Goldfish & the B word: An attempt to delve deeper..

Question
Hi there..
First, I just want to say THANK YOU for being here to answer questions.. offering your own time and expertise is a testimony to your love of this species, and concern for it's survival.. It makes me happy. Happy to know you are out there.

Because I really want a goldfish. A fat, happy, silky, shiny, totally contented fish. If it's true that they get lonely, then, I want two. If I cannot provide the ABSOLUTE BEST for my pet(s)- I will not purchase them. To be negligent with an animal is NOT an option. It would break my heart if I hurt it due to ignorance or carelessness.

So... Before even considering the actual purchase of a living thing, I have been doing my research.  For, um, like.. months.  And of all the stuff I read, ANY "Goldfish Bowl" seems to generally be considered a synonym for "The lazy, irresponsible moron's aquatic torture chamber" leading to certain death for.. well.. pretty much ANY fish. (Betas reportedly survive, leading miserable, cramped lives?)

Any search containing the words Goldfish and Bowl, or any number of synonyms, variations, modifiers, etc.. and I get the same bowlshit.

Which leads me to my question....

Is there NO such thing as a Spherical Tank?  (A proper, healthy environment, of proper size, with proper air and water circulation, etc.) in which an individual (or perhaps two?) fish may live happy and healthy lives?

If I am missing something here (and I assume I MUST be) please explain how to find one? I am seriously thinking it must be:

1. I just don't know how to use Google ( steady searching.. for month.. pick a word..)
2. There's a scientific impossibility ( H2o x 10 gal. + 2 fish + no hard angles = force a thick glass sphere can't sustain??!
3. I need to get into the fishbowl selling business.

Everything about the word BOWL seems to be based on the assumption that it's a stagnant, tiny, nasty little container. For the amount of detail and specifics that people get into on these sites, doesn't it seem to be a pretty gross generalization?

Anyway..

I am seriously interested in getting a Black Moor (and if I can get your input on whether or not it's gonna be lonely) a friend for him/her. I keep reading that these bubble-eyed beauties need an environment without hard edges or angles. Yet.. there is no round tank?

I won't pretend to say that my desire for a pretty fish(es) doesn't matter what it resides in. It does. Call me superficial. (Ha ha.. super-fish-al. ok, sorry.)

I am not considering a fish because I a want a warm body to cuddle with, or to go for runs with   in the park, or to guard the house, or go hunting, or serve me in any way.
My sole interaction with my only pet will always be through the glass.
Just lookin at each other.

Me: "Hey, Fishy. How you doin?"
Fish:
Me: "Say.. You hungry? Want a fish flake?"
Fish:
Me: "I guess you aren't much of a conversationalist, huh?"
Fish:
Me: "That's alright. I feel peaceful just watching you swim, you dont have to say a word."
Fish:
Me: "It's so calming, tranquil. restful. meditative. hmm. watching you swimming.. "

{running around the octagonal tank in circles, catching up with said fish, only to watch as it swims an inch away and reappears as fragmented visual snippets of what appears part of any number of funhouse-mirror-visions of part of the fish?}

I'm just keeping it real, here. No bowl? No fun.
I want a fat happy healthy fish in a big round.. bowl.. type.. shaped.. fish.. home.

Is that so wrong?
If anyone has any suggestions for me, I'd love to hear em.
And if not, I hope I didn't inspire hate mail by using the "B" word.

"Joy to the fishies in the ..... ......  .....
Joy to you and me."  

Answer
Hello Anna, and I appreciate receiving your letter!

I think you are wonderful for analyzing the whole goldfish in the bowl being that it is such a argumentative and heated debate for quite some time now. I'm not going to say you are terrible for entertaining the idea of keeping a goldfish or two in a bowl-shaped container. The important part is- you are NOT claiming ignorance and are in fact *Aware* of the many bad points of keeping goldfish in bowls.

The main key to remember is it is -not- the shape of the container the fish is in that is important or the main hot topic of goldfish bowls. But the water volume, feeding habits, filtration, and overall maintenance of the setup are the real vital keys to the success of the setup. If something is unbalanced with one of them, being that a fish bowl is so small -- and any kind of pollution can get so highly concentrated so quickly, problems pop up much faster and can effect the fish much more severely obviously.

And goldfish produce more waste than most other fish of their size and they are quite active. Bettas are often recommended as the 'only' fish suitable for bowls, but there is indeed a problem here too as well. Bettas are tropicals (unlike goldfish) and become very sluggish when the water in the bowl is room temperature and obviously it cannot be heated safely. Cooler room temperature makes a betta less able to grow and develop to his full potential and he may even loose his appetite. So, even they aren't good for those small fishbowls unless there is invented a good, safe way to keep their water at tropical temps.
But this isn't about bettas, this is about goldfish!

The real truth is - A goldfish -can- live and even grow to adult size in a fish bowl if the water is changed at around 100% once or twice a day  to remove the pollutants and growth inhibiting chemicals in the water. While a small 1 gallon bowl wouldn't work for a full-grown 10 inch long comet goldfish obviously... The fact is that its not the size of the bowl, but the water quality and feeding that matters. Of course fish do need exercise and room to stretch their fins.

I'm not currently aware of extra large bowl sizes being available...at least not in my area. There are certain setups like "Bio-orb" tanks -- see here-

http://www.petco.com/product/100504/biOrb-Silver-Aquarium-Kit-with-Light.aspx

And these tanks/bowls are quite popular, and employs a filtration system. While it may not be the best, it helps rather than just having a stagnant bowl. A goldfish could easily live in a Bio-orb but soon he would outgrow it. One of the drawbacks of Bio-orbs is they can be pricey.

And unless you are ok with transferring the goldfish into a larger setup and keeping smaller fish in the bio-orb later on, the best thing to do is simply start with a decent-sized aquarium in the first place. I don't think there are any truly bowl-shaped large aquariums. There are however cylindrical tanks but the depth of these tanks makes maintenance a pain and fish don't generally care for deep water as much as they need extra surface area for plenty of oxygen-exchange. Hexagonal tanks are ok, but it depends on what you prefer. There are also bowfront aquariums that look exceptionally nice.

So the main point here I believe we should be focusing on is making the tank setup easy and not a big hassle for you, and especially, make a comfortable and healthy environment for the goldfish.

The needs of goldfish are quite simple. Good quality food and consistently clean water, good oxygen levels, and space to swim. Goldfish I feel can do alright alone, but I think they are more livelier in groups and not so shy. So I would keep at least 2-3 if you can. Three or more is ideal for plenty of activity and happy goldfish.

So, to meet the needs of the goldfish and keep them healthy longterm. I would recommend you start with a reasonable size water volume. You can start young goldfish in 5-10 gallons and upgrade to larger as they grow.

The most important thing I can stress the most is the importance of water changes -- regardless the size of the tank. Many studies and experiments have been done of the extreme importance of water changes that many people continue to ignore. If you can do at least 50% once or twice a week that would be great, or even more often would be even better.

The goldfish and aquarium board is by far the best goldfish website I have found, for disease information and articles on nutrition and more...  I highly recommend it -


  *********      http://thegab.org/    **********

I know the fishkeeping world can be confusing and its simply that there really is no 100% 'right way' to keep fish. Everybody has their own methods but if you stick to the vital basics, I know you'll be fine!

Black moors are one of my most favorite types of fancy goldfish. I hope you get two or three and have them grow into big black velvety beauties...Remember you never stop learning with the fishkeeping hobby, so its best if you continue to read and research into reliable fish care sources such as Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine, newer books on fishkeeping, and a few good internet sites.

I hope this helps and best of luck!
Karen~