Why did my goldfish die

Question
Hi!
I just bought two small gold fish..1.5 inch each from walmart.
I was familiar with the fact that fish are sensitive and die easily so I followed each instruction of the walmart representative. But both my fish died the first night. I kept them in a bowl from fish aisle at walmart with the original water I brought them in and some more tap water to fill 3/4 of the bowl. I had confirmed from the wallmart rep if 2 fish in that bowl would be ok and she said she had 3 in the same bowl. I tried to maximize the water surface area. I got the fish flakes recommended for them which i fed them at night (as per measurement suggested by the person at wallmart). I had put some stones and artificial plants in the bowl avoiding over crowding and also added 2 real plant seeds. I got all stuff from walmart fish aisle. I'm sad they could not survive even 1 day. I don't want to pet fish now.
:(

Answer
Hi Roli,
 Goldfish are not a good fish to start with. They are very sensitive and often have diseases.   

 It is not a good idea to keep fish in a bowl. Basically, a bowl is not large enough for any fish for any period of time. The smallest tank I would recommend would be 5 gallons and even that is really too small.   I strongly encourage people to start with a 20 gallon tank.  You have much greater odds of success with a 20 gallon tank than with a bowl.  And avoid goldfish!

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
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