Category: Goldfish Care

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Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care How To

Goldfish Care- How To Take Care Of Your Goldfish

 Taking care of your goldfish is one of the most important things to do to providing your goldfish the proper care and a long healthy life. First thing to do when taking care of your goldfish when buying goldfish from pet stores is to make sure the tank has been set up in advance. When taking care of your goldfish or new pet make sure your the water in your goldfish aquarium has been treated with conditioner to remove the chlorine from the water and heavy metals. AquaPlus is a conditioner widely used by aquarium and goldfish hobbyist and distributed by Hagen and available at your local pets stores is used to help reduce and take care of the stress during transportation and makes the water safe for your goldfish.

Things you should do when taking care of your goldfish:

1. Never feed your goldfish more then they can eat in the first 2-5 minutes, discard any uneaten food as it will pollute the water in your aquarium.

2. Perform a 25% water change once a week to keep all water chemistry at proper levels and safe for goldfish. Add conditioner to remove chlorine and heavy metals.

3. Test your water with a test kit, testing PH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate. There are others you can test for but this is a great start at ensuring the proper care of the water chemistry at the beginning.

4.Clean your filters with luke warm water, as they hold beneficial bacteria that you don’t want to destroy. Add some Nutrifin Cycle to restore beneficial bacteria to keep the aquarium healthy for your goldfish.

5. Clean your the glass of the aquarium with either a brush, or a magnet scraper with you can buy at any local pet store. Keeping your aquarium clean for your goldfish at all times will reduce stress, illness and goldfish diseases.

Your goldfish need the proper care in order to reduce chance of illness and injury. Weekly maintenance and a keeping a close eye on your goldfish for any signs are a good way to enjoying your goldfish for many years. Take care of your goldfish, they’re relying on you.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Diseases Goldfish Parasites

Goldfish Care – Types of Goldfish Diseases

Goldfish are susceptible to diseases and here I will discuss the different types of goldfish diseases that fish can develop. Goldfish usually develop diseases or sickness largely due to lack of maintenance on the aquarium. They sometimes can develop them due to injury they suffered by scraping off the protective slime coating that goldfish have on their skin.

Here are the different types of goldfish diseases and illness.

1. White spot disease or ich (Ichtyopthirius)
2. Velvet disease
3. Anchor Worm
4. Argulus
5. Fin and Tail Rot
6. Ulcers
7. Cloudy Eye
8. Mouth Rot
9. KHV Virus

Learn All You Can About Goldfish and How You Can Treat Common Goldfish Diseases & ParasitesThe good thing about all these common fish diseases that happen in goldfish is that they are easily cured with the proper medication and care. Next I will talk about each individual disease and how to properly cure them step by step. Proper goldfish care and action is essential in getting these goldfish back to health and getting the goldfish disease under control.

For more information on what types of medications you should use to treat goldfish diseases and where you can buy effective fish medication please visit Goldfish Medication Treatments For Illnesses and Diseases .

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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Feeding Goldfish Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds

What To Feed Your Goldfish?

Goldfish feeding is one of the best parts of your goldfish hobby, but most people often wonder what to feed their goldfish. There are tons of different goldfish food that people can buy at their local pet stores. Some food is better then others and each fish food has different benefits.

What I feed our goldfish is Laguna Goldfish Food which you can get at any pet store in either small, medium or large pellets depending on the size of your goldfish. Also it doesn’t hurt in giving your goldfish different food, lets be honest we wouldn’t like eating the same thing everyday, same goes for your fish. There are tons of dried fish food, like blood worms which contain high protein, daphnia and black mosquito larvae. Some come in dried form and others you can buy frozen. Goldfish food also comes in a variety of forms like sticks, pellets, flakes and even powder for small baby fry, which are small goldfish.

Feeding your goldfish different food will help keep your goldfish strong and healthy. By taking care of your goldfish with proper feeding with a good variety of food will help in preventing diseases and illness. Sometimes fish can get sick with poor feeding and can develop razor back disease which is a nutritional deficiency. Give them a variety of things goldfish or koi as well feed on pretty much anything. They will pick at and eat lettuce, strawberries, grapes and even brown bread which they can easily digest. Try it feed your goldfish some different food they will love it.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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Feeding Goldfish Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds

How Much Fish Food Should I Feed My Goldfish?

