Goldfish are spawning!!

I have just aquired 3 goldfish and 2 are spawning. I took the male out this morning as he was chasing the girls. Was told to remove any unfertilized eggs but don't know how I do this?? Also what can I put the fish in as read that I should remove all the fish once finished spawning. Where do I put them??!! Male is in a fish bowl but is too small for him. Dont know what to do with him!!

 

Good morning and Welcome to Fish Lore!

I'm sure you will receive more responses before long. To help you to receive more responses, I have moved your thread from Freshwater Beginners to Cyprinids/Includes Goldfish/Goldfish section of the forum.

The link below will give you more information on Breeding Goldfish:
https://www.fishlore.com/aquariumfishforum/threads/goldfish-care-sheet.167762/


Yes, the eggs do need to be removed of the parents will eat them more than likely.

Best wishes for your fish and I hope you enjoy the site!

Ken

 

good morning KJ welcome to our little corner of the internet.
Can you give us a few more details? How big is the tank they spawned in? Are they fan tails or comets? Do you WANT to keep the fry? Are the eggs in one spot, like on something you can lift out of the tank, or are they sort of spread out around the substrate? What-all else is in your tank (other fish, plants, decorations, driftwood, what kind of substrate, etc)? With this information, we'll be better able to help you, and give you advice specifically tailored to your situation, rather than just the general stuff you'd find on wiki.

 

There are live plants and ornaments in the tank. The eggs are everywhere!! The tank is a 60litre tank. Think that's about 15gallons?? The fish are 4 inches each in size so prime spawning age. Now they have finished spawning have put the male back in and he is no longer chasing the girls which I'm happy about. The fish have a filter in their tank also. Have no idea what type of goldfish they are. Have had them for about a month now. Rescued them of a workmate who didnt want them anymore.

 

15 gallons is really too small for 3 goldfish. Even if they are fantails (which are the smallest variety of fancy goldfish), the three of them really should be in a 40 gallon (or larger) tank. A 40 gallon breeder tank would give more horizontal room.

Since you removed the male while the females were in the process of laying eggs, then most likely the eggs will be infertile. Fertilization takes place as and shortly after the eggs are released. The male chasing the females actually stimulates the release of the eggs. You can do a gravel vac to remove the eggs, or you can leave them there and the goldfish (and any other fish in the tank) will most likely eat them. Just don't feed the goldfish for a couple of days and they should take care of all the eggs.

If you can post a picture of the goldfish, we should be able to help you identify what type they are. If they are common or comet types, they will need a much much larger tank than what they are in. If they are one of the fancy varieties, they may not grow as large and need as much room. The fancy varieties range from 6 inches or so all the way up to the size of a volleyball. The commons, comets, and shubunkins can grow up to 18 inches in length.

 

I'm going to have to agree with Gremlin; 60L is way, way, way too small, and you're probably better off having the fish eat the eggs than you are either
1) letting them rot and contaminate water that you've got to be busting your butt to keep clean right now
or
2) allowing one or two to hatch and giving yourself even more problems.

I'm sorry my friend, but you are either going to have to re-home your fish, get a much, much, much bigger tank for them, or condemn them to a short, stunted life. The myth that fish will only grow to the size of the tank they're in is unfortunately sometimes true; in the same way that bound feet stay smaller. It's not a healthy thing, but it's possible to subject one to it.

 

The myth that fish will only grow to the size of the tank they're in is unfortunately sometimes true; in the same way that bound feet stay smaller. It's not a healthy thing, but it's possible to subject one to it.

That's a perfect explanation!
I just love the way you worded this, very easy to explain to someone this way. Now I'm going to go use this on my friend and see how it works with her and her goldies. Thanks!

 

Thankyou Gremlin and Wisecrakerz for your feedback. I did know that the tank was probably too small but this is what they came with and I didnt get any notice prior to them showing up at my door! They have a filter and pump in the tank which I know will help but would like to get a bigger tank soonish. Maybe Santa might bring me a new fish tank!! I was worried about contaminating the tank with unfertilized eggs so thankyou for telling me how to get rid of them. didnt know if the fish would be able to eat all those eggs as there is so many! The reading material said they should spawn for 3 hours but mine have spawned for 6 hours. Does anyone have any comments about that?

 

They will spawn for however long the mood strikes them. My sister's goldfish will spawn off and on for a week if the conditions are right. Usually right before or right after a storm in the spring, early summer or late fall.

Is there any way you can post a picture of your fish?

 

HI Gremlin, Sorry but not up with technology enough to know how to upload a photo of my fish at this stage. Do you know if female fish always spawn every year and do they have to have a male in the tank to spawn? I have seperated some of the eggs but not many just to see if they are fertile and produce fry.

