I have a lot of postcards that I want to get rid of this month and next, January to February 2019. I will send to anyone in the 50 states. If you are comfortable, send me your address and you’ll receive a postcard with poetry!
Aquaridise Guest Post: Where to Find a Healthy Goldfish
I recently had the absolute pleasure of writing a post swap for Aquariadise, who was a pleasure to work with and very patient with me, haha!
They recently published my post, White Cloud Mountain Minnow Care over here!
So here is their post for me. It's highly accurate!
It's more humane for the fish itself. The goldfish at your local pet store are mass-produced, badly bred and stressed. There's a reason there are so many dead goldies floating around in pet store tanks, and it's not always the pet store's fault! The way these fish are treated before arriving there just leads to a higher death rate. I'm not sure about you guys, but I sure as hell will not support that any more. I'd gladly pay more money for a fish that won't have to suffer through endless stress and disease! It's like the fish version of buying organic meat: you know what you get, where it comes from and that it has been treated well all its life.
It can be a lot easier on your own budget! This may seem strange - how can a $50-$60 fish be easier on your budget than a $10 one? Well, like I mentioned in my own example, the extra costs to bring that $10 fish back to health can be very high; aquarium fish medication is not cheap. And there is no guarantee this cheap fish will live very long, so there's also a chance you'll be back in the pet store within a month, having to buy another one. Of course there is always the possibility that your responsibly bred high quality fancy gets sick as well, but that chance is simply much smaller. Don't be fooled by their high price! You get what you are paying for, and in the end you may end up actually paying less.
If you're interested in buying a fancy, I hope you will consider finding a responsible breeder or importer instead of heading to the pet store (or garden store!) around the corner. It's better for your wallet and better for the fish. Having to see your goldie suffer from disease and being unsure if it will survive is no fun - goldfish keeping should be about enjoying your goofy new fish, not about constantly having to worry if it's going to pass away within the next 24 hours. There are goldfish breeders and importers in most countries; even in a tiny country like Holland, there are two big importers! If you live in the US, you're especially lucky, because there are multiple goldfish breeders/importers there that actually ship their high quality fancies to your doorstep. I unfortunately don't have personal experience with them, but EastCoastRanchu, DandyOrandas and Rain Garden Goldfish all have fantastic reviews. Happy fishkeeping! -- Aquariadise - Aquarium articles, photos, tips&tricks and more!
