After many aquarists have initially mastered the skills of raising goldfish, they can basically ensure that their goldfish live healthily by controlling the appropriate stocking density, reducing the amount of feeding, and arranging proper water changes. However, as they gain more experience in raising fish, they may encounter new problems: most varieties of goldfish are beautiful with their round and plump bodies, but their own goldfish always seem to never grow up, and even become the so-called "old man". fish".

So, what are the aspects of “cultivation” that masters often talk about? Today, we will summarize for you some key points on how to raise goldfish to be big and fat.

1. Seedling selection is the key

In life, we often hear this metaphor: health is 1, and everything else is 0. Similarly, in the field of fish farming, good seedlings are the crucial 1, and other effort factors are just subsequent 0s. Therefore, if you want to raise excellent goldfish, you must first learn how to select good fry, otherwise everything will be in vain. When selecting, we need to pay attention to the following points.

First of all, the goldfish itself must have the genetics and bloodline to grow up. If such a foundation is lacking, then no matter how rich our experience and superb skills we have, we cannot change their growth potential. Therefore, when buying goldfish fry, we need to understand their parent species and background. For example, we can ask the merchant to provide video information of the breeding fish. Of course, there are also some shoddy merchants on the market, so it is particularly important to choose an established merchant with a good reputation.

Specifically when it comes to the selection of goldfish fry, for general species, whether we buy them or breed them by ourselves, we should give priority to those goldfish with extended fins and long bodies. Such goldfish have larger skeletons and will have more room for growth in the future.

Finally, don’t pick small fish based on adult standards. Goldfish that exhibit species characteristics prematurely often have difficulty growing to large sizes. For example, if the head tumors of goldfish with head tumors such as Taishi, Lanshou, Tiger Head, etc. are already very developed in the fry stage, it will be difficult for them to develop significantly in terms of body shape. This is exactly what the saying goes: "A long body does not have a long head, and a long head does not lead to a long body."

2. Goldfish must have high dissolved oxygen

As a highly oxygen-consuming fish, the adequacy of oxygen in its living environment is crucial to its health and growth. If you live in a water body with insufficient oxygen for a long time, even if the water quality does not seriously deteriorate to cause fish diseases, it will cause the goldfish to lose appetite and significantly slow down its growth rate. According to research, the amount of dissolved oxygen required for normal growth of goldfish is about 5 mg per liter of water. When the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water increases to 7 mg per liter of water, the growth rate of goldfish can increase by about 20%.

Therefore, in order to keep the goldfish big and fat, it is indispensable to equip the oxygen pump, and it should be ensured that it works 24 hours a day. Some aquarists like to turn off the filter and oxygen pump at night to save electricity bills or avoid noise. This is actually extremely inappropriate. In addition, cultivating green moss in the fish tank is also a good way. It not only produces oxygen through photosynthesis, but also serves as a snack for goldfish, adding to the fun of raising it.

3. The density should be moderate

Raise seedlings , it is not advisable to have a density that is too high or too low. In the practice of family fish farming, we usually choose a tank about 1 meter long, in which we keep 5 to 10 goldfish with a body length of no more than 10 centimeters. These goldfish species should be uniform, with little difference in individual size, so that they will form a competitive relationship when feeding. In this way, goldfish will form a group effect when swimming, increasing their activity and appetite. Here are some commonly used data for reference only. The details will depend on the water temperature, the strength of the fish and the quality of the water.

The current stocking density commonly used in domestic professional fisheries is: a cement pool with a volume of 3 square meters and a water depth of about 30 centimeters. The species raised are traditional goldfish such as Tiger Head, Longqing, Wangtianyan, and Pearl Scale

As a cold-blooded animal, goldfish's body temperature will adjust with changes in water temperature, so water temperature has a significant impact on its body functions. When the water temperature rises, the goldfish's body function activities will increase accordingly; conversely, when the water temperature drops, its body functions will be suppressed.

Generally speaking, goldfish can grow faster in the water temperature range of 20 degrees to 28 degrees. In the cold early spring, players often use heating rods to maintain this water temperature. The specific water temperature selection needs to be determined according to the type, bloodline and growth speed needs of the goldfish. The subtleties in this are one of the highest knowledge of fish farming. Every aquarist will accumulate his own unique thoughts and experiences during the long-term breeding process.

5. Feed enough

In the past, when we discussed how to ensure that goldfish are kept alive, we usually recommended controlling the amount of food. However, to encourage your goldfish to thrive and fill up, we need to provide as much food as possible without compromising water quality and keeping your goldfish healthy. Of course, this does not mean feeding without restraint. The principle of regular and quantitative feeding must still be followed.

In terms of bait selection, live food is undoubtedly the first choice, supplemented by an appropriate amount of pellet feed. Live food includes water fleas (fish worms), blood worms (red worms), and nematodes. Especially for those goldfish fry that have just hatched, we can place them in live water fleas around the clock, so that when you come home from get off work at night, you will find that they have grown much larger than they were in the morning. Yes, the stimulating effect of live food is so amazing. If conditions are limited and live food cannot be obtained, frozen water fleas or bloodworms are also good choices.

6. Change the water frequently

For In order to make goldfish grow bigger and fatter, in addition to the above methods, increasing the frequency of water changes is also an important step according to different varieties and different growth stages of goldfish. The quality of new water can stimulate the metabolism of small fish and keep them with a strong appetite. It depends on the goldfish species and feeding stage. For some fast fish species, such as Lanshou Taishi, the water may be changed once a day during the seedling stage. The specifics also depend on personal adjustment. How to change water and feed appropriately is also one of the top knowledge of raising goldfish.