My fancy goldfish tank(s)

[DMD123]

I decided to make a change in my QT/hospital tank. I ordered a Penguin 200 hob filter that I will add and remove the two large sponge filters that take up so much room in the 20g. The Penguin will be modded to not use the cartridge but some large sponges instead. It will hold two Aquaclear 70 sponges instead. Basically same effect of my existing sponge filters but not taking up the space in the tank. Will do this in preparation of possible new fish coming.

 

[40GallonsOfDoom]

So chonky

 

[DMD123]

So chonky

Exactly! lol

My Yuan bao oranda are pretty "Chonky" but the Shogun's are even bigger by comparison.

 

[DMD123]

Last night I met up with @Porkchop who picked up my Apache ranchu. Talked goldfish for a while. Nice to find a fellow enthusiast, not many goldfish keepers around here.

This morning I moved the milk cow ranchu out of the QT/hospital tank and put him in the 65B.

My new Penguin 200 filter should be here on Friday and I will change up the QT tank to hob filter instead of the sponge filters.

Im also waiting on a couple vendors to see what new stock they put out and then will make the decision as to whether or not Im going to drop $300 on a Shogun oranda or not. If it sells before then its fine too, in no rush. Since the vendor in question is new to me I decided to try and contact them through their website contact and see if they are good about communications. Was happy to receive a reply within 24 hours and see that they are pretty active on their Facebook page along with local fish events.

 

[DMD123]

Watching the milk cow ranchu in the tank with other goldfish was seeing a fish that seemed “happy”. It is very lively and active in its new tank. Eats like a champ and seems to be past all the health related weirdness. Yay!

 

[DMD123]

Wanted to post a pick of a Japanese type oranda, the Azumanishiki. Top view you can tell its very elongated and narrow.

Whereas the Shogun oranda is a bit more thick and stout


I like the 'Chonky' one better, lol

 

[sir_keith]

...I found a Shogun farms oranda I like and am seriously considering it but this one is really expensive at $250 not counting shipping cost. The fish is not super special in coloration with it being mostly a white/calico type but it has the big, bulky body characteristics typical of a 'Shogun' fish. I do have a 10% off first order coupon but it is still more than what i typically spend on a single goldie...

Well, by way of comparison, another option in this price range would be Trematocara marginatum, a deep-water fish from Lake Tanganyika. They reach a maximum size of ~4"TL, and as they are schooling fishes in the wild, they need to be kept in groups in captivity. Currently available, and 'Priced at only $249 each for a limited time.'

​

 

[DMD123]

My Penguin 200 came in along with the Aquaclear 70 sponges. The mod is to pull the cartridge filter and to stack two sponges in there instead. I ordered one of the refillable media cartridges and will install that and trim the sponges just a little.

The volume of the penguin is as much as an Aquaclear 70 but much gentler. I had an AC70 on hand but didn’t want the high current in a little 20H.

 

[DMD123]

Goldfish updates: My filter mod proved to be a bust, too much back pressure with the cavity completely filled with sponge material. So at the moment used the included filter cartridge. Will rethink the sponge, maybe make it a bit thinner and it might work.

Tsugi goldfish sent an email confirmation that my order was received and should ship out today (Tue.) for delivery to me tomorrow. The fish is coming from Apex, North Carolina. Always a bit of worry when dealing with new vendors that you have not received packages from. There are a few that are outstanding in the shipping area and others that can use improvement. Looking forward to my new Shogun oranda!

 

[DMD123]

YAY! Tracking number sent

 

[DMD123]

New guy settling into the QT tank

 

[sir_keith]

I'm thinking that these guys will eventually take over the 300! That would be pretty cool, actually.

 

[DMD123]

Past couple days have ave noticed another goldie changing color. My tricolor is starting to lose a lot of its black and orange is coming in. Had that happen to an Apahe ranchu and my lemon head oranda lost all its yellow and is almost a pure white. Not really that uncommon from what I have been reading. Will be interesting to see how the tricolor turns out like.

 

[sir_keith]

Past couple days have ave noticed another goldie changing color. My tricolor is starting to lose a lot of its black and orange is coming in. Had that happen to an Apahe ranchu and my lemon head oranda lost all its yellow and is almost a pure white. Not really that uncommon from what I have been reading. Will be interesting to see how the tricolor turns out like.

What is the basis for these color changes? These kinds of fishes have been around for so long that I assume something is known about this. It doesn't seem to be a consequence of aging per se, as it happens before the fishes are geriatric; rather, it seems a consequence of maturation. In colorpoint cats, these kinds of changes are temperature-dependent, and related to where the pigment is produced (extremities are cooler than the torso, for example), but I can't imagine that this is the basis for a cold-blooded animal immersed in water. And is there a genetic component, where some bloodlines show more changes over time than others? Pretty interesting, really.

 

[40GallonsOfDoom]

Could it be a dominance thing? Like with some cichlids losing color when I bigger one is introduced.

 

[sir_keith]

Could it be a dominance thing? Like with some cichlids losing color when I bigger one is introduced.

I suppose that's possible, but those kinds of changes are readily reversible, and my impression is that the goldfish changes are not.

 

[DMD123]

From what I have read it really is that some colors are very unstable. Black is one of them. A very dominant color in goldfish is orange and many fish will lose the black and it will turn orange. Saw this in my one ranchu and now seeing it in the tricolor oranda. My current Panda oranda lost a bunch of white on it and it turned black which is preferred but Ive heard of people buying the panda patterns only to have them lose black and turn to orange shades. Havent really heard of color changes happening much to already orange colored fishes.

Interesting article: https://www.practicalfishkeeping.co...different,the black colouration can disappear.

Quoted: "However, black is a different story as in twin- or tri-coloured goldfish, black is not a dominant colour gene and will often disappear over a period of time. Heat seems to play a part in this and the warmer the fish are kept the quicker the black colouration can disappear."

My fish are kept around 78 degrees, not necessarily "warm" since most of these fish are raised in Thailand at 85 degree temps to basically power grow them for faster sale.

 

[sir_keith]

...Quoted: "However, black is a different story as in twin- or tri-coloured goldfish, black is not a dominant colour gene and will often disappear over a period of time. Heat seems to play a part in this and the warmer the fish are kept the quicker the black colouration can disappear."

So perhaps it is a temperature-sensitive phenotype like colorpoint cats after all...

 

[DMD123]

Before:

Currently

 

[DMD123]

Before

Currently