How much food do you feed your goldfish is a very good question. There are a couple of different things we need to look at when determining how much food to feed them.

First of all when feeding your goldfish or koi for aquarium or ponds the general rule of thumb is they should be able to eat all the fish food within 2 minutes. If they eat all that before 2 minutes you can give them some more. You will see once you begin feeding them they will start losing interest in the food. When this happens it’s a good sign that there nice and full, if there is any left over uneaten fish food discard it right away or will foul your water if left in your aquarium or pond.

Feeding goldfish in the aquarium, you can feed them once everyday. Goldfish need exercise and in aquariums they really don’t have the luxury of say the space they would have in a pond. Goldfish can develop a fatty liver which can cause health problems with goldfish pretty much the same as humans. With this some people suggest feeding your goldfish every 2ND day in aquariums. It’s up to you just once a day or ever 2ND day, just make sure you don’t over do it as goldfish can sometimes eat and not really know when to stop.

Feeding goldfish in ponds is a little different. To be honest with you depending on the size of pond you have and how many fish you have in it you don’t really need to feed your fish. There is enough live food, bugs, insects and algae in the water that they will live just fine. But like most people we want to feed our goldfish in our ponds and see the grow. In the summer when the water is warmer you can actually feed them 2 or 3 times a day to get maximum growth or once a day is good as well. Remember in ponds goldfish or koi always have a supply of food whenever they need it in the water.

I am going make another post as I am going to talk later more about feeding your goldfish in ponds at different seasons like spring, summer and fall and what you should do.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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Anchor Worms Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Diseases Goldfish Parasites

Can Goldfish Die From Anchor Worms?

Quick answer, YES! Goldfish can die from anchor worms if left untreated. If you notice that your goldfish has anchor worms attached to their body, you need to begin treatment. There are many fish medications on the market today used to treat against anchor worms on goldfish. I like using this Anchor Worm Treatment called Anchors Away.

 I’ve been using this for years at my business, Country Koi Fish Farm, and this fish medication for anchor worms works great!

Oranda - Fancy Goldfish

What will happen if you don’t treat your goldfish right away for anchor worms, is your goldfish will develop bacterial infections. This is what will kill your goldfish.

Do yourself a favour and always observe your goldfish at feeding time for any signs of goldfish illnesses, diseases or parasites. If you notice an issue seek advice from your local pet store or any online resources about goldfish care. The quicker you begin treatments the better chances you have of success!

Anchor worms is easily treatable for goldfish, act quick and you’ll see for yourself how quickly you get rid of anchor worms.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle

The Goldfish Guy

“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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Garden Ponds Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds Pond Predator Protection

Garden Repeller Protects Goldfish From Pond Predators, Herons & Raccoons

We all know that pond predators like the heron and raccoons can be a nuisance when we have a garden pond in our backyard. I know for myself we live in the country and we have all sorts of wild life visiting our ponds on a daily basis. It’s frustrating and aggravating but you can do something about it to protect your pond fish with the garden repeller.

The garden repeller helped stop pond predators from eating their fish. I tried it too and it worked very well!

Garden Repeller Motion Activated Sprinkler System For Pond Predator Protection From Regal Gifts
My wife and I are a Regal Gifts Independent Representative and this summer they had an excellent product called the Garden Repeller that came out and it works great. Every morning I had a heron stop by about 6am every day. Pond nets only work so well so I decided to buy the garden repeller for myself to protect my goldfish and koi from predators. I hooked it up, the heron stopped by the next morning and the heron didn’t know what hit him. It shoots water up to 32 feet away. As soon as the bird or animal goes in front of the motion detector its sprays water at them. It’s basically a motion activated water sprinkler system. If your having a problem with herons, raccoons and other birds eating your goldfish then you should give it a try. It definitely works and it doesn’t hurt the animal in any way. You can keep them away with this garden repeller from Regal.

