Fish Recommendation

[Big Lou]

It's time for me to undertake my annual appeal to my dear one for a couple of fish in our pond. I forget quite easily so if you would please recommend two easy to raise fish that are not poop machines. Some type that are beautiful. No koi.

Thanks in advance

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Shubunkin
Sarasa Comets

Actually, I hear any type of goldfish can survive in ponds. even Orandas and Ryukins although I hear they are more sensitive to hot or cold temps.

 

[JohnHuff]

Just regular comets.
My fish has been either eaten or taken from our pond. My house is not fenced so people can just walk in if they wanted to. It's happened (co-incidentally or not) that the few times that our fish has disappeared has been the times when we were out of town. So anyway, we've decided not to stock our pond with expensive or higher priced fish anymore.
This season, when the weather comes around, I will be stocking the pond with some feeder fish. If you keep shopping, sometimes you see some nice feeders. The last year, we bought 3 small feeders that look like Tancho and they survived the winter:

 

[bettasngoldfish]

If you don't want to go the goldfish route you can always go with rosy reds or white cloud mountain minnows. They are much smaller than goldfish.

 

[Mmathis]

Shubunkins.

If you can find them, Wakin and/or Watonai.

 

[JohnHuff]

Last season I bought 4 beautiful Shubunkins from Petco, 2 each time. But for some reason, they were very shy, took a long time to learn to eat pellets and all died without a trace, so I'm wary of getting them this year.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Last season I bought 4 beautiful Shubunkins from Petco, 2 each time. But for some reason, they were very shy, took a long time to learn to eat pellets and all died without a trace, so I'm wary of getting them this year.

Petco worries me. I've seen some really nice animals there but every time I go I also see an abnormally large amount of dead fish and even other animals like mice or lizards. I've never seen a pet place with that many issues. It makes me rethink buying from chains, but then again my first Shubunkin was purchased at Petland and its still alive and healthy today (although I did end up finding out they charge about twice the price of any other fish dealer around)

 

[JohnHuff]

Petco worries me. I've seen some really nice animals there but every time I go I also see an abnormally large amount of dead fish and even other animals like mice or lizards. I've never seen a pet place with that many issues. It makes me rethink buying from chains, but then again my first Shubunkin was purchased at Petland and its still alive and healthy today (although I did end up finding out they charge about twice the price of any other fish dealer around)

I think the big chains had gotten a lot of undeserved bad press.
- Cynically, I think all the bad press comes from LFS owners who seed forums with chain store criticism. As someone who's kept fish for a few years and visited every single LFS and chain store in our local region, I don't believe in it.
- First of all, it depends on the store. Some chain stores have very dedicated employees who know their stuff. I learned a lot from my local Petco/Petsmart staff when I started. Some of them really know their stuff and had been keeping fish for a long time. Some chain stores I see them cleaning their tanks a lot.
- Fish die. Fish die in LFS as well as chain stores.
- LFS are the same. I've seen some LFS with knowledgeable, caring staff, and some without. I would have to say that on the whole, chain stores are cleaner and brighter lit than LFS's, but that doesn't really matter. What matters are how clean the fish tanks are kept, and again, that depends on the store
- The big difference is selection and price. LFS have a much greater selection that I've seen, but chain stores usually have better prices.
- Both LFS and chain stores probably buy from the same distributors. Both quarantine.
- The chains have killed off some LFS, but that's no different from supermarkets killing off small grocers. Competition is good for the consumer, up to a point. Monopolies are not.
- In the end, I keep an open mind as buying from them. I make my own judgement as to where I'll buy. If store doesn't take care of their fish, I won't buy from them, chain or LFS, makes no difference what their size.

 

[Sunshine]

The one place I would never buy a fish from is our Walmart. Ich is always present. When you go to look for fish, check out all the fish in their tanks to see if you see ich present and if their tanks are clean. I've bought fish from our Petco with no problems.

 

[CometKeith]

So far I have had the best luck with comets and shubunkins from either Petsmart or from large garden stores that also sell fish and pond supplies. Most stores will tell you when their fish get delivered and its generally a good policy to wait about a week or more to buy them because the traveling stresses them out. I would avoid feeder fish because they are too stressed out because of overcrowding and they pick up stuff from diseased fish in their tank. Also I have found fancy tail goldfish to not be as sturdy in cold weather climates. I have around 30 fish and the number keeps growing every year whether I want it to or not! If you keep the water quality good with a fair number of plants and have a lot of water movement then goldfish will last a long time.

 

[JohnHuff]

...and its generally a good policy to wait about a week or more to buy them because the traveling stresses them out. I would avoid feeder fish because they are too stressed out because of overcrowding and they pick up stuff from diseased fish in their tank.

The above has often been repeated but how true is it and is there any proof or is it just repeated so often people believe in it?
1) Do fish get stressed from traveling, what is stress to a fish and how long does it take to unstress them? Note that in a week, the fish are usually all stressed out. If traveling stresses them, you might as well buy them on the same day they come so as not to wait a week and stress them again on the way home.
2) Are fish stressed because of overcrowding? What if a fish has a fear of open water, open spaces or not enough other fishes? Has someone actually interviewed a fish?
3) Disease. Fish are just as likely to pick disease in that tank as well as other tanks.
I think all myths have to be challenged now and again.

 

[addy1]

All my fish came from petco, a few from walmart. I won't buy from walmart, they changed out their nice tanks and put in these little tiny things, always dead fish.
My petco here always has nice healthy fish, I seldom see a dead fish and none I have picked up have died. I tend to go the day they get them in and bring them home. Very little time in the store tank and a good selection of colors. To me the 2.39 they charge for a shubunkin is not bad. And sometimes buy 3 get one free or on sale lol. The subbies are just as healthy as the goldfish. I love the colors.

 

[jmajid]

we have shubunkins and comets and they definitely caused less mess than the koi...
also we have some fantail goldfish - ours are ravenous and always hungry and these are only maybe 4 inches long but hang with the larger comets who are 10 to 12 inches
In our experience of having purchased from petsmart and petco and LFS and garden centers - the LFS are cheaper than both the petsmart/petco and garden centers, but have just as nice and healthy fish - and typically a size or twol arger for the same cost.
the LFS and garden center fish we have purchased seem to have more balanced growth across the bodies compared to the petsmart/petco which seem to have more pronounced head and less developed bodies.
As i said - this is our experience - we have bought about 30+ fish this year.
Its well worth visiting all your LFS as they do vary in quality and cost.

 

[Sunshine]

Shubunkins will add color to your pond. Fantail comets are pretty. I started out with feeder fish.

 

[dieselplower]

I have a couple very beautiful all white, long finned, single tail goldfish in my pond. I think they are better looking than my two koi or any other variation of comet or common in my pond.