In my experience I find that flakes and floating pellets are disastrous for fancy golds - a sure-shot recipe for SBD......I find Saki Hikari sinking pellets and Hikari Lionhead sinking pellets are excellent feed for the fish. Moreover the Saki Hikari feed has pro-biotic bacteria that help reduce the stress on the biological filter, permitting more no. of feedings per day
@nv85 what is SBD ? I'm not sure about Saki Hikari (but I've used the sinking pellets from "Goldfishconnection" -a website, their medicated foods & pro-biotics for quarantine period). I'm not really into flakes but I use it 3-4 times a week, little bit potions, just for fun for the fishes. But I've been using floating pellets for years and so are the fish breeders that I know. To me, food is food, the fish will live and grow as long as they are healthy to begin with.
@Steppen03 SBD means Swim Bladder Disease, one of the worst killers of fancy goldfish. The goldfish loses complete control of buoyancy due to build-up of harmful bacteria in the intestines. This arises almost always due to floating pellets/flakes because while swallowing the pellets the goldfish also ingest a lot of air; another reason is that the pellets swell inside the intestines of the fish causing bloating, blockage and eventually SBD. So potentially healthy fish can be rendered very sick
@nv85 Well soaking the pellet foods in pond water for few minutes before feeding is something I've done for years. Most of my fishes did not die from SBD but simply "Hole in the Head" disease, Dropsy, and "Stop Eating"; all these are due to bacterial infections (you say "harmful bacteria") when fishes are mixed hastily and / or did not thoroughly quarantine for 30-60 days (using medications). Thanks for sharing!
@Steppen03 Yes true....I too have lost many of my fish due to hastily adding them to the main tank without the necessary quarantine of 30-60days. I now buy all my fish from just one supplier, who is well known for importing high quality goldies from Singapore and Thailand in good health. I ofcourse go through the quarantine process but atleast I can rest assured that the goldies are healthy at the time of purchase :)
@nv85 The most important time for the goldfish is the first 1-3 months of new fishes and do not add anymore fishes to your existing pond because you will have to deal with bacterial infections. I still haven't master mixing fishes together from different places or at different times. Do you have that problem ? I have been taking risks at the expense of my beautiful fishes in the past.
@Steppen03 The problem with most goldfish bred where I live is that they invariably are carriers of anchor worm and/or fish lice (either as mature adults or as eggs lodged in the body) which start sprouting up almost as soon as I get them home and start feeding the fish. This is why I now buy only the imported goldfish, which though being expensive, are free from these parasites as well as other possible infections
Aww, you have Ranchus! They're my favorite type of goldfish -3 -3
RuthandKenzie 3 months ago
They look so cute
johnphan76 3 months ago
hahaha i love the way ranchus look
TheChrisTelevision 3 months ago
In my experience I find that flakes and floating pellets are disastrous for fancy golds - a sure-shot recipe for SBD......I find Saki Hikari sinking pellets and Hikari Lionhead sinking pellets are excellent feed for the fish. Moreover the Saki Hikari feed has pro-biotic bacteria that help reduce the stress on the biological filter, permitting more no. of feedings per day
nv85 9 months ago
@nv85 what is SBD ? I'm not sure about Saki Hikari (but I've used the sinking pellets from "Goldfishconnection" -a website, their medicated foods & pro-biotics for quarantine period). I'm not really into flakes but I use it 3-4 times a week, little bit potions, just for fun for the fishes. But I've been using floating pellets for years and so are the fish breeders that I know. To me, food is food, the fish will live and grow as long as they are healthy to begin with.
Steppen03 9 months ago
@Steppen03 SBD means Swim Bladder Disease, one of the worst killers of fancy goldfish. The goldfish loses complete control of buoyancy due to build-up of harmful bacteria in the intestines. This arises almost always due to floating pellets/flakes because while swallowing the pellets the goldfish also ingest a lot of air; another reason is that the pellets swell inside the intestines of the fish causing bloating, blockage and eventually SBD. So potentially healthy fish can be rendered very sick
nv85 9 months ago
@nv85 Well soaking the pellet foods in pond water for few minutes before feeding is something I've done for years. Most of my fishes did not die from SBD but simply "Hole in the Head" disease, Dropsy, and "Stop Eating"; all these are due to bacterial infections (you say "harmful bacteria") when fishes are mixed hastily and / or did not thoroughly quarantine for 30-60 days (using medications). Thanks for sharing!
Steppen03 9 months ago
@Steppen03 Yes true....I too have lost many of my fish due to hastily adding them to the main tank without the necessary quarantine of 30-60days. I now buy all my fish from just one supplier, who is well known for importing high quality goldies from Singapore and Thailand in good health. I ofcourse go through the quarantine process but atleast I can rest assured that the goldies are healthy at the time of purchase :)
nv85 9 months ago
@nv85 The most important time for the goldfish is the first 1-3 months of new fishes and do not add anymore fishes to your existing pond because you will have to deal with bacterial infections. I still haven't master mixing fishes together from different places or at different times. Do you have that problem ? I have been taking risks at the expense of my beautiful fishes in the past.
Steppen03 9 months ago
@Steppen03 The problem with most goldfish bred where I live is that they invariably are carriers of anchor worm and/or fish lice (either as mature adults or as eggs lodged in the body) which start sprouting up almost as soon as I get them home and start feeding the fish. This is why I now buy only the imported goldfish, which though being expensive, are free from these parasites as well as other possible infections
nv85 9 months ago
@nv85 anyway, thanks for watching and commenting.
Steppen03 9 months ago