If you are having problems with birds visiting your pond you can go to our Moncton Gift Shop blog and learn about the garden repeller. You can also visit our Regal Website directly by going to http://gifts.shopregal.ca create an account and you can buy the garden repeller. For your reference it’s Item # HC3200.

Are you having pond predators visiting your pond? Tell me what you do to protect your pond fish from being eaten?

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Aquarium Care Cycle A New Fish Tank Goldfish Goldfish Care How To

How To Cycle A Goldfish Aquarium and Fish Tank Faster Add Nutrafin Cycle?

Waiting for a fish tank to cycle will take some time as you anxiously wait to add more goldfish to your aquarium. As I’ve mentioned before it can take anywhere from 4-6 weeks to completely cycle an aquarium. The good news is that you can help speed this process up and cycle a fish tank faster. Want to know how?

In order to cycle a fish tank faster you need beneficial bacteria for your aquarium right. Think, do you have any friends of yours that currently have an aquarium with goldfish. If you do, ask them for a cup or so of aquarium gravel from their fish tank. This will contain an abundance of beneficial bacteria for your tank. This is what will speed up your cycling process.

Nutrafin Cycle Biological Filter SupplementAnother thing you can do is add some beneficial bacteria to your fish tank. You can buy some at most pet stores. This is a liquid that contains bacteria that helps for new fish tank set ups and when you perform water changes. This will keep the levels of beneficial bacteria stable in your aquarium.

This is a method to help you cycle your fish tank faster. Please note however you need to still follow proper maintenance to keep the ecosystem running properly. Proper aquarium care will help your goldfish stay healthy and disease free.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy

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Feeding Fish Feeding Goldfish Garden Ponds Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds

Feeding Goldfish & Koi Trout Feed Pellets Bad For Health Care of Pond Fish

Many people have probably fed their goldfish and koi fish trout pellets in their ponds or even aquariums but please don’t. Feeding goldfish and koi trout feed is really bad for the health of your fish. Taking proper care of your pond fish involves feeding them a well balanced diet that is nutrient rich. Your fish also require being fed different fish foods not the same one day after day. Feeding goldfish and koi fish a variety of foods is highly recommended for the overall health of your fish.
Feeding goldfish trout feed pellets is not recommended at all. Trout feed contains high levels of oils, high on fat content and is a poor choice of food for your fish. Yes many of you will say it’s cheaper to feed your goldfish and koi that then other brand name foods. Your right, it is! I myself can buy a 50 lb. bag of trout feed for roughly $20 where I live but is it worth it? I’ll be honest when I first got in the hobby I fed my goldfish and koi fish trout food before but once I started doing research on it I stopped. I noticed that by feeding fish trout food it was leaving an oil film on the water surface and was affecting the water quality and was a health concern for fish. Fish food such as trout pellets that is high in fat and oil can contibute to fatty liver disease in fish.

Feeding Goldfish & Koi at Country Koi Fish Farm

Lets think about it this way, imagine if we ate at McDonalds everyday. You can get a value meal pretty cheap! Think of the amount of fat that your consuming on a daily basis, would this be good for your health? Feeding trout food to your goldfish and koi is about the same. I’m not going to say that McDonalds food is not great as we all like to have a treat every so often. Who can say no to a BigMac? :)With trout food you may be getting more for your buck in terms of quantity but you are lacking on quality. When feeding your goldfish and koi please think of their overall health as they need a nutrient rich food low in fat, high in protein. Feed your fish the right food and they’ll love you for it and live a longer happier life.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy

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Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care How To Testing Water Quality

How Often Should Water Quality Tests Be Done In Aquariums or Fish Ponds?

Water quality tests in aquariums or fish ponds should be done as much as necessary. Goldfish and other types of fish require clean water to live a long healthy life and you are the only one that can provide that for your pet fish. There are several factors that will influence how often you should be testing your water quality in fish tanks and garden ponds.

1. Do you have a newly set up aquarium or fish pond?
2. Is this an established fish tank or pond?
3. Is your pond or aquarium overstocked with fish?
4. Has any fish recently died in your fish tank that would cause concern?
5. Do you notice a smell to the water or your aquarium or pond is cloudy?