 

As to your fish not being able to eat all the eggs; lol. They are hard core greedy guts, and shouldn't have a problem chowing everything edible in your tank, although you may want to cut down your feeding (don't fast them, just lighten up a bit) until all the eggs are gone, just to make sure they're not over-eating. Given the opportunity, I have no doubt that goldfish would just eat until they exploded.
If you're putting a larger tank on your letter to santa, you may want to mention that a longer, wider tank would be better than a taller one (these guys like as much swimming space as they can get, but they don't really use the up-down space as much). Also, if you're looking for a way to make their current setup last a bit better, you could grab another filter (double filtration is always a good plan with goldfish, dirty buggers), and toss in a few plants.
I have no idea what plants are available where you are, ime the import laws you're up against are pretty strict. If you can get them, anubias is great, java fern won't get chowed, and the marimo moss balls are good too (won't get eaten, and they'll even play with it, which will be a good way to keep their spirits up in the small space).
I wish I could tell you more about spawning; mine never have (I'm actually doing everything I can to prevent it because I'm having trouble finding space for the ones I've got), so I doubt it happens every year, but then again mine (while being much more than 4 inches) are only about 2, so they're not reeeaaallly mature yet.

As to what kind of goldfish you have; they're pretty easy to "type" from description. If you can answer these questions about your fish, we can probably tell you more or less what you've got, and what kinds of requirements you're going to be looking at.
Do the tails look more like your stereotypical fish tail, or do they sort of look like 2 tails, connected at the top/back? What color/s are they? Do they have tiny little barbels (like... little mustache corners) on the outsides of their mouths/chins? Are they shaped more like a softball, or more like a kind of flattened rugby ball? Do they have lumps on their heads, or do they have funny looking eyes?
And, have you named them?

 

Goldfish will spawn however often they feel the conditions are "right". Sometimes, they will spawn several times a year, sometimes they may not spawn for several years. It just depends on the conditions. They may spawn with or without a male in the tank/pond.

Do your goldfish look like fish or do they look like round balls with fins and tail stuck on? A general description could help us ID them.

 

Thanks again Wisecrackerz and Gremlin for your feedback! That's great info for me. I think my fish are comets. I know what fantails and orandas look like. These ones a just plain gold that look like flattened rugby balls. If they are comets, I'm not used to seeing them so big as here in Australia they are all small as they are kept in such tiny tanks. they have 3 live plants in the tank. One is an Aluminium plant which is very popular in tanks in Australia and they like to play with it. There is a purple and green one but can't remember the name of and a fluffy looking one which is edible and also very popular in Australia. Cant remember what this one is called either. Double filter seems like a great idea! My fish are named Black Eye, a girl with black along the tops of her eyes. The other 2 I was calling the twins until I realised one was a male and one a female. The female also has an extremely small front left fin. not sure if born this way or it was torn off somehow. Her name is now Little Fin. She is really cute and always looks like she is waving at you! The boy doesn't exactly have a name as yet but I usually call him Beastie. lol Will try and get pics up soon. The little girl who used to have them supposedly was always picking them up and carrying them around the house so was very rough with them. That's why I'm not sure if Little Fin may have had her fin torn off or was born this way. Thanks again for all the help and will let you know how I get on with the eggs and possible babies??!!

 

Depending on the type, the black may not stay. Usually, once a fish starts turning orange, they lose all the black as they mature. This process can take anywhere from less than a week all the way up to several years.

Here are a couple pics of common/comets.

The female with shorter more rounded fins,




and the male, with longer more angular fins.




Are these what yours look like? Oh, they are in a 2.5 gallon tank for the pictures - then they went back in my pond.

 

HI Gremlin,
Yes thankyou for the pics. That is what they look like. I went to the aquarium today and found out the were comets which is what I suspected. All seems good. The eggs are slowly getting eaten and the fish have pulled out the plants again!lol

 

Goldfish will do that -- they love to "rearrange their furniture".

Comets will get up to 18 inches long. They are very strong swimmers and will need lots of swimming room to stay healthy. I have one that I know is at least 26 years old.

 

I really have nothing to add to all this good advice.
I just wanted to say Gremlins goldies aren't living in the small tanks in the pics but were put into them for picture taking purposes
carol

 

Are these what yours look like? Oh, they are in a 2.5 gallon tank for the pictures - then they went back in my pond.

I really have nothing to add to all this good advice.
I just wanted to say Gremlins goldies aren't living in the small tanks in the pics but were put into them for picture taking purposes
carol

I do try to remember to put that "disclaimer" on posts where I put those pictures. It also helps to figure the size of the goldfish, if you are familiar with a 2.5 gallon tank's size... Yes, my goldfish live in an outdoor pond - approx 180 gallons and still smaller than I wish I had.