sad fish

Question
i live with my fiances family, they have 2 fantails and 3 danios in a small fish bowl. it probably would be more than 2 litres. the water is always cloudy and there is always mess (poo) at the bottom. the fantails look so sad. they don't move around much, and their tails seem to be drooped. all i want to do is get them out and put them in my tank. i am surprised they have live for this long. its sad to say but everyday i check to see if they have died yet cause i just want them to go and have a better life in fishy heaven. is there anything i can do. they don't really seem to care.

also i have fantails i was wondering how you can tell the difference between males and females, and how long does it take for them to reach maturity.

Answer
Those poor fish. So they have had other pets die of neglect too and they don't seem to care how much they suffered? I hope your fiance' is more compassionate than his family. Seriously. Would they read some of the comments from my letter? It might help and I really don't mind. Can the poor fish just disappear one day find their way to the fish store? Maybe one at a time so it doesn't look obvious? **wink wink**

Something you may find quite interesting is that in Rome, Germany and Sweden (I think those are the places) fish bowls are illegal. People can be fined and banned from having any more pets if they have neglected them in the past. Here is a forum thread about part of this story;

http://www.tailfeathersnetwork.com/community/showthread.php?p=411298

Here's more;

http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33158/story.htm

The below page is interesting, artfully expressing humor and thoughtful considerations of the myths surrounding goldfish. The english translation is a little awkward at some points, but it's good;

http://www.dezeen.com/2007/08/16/fish-bowls-by-roger-arquer/

I hope your fiance's family will listen to reason, but if they don't, I hope the fishes' suffering is alleviated very soon...

Cheering you on;
Chris

**********************
Hi Lauren;

I'm so glad you are there to rescue them! They need to get out of there for sure. Living in "poop soup" they are dying a slow painful death of ammonia poisoning. It's burning their gills, eyes and skin every minute of every day. Very sad indeed. Even the danios are too much for a tiny container like that. A 2 liter bowl isn't big enough for a single betta really. Fantailed Goldfish and all other goldfish need a 40 liter (10 gallon) tank with a good filter just for one to thrive. Hopefully your tank is big enough for all of them to be okay. If not, you might consider donating them to your local fish store. The 3 danios need at least a 12 liter tank, and that's with a filter to help clean the water. I hope your fiance's family will listen to you, understand what's going on in there and realize that what they are allowing to happen is cruelty. Goldfish can live to be over ten years old when cared for properly and theirs are still babies of only a year old. Left where they are, they don't have a prayer. Here is a good web page that explains why fish bowls are not good homes;

http://www.epinions.com/content_3185614980

Now to a much less grim topic;

Goldfish can be very difficult to tell males from females. Unless they are in breeding condition they don't show obvious sexual differences. Goldfish can be sexually mature at about 3 inches long. Here is a web page about it that may help;

http://thegab.org/Articles/SexingGoldfish.html

Here is a page about proper goldfish care in general;

http://www.firsttankguide.net/goldfish.php

I hope it all goes okay. Bless you for saving those fish...

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins