comes to his hand and eats.

I know that Koi (Goldfish?) can grow very large.

Answer 7

Fish naturally grow to a certain size. Keeping them in a container too small for that size causes a problem known as stunting. The fish will stop growing larger, but it's organs will grow too large for it's reduiced size and cause significant health problems. You fancy gold fish normally grow to 7-10" and would be quite stunted in a 10 gallon tank. In all honesty one fancy needs 15 - 20 gallons for proper growth and development. Moving them to a larger tank will help, especially the younger one, but some damage has already been done.

MM

Answer 8

The general rule of thumb for fish in a tank is one inch of fish to every gallon of water. Goldfish will usually grow to fit their tank. I had a fantail for over 4 years and it continued to grow, so I put it in a local pond one summer. Good luck!

Answer 9

they are already stunted. but if you put them in a bigger tank they will grow.
rule of thumb for fancies is 20 gal per first fish, then 10 gall for each additional fish.
im currently starting out a 29 gallon tank just for two fancys.
they should grow to about 8 inches.

Answer 10

Your calico, depending on it's actual lineage can grow from between 3-7 inches. Unless you know the exact lineage of this fish, you have no way of knowing if it is full grown. As for your PomPom gold fish will also be around the same 2-7 short bodied. For now they will do fine in your tank with a good filter and water movement. they will not get to be 12 inches

They do not grow to the size of their tank. A gold fish will grow as big as it is going to grow. Chances are your fish are full grown. Especially if they are around 3.5 - 4 inches