I know a lot of websites and people say that you should only contain 1 goldfish per ten gallon tank but lately i've been thinking thats not always true. I've had two fantail goldfish in my ten gallon tank in my bedroom and they have been doing great so far. So i'm thinking thats not always true. Am i wrong? Anyone else have any advise if i'm doing something wrong?

I've had my fish for a little over a week but when i was little i had two common goldfish in a ten gallon tank for five years. They were my bffs. They got to be bigger then the size of my hand. But sadly when we moved them to a bigger tank they passed on. There names were lunette and molly off my favorite tv show the big comfy couch. Its possible for multiple fish to live in a ten gallon tank. I would like to get a bigger tank but since i'm 16 and still living with my parents i don't get to make all the decisions even tho the tanks in my room.

Hi Chelsea,
I agree with Andrea. The fact that your goldies "doing great so far" ( I use your own words ) doesn't mean they really feel great or happy. They live but they are not thriving.
Many people say they grow to their tank size. But I also say they die to their tank size. Why? We must look at both sides of the coin. In a small tank they even haven't got the chance to fully grow....
Goldfish can live up to 30 years or more and be a valuable, cherished and loving pet.

I notice  the following: your tank is only 2/3 filled with water. So they do have less than 10 gallon to swim in. You should fill the tank properly. You only have artificial plants. They do nothing for the fish. Get some nice live ones. They are like a salad snack for the fishies, they also consume carbondioxide and give back oxygen ( I explained this in an other post to you )

I also advise you to add an airstone as it provides more oxygen and the fishes LOVE to play with those airbubbles. It is fun watching them  too. Pump and airstone, hose and valves are not expensive.

Basically - because they are kept in captivity - we all should provide an environment as natural for them as possible.
In a tank we have stagnant water. This means it doesn't flow and exchanges itself like in nature. Creating a good flow and performing regular partial waterchanges is very important.

Sure you can save up and step by step you can improve your fishies lifestyle

Any more questions? I am glad to help

This is ridiculous and gets sillier by the time. But don't worry about your karma, I won't touch it, better to worry about the fishes welfare instead of torture them in a really too small space.

It is NOT a discussion what CAN be done. IT IS ABOUT WHAT IS RIGHT OR WRONG for our fish to feel happy and healthy.
Plenty of comments about this issue in the past, I won't repeat myself and others..... Some peeps just don't get it ....

But also think about the following:
First: the tanks in petshops are short term "housing" for the fish
Second: every single petshop I walked in had the appropriate numbers of fish in appropriate sized tanks  (...which doesn't mean there aren't some arround with overstocked tanks... but those ones should be reported...)
Third: good petshops also use top gear to maintain water quality... doubt to say this about every fish keeper

(I skipped reading the other posts)

But I think the best way for you to notice whether it's true or not, is to test your nitrate levels. They will get far too high if your tank is crowded, which it is in this case. Your fish will die far younger than they would in a properly sized tank. So if you can, please buy a 20 gallon and keep your fish safe. Goldfish are messy, and they need a big amount of water not to poison themselves, and that's why they need 10 gallons each. Not to mention the fact that they grow rather large

Creamkiller: You forget one thing... pet shops have the fish temporarily to sell them as pets. This is why it works. It's a TEMPORARY STAY FOR THE FISH. Now, when you buy a fish to your home aquarium, it won't be so that you can move it something else soon. That's why there is this kind of idea that you need to calculate how much water and space a fish needs before you buy it. In case you didn't figure it out yet, just because a goldfish survives in a small environment doesn't mean it thrives or is actually kept happy and healthy.
Why would you buy a pet if you want it to struggle to survive?

creamkiller: where is the problem that you cannot admit that fish NEED SPACE TO SWIM to be happy and healthy and thrive

Also weren't you against carbon a few days ago? Now you talking about bigger filter with carbon...
With your comments you really confuse inexperienced members. As you noticed they don't reply anymore and keep away... which is sad...

WE ARE ON HERE TO SUPPORT THE PROPER KEEPING OF FISH !

and not to mention a 10 gallon tank will stunt the growth of a goldfish it does not matter if there os 2 or 1 fish

... and this is what you like to do to your fish?  Come on creamkiller...
So you don't care if your or sbdy elses fishies are surviving, haven't got room to swim, haven't got room to grow how they should.
you don't care if they die much earlier... they are fish only, cheap to replace... is this really your thinking?
You say the tank will stunt their growth. Why don't you say too  that the goldfish will die to the tanksize they are kept in?

... but basically with your post you admit that the tanksize is too small.

PLEASE REMEMBER: Fish are living creatures that deserve the care of a devoted aquarist, not being slowly tortured to death in the hands of an unknowledgeable aquarist.

creamkiller: I've already told you that activated carbon does not hold any beneficial bacteria. It is only there to absorb chemicals in the water, and for goldfish, it's better to replace the carbon with something that actually holds bacteria.

Besides, I don't care even a bit how it is in "your" pet shops, it's nothing more than a temporary stay for the fish anyway, so it doesn't matter. If it's so horrible for you, why would you want to keep them the same way as they do in the pet shop? Seriously, calculate the correct size for the fish and stop whining, it's as simple as that. But then again, I don't know if you care for the fish themselves more than keeping as many as you can. I'll say it again, too small space = sick fish. Too small space will stunt their growth, overload the filter and cause water quality problems = sick fish. No matter how big the filter is, it won't remove the nitrates, you have to do that, most likely every day as the fish grow. High nitrates = sick fish. Do you see a pattern? It all ends with sick fish who die (relatively) young. I don't even know why you bother anymore!

Lol, maybe d: He was here for quite a while though, giving all kinds of "expert" advice. Mainly confusing newcomers :/
You surely remember the case with the tank in front of the window and the marine fish d: lol d:

Just hope he won't go killing off someone's fish with the "help" he's giving though.

Awww, c'mon...ok that's funny ...LOL!

Aww man I can't delete my messege!!!!!