Feeder Goldfish as Pets

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Fire Eel
MFK Member
Oct 11, 2008
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Malaysia
Does anyone here keep feeder goldfish (the ones that look like koi) and grow them out?
I recently bought some small feeder goldfish as food for my big fish but noticed that they are really pretty, unlike the previous feeders..
Some of the new feeder goldfish are yellow with gold specks on their bodies while others are pale golden in color..
Was wondering what they would look like when bigger?
Will they lose the shine/bright golden colors and darkens as they grow?
 

Shenanigans

Gambusia
MFK Member
Dec 26, 2011
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Wyoming
Depends on a few variables, especially your food. Ime they usually change colors over time based on diet. Vary your food and use natural and frozen foods with whatever staple you choose
 

jclyde13

Blue Tier VIP
MFK Member
Jun 18, 2009
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Feeder goldfish are typically just comet goldfish. You can find plenty of photos of adult comets on Google and Youtube. They keep pretty much the same coloration as they grow, as long as they're healthy.
 

Gill Blue

Piranha
MFK Member
Apr 28, 2011
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mine grew to over a foot in several cases, the gold ones stayed gold and the black ones turned gold. I can't help you beyond that, but I'm assuming the heron that snatched them out of the pond pooped gold too.
 

krichardson

Bronze Tier VIP
MFK Member
Jun 19, 2006
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I've often saved a few nicely colored goldfish from batches of feeders and kept them for a while.I like the ones that are gold or orange with black fins but the black color seems to fade away over time.Then I simply toss them back into the feeder tank.
 

spiff44

Bronze Tier VIP
MFK Member
Dec 20, 2007
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yeah, I kept two that I used to cycle a tank.. they're huge now too. And they do get fancy looking.. huge fins and stuff. They're in a video in a link in my sig..

Not bad for 9 cent fish. IMO- they're way better than any of the "fancy" goldfish that cost many times more and are bred with nasty physical qualities that are supposed to be improvements...(google eyes, can barely swim.. ect)
 

mudbuttjones

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Jul 29, 2014
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My buddy has 4 kids and a tank with 4 small goldfish. Ive helped em out over the years with old equipment I didn't need and stuff.

The youngest picked a $0.28 goldfish named Jeremy. Which I think is hilarious. It grew a lot faster than the other fancy goldfish. He's not really that colorful but a neat fish nonetheless.

Sent from my SCH-R950 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
 

Jgilbert529

Gambusia
MFK Member
Nov 5, 2014
149
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Maine
I use my sons 20 gallon goldfish tank as a feeder tank and he has about 10 fish I can't take out lol. One has a black Mohawk and all have names. Started with orangie the huge feeder.


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Warborg

Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Sep 2, 2009
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Austin, Texas
I've almost always had feeder Goldfish as pets. The last batch(6) almost lasted 10 years(1 did).

I currently have 6 more that are just over a year old. Mine have always lost the white/black and turned to orange. Except 1 that was my favorite. It was all white and it eyes appeared see through
 
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