Goldfish Care And Fish Tank Maintenance

If you prefer you can hire an aquarium maintenance service to come to your home or office and care for your fish tank and its occupants. On the other hand, taking care of your aquarium fish yourself can be a satisfying and rewarding experience.

The Steps In Goldfish Care

The most important piece of equipment in your fish tank is the filtration system. There are several different types of filtration system. A type of filter that you will frequently encounter is a box that fits over the side of the tank. The water circulates through the filtration system, which usually uses charcoal or a similar filter media to filter out the impurities in the water. Another type of filtration system is a biological filter. Biological filtration can be used in conjunction with a charcoal filtration system, and permits good bacteria to grow in the tank which helps to keep the tank clean.

The number of fish you have in your aquarium can impact on the water quality, especially if you have too many fish in a tank that is too small. It is important to ensure that you have the correct goldfish population for the size of tank you own. Do not overcrowd your fish. After overcrowding, the next most likely cause of problems with your goldfish is overfeeding. Fish should only be fed an amount they can eat within a few minutes. If you feed your goldfish too much, the uneaten food will fall to the bottom of the tank and turn into sludge which will not provide a healthy environment for your fish to live in. Uneaten food can also lead to algal growth.

Partial Water Changes

You will need to perform partial water changes every two weeks or so as a central part of your goldfish care. This keeps the algae level down and helps to maintain a healthy environment for your goldfish. Typically, siphoning off about 20 percent of the water is adequate. Replace with fresh water. If your tap water contains chlorine it is imperative that you add a chlorine neutralizer when adding fresh water to your fish tank.

Observe Your Fish Daily

Observe your goldfish on a daily basis. Ensure that all your equipment is running properly. Always make sure your filter is running as it can sometimes lose its prime if there is a power outage. Make sure your air pump is working properly, too, to ensure your goldfish have plenty of oxygen. Goldfish don't need a heater but if you have tropical fish they will require a heater to maintain the water temperature.

Just keeping an eye on your fish on a daily basis and observing their behavior can help with your goldfish care and tank maintenance. If you notice any behavioral problems with your fish, take a proactive approach to determine what is wrong with them and treat the symptoms immediately. Sick fish should be put into a quarantine tank if possible while being treated.

Maintaining a clean aquarium and a healthy living environment are not difficult tasks in goldfish care, and a little preventive fish tank maintenance on a regular basis will keep your fish healthy and disease free.

By Alison Stevens

Alison Stevens is an online author and maintains The Goldfish Site and The Goldfish Blog to assist anyone who wants to get started with setting up an aquarium fish tank and keeping goldfish.                                                                                                                       Article Source: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=218589&ca=Pets  

Goldfish

Goldfish was one of the first fish species to be kept in ponds by humans. It hails from a wild carp, probably the Crucian Carp, but has been bred selectively for centuries in China. Goldfish is still a very popular fish in aquariums as well as in ponds and can today be obtained in a wide range of different variations. If you look further down this page you will find articles about both commonly kept Goldfish types and more unusual Goldfish variations. 

All Goldfish variations belong to the same species, Carassius auratus auratus. According to Chinese tradition the different Goldfish variations are divided into four basic groups. 
1.Ce goldfish or Grass goldfish are goldfish without any “fancy“ features. The Common goldfish is very similar to the carp from which it has been bred; the main distinguishing feature is the colour modification. Unlike the wild carp, the Common goldfish can be obtained in a wide range of colour variations, including white, black, lemon yellow, orange and of course the golden colour. 
2.Wen goldfish are goldfish equipped with a dorsal fin and a fancy tail. An example of a Wen goldfish is the Fantail goldfish that has a dual-lobed tail that can reach a size of three inches.
3.Dragon Eye goldfish have protruding eyes. As the names suggest, the Bubble Eye goldfish and the Telescope Eye goldfish both belong to this group. 
4.Egg goldfish is a goldfish that has no dorsal fin. One example of Egg goldfish is the Japanese Ranchu goldfish. If a Bubble Eye goldfish is without dorsal fin, it is considered a part of this group instead of the Dragon Eye goldfish group.

Compared to many other fish species that have been bred and developed in captivity, the Goldfish has a remarkably long history. Its ancestor is believed to have been the Crucian Carp, a comparatively small carp with a dark grey to olive-brown colouration. The Crucian Carp is native to East Asia, and it was the Chinese that began to keep it in fish ponds. The Tang Dynasty is famous for its beautiful fish ponds, and it was during this era that the golden colour mutation was discovered and used for selective breeding. In 1162 A.D. the Chinese Emperor issued a ban that restricted anyone but the royal family from keeping yellow carps. The orange variations were however still allowed. According to ancient Chinese literature, the other colour variations that occurred were first recorded in 1276 A.D. The fancy tailed goldfish is believed to have originated during the Ming Dynasty. It wasn’t until 1502 A.D. that the goldfish was introduced to Japan, where it became highly popular and new Japanese versions of the goldfish was eventually created. Tosakin and Ryukin are two examples of Japanese goldfish. The goldfish reached Europe in 1611 A.D. when it was brought to Portugal. 

Goldfish is still a popular pond fish, but some of the more vulnerable variations need to be kept in aquariums. If you want a robust pond fish, the Shubunkin is one possibility. The Shubunkin goldfish was developed by Japanese goldfish breeders that wanted to create a brightly coloured goldfish that still had the physical strength and survival skills of the common goldfish. Shubunkin goldfish is the result of selective crossings between Comet goldfish and Calico Fantail goldfish.                                                                                                     Article Source: http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/goldfish/