Goldfish Need Clean Water For Healthy Living - Water Quality Tests Need To Be Done RegularlyIf your aquarium or garden pond has just been set up it will take some time for it to cycle. Your aquarium or pond needs time for the beneficial bacteria to develop and grow to be able to break down fish waste. This is known as the nitrogen cycle. During the cycling process is when ammonia an nitrite levels will rise that can stress and even kill your fish. It’s very important that you test the water quality daily for fish tanks and ponds that have been newly set up. Do water quality tests for not just ammonia and nitrite but pH and nitrate too.

Pond Water Quality Tests Are Required For Fish Ponds
Remember just because the water quality is clear doesn’t mean it’s safe for your fish. Water quality tests need to be apart of your regular maintenance schedule. If you have an established aquarium, water quality tests should be done at least once a week unless you notice fish showing signs of stress, you’ve recently has some fish die, the water smells or has become cloudy. If you notice any of these above you need to test your water quality immediately. Fish tanks should never be overstocked, if you do you will need to test the water quality more frequently, do more water changes and maintenance.

For fish ponds you should test your water quality every 1-2 weeks. The reason for this is that you have a bigger volume of water, you have more space for your fish to live and grow and you have pond plants such as water lilies and marginals that will help filter your pond. This will help keep your water quality perfect and safe for your fish. If however you overstock your garden pond with fish, you don’t have an adequate filter system and you have no pond plants or water lilies, you will need to test your water quality more frequently. Water plants are excellent for pond filtration and pond owners should aim to have their pond 70% full of pond plants to have crystal clear water and to prevent algae blooms.

Attraction Red Hardy Water Lilies Perfect For Pond Filtration - Available at Country Koi Fish Farm
When taking care of fish in aquariums or garden ponds water quality tests should be done frequently. Water quality can turn poor quickly if you have an aquarium filter malfunction or if any fish has recently died. Another point to mention is that goldfish are a very dirty fish and create a lot of fish waste. Keep up to date with water changes, water quality checks and maintenance that will help keep your goldfish and other types of fish healthy and disease free.

****Never Overstock Your Aquarium or Garden Pond With Fish****

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds How To Water Treatments

How To Lower Nitrite Levels In Goldfish Aquariums and Garden Ponds?

You should really only notice nitrite levels being high in new aquariums or small garden ponds that have newly been set up. As I’ve mentioned before in other blog posts is that it takes time for the nitrogen cycle to start working. It can take up to 4 weeks to properly cycle a new fish tank.

If you are experiencing high levels of nitrite in your goldfish aquarium or pond what you will need to do is make sure your goldfish are not showing any signs of stress. You really need to carefully observe your goldfish or any other types of fish you have in your aquarium. High levels of nitrite is extremely deadly! Nitrite can and will poison your fish and kill them quick.

Large Oranda Goldfish in Aquarium

If you do notice your goldfish are showing signs of stress you will need to lower your nitrite levels in your aquarium or garden pond. What you can do is perform a 25 – 30% water change immediately. This will reduce and dilute the presence of nitrite in your fish tank. After you do this I would also add aquarium salt to your aquarium right away. Aquarium salt will neutralize the toxicity of nitrite making it not harmful for your goldfish. Simply add 1 teaspoon of aquarium salt per every gallon of water. Lots of aquarium owners fail to realize is that aquarium salt helps fish in many ways and helps heal fish. All aquarium and pond owners should have on hand some aquarium or pond salt as you never know when you might need it.

Aquarium or Pond Salt Will Neutralize The Toxicity of Nitrite
If however your goldfish are not showing signs of stress and this is a newly set up aquarium or pond, just leave it! It will take some time for it to cycle and develop all the beneficial bacteria. Once the tank is cycled and there is an abundance of beneficial bacteria it will break down the nitrite forming nitrate which is relatively harmless to fish. During this time that your aquarium is being cycled make sure you regularly test your water quality for nitrite and record the readings. Recording the readings will show you if the nitrite is lowering. Always observe your fish and be ready to do an immediate water change if your goldfish are showing any signs of stress. High nitrite levels need to be taken very serious as it can quickly kill all your fish if you fail to act promptly.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

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