Goldfish magically appeared, now they are breeding like rabits!

16 years ago

I used to work at a Garden center. Our garden center sold aquatic plants and we tested out some Koi one year but decided not to continue with them. I took the three remaining Koi home and put them in an aquarium.

We built a new home and I decided to dig a pond for the koi. Unfortunately, the stress of the move and the environment caused 2 to not make it and I was left with just one. I bought another koi to keep it company.

That was 6 years ago. Two years ago, when the water was crystal clear during the onset of winter I saw three baby fish. I assumed they were koi but as they started getting bigger last year (they grew to about 4-5 inches) I can't see any whiskers so I am guessing they are just goldfish...

Well, as winter started coming last year and the water became crystal clear again, I saw what I thought were 3 or 4 new baby goldfish. The pond froze like it did every year and today the ice was finally melted. I looked in the pond to see the baby fish and what I saw was a school of 20-30 baby goldfish about an inch big.

My pond pond is about 10 ft by 5 ft, with a maximum depth of about 5 ft. We have mature water lillies and other aquatic plants, but I am concerned about the breeding rate of these goldfish. They have become pets and but I am worried that the pond just isn't going to be big enough for them. I am already considering either making my pond bigger or digging up a second pond.

My question is: is there a way to stop them from breeding like rabbits? Also, how many fish is my pond able to sustain? I am mostly worried about the water condition, as too many fish could, I assume, greatly harm the water condition for them because of their waste.

Also, in other people's experience, are fish stores usually good about taking in goldfish from people's ponds? I'd hate to see them go, but I want them to be healthy too.

Featured Answer

PJrocks Benoit

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

Allowing frogs around the pond is also a good way to keep the fish population down, and the other way around is also true. One product that has worked better than anything else I have ever used in the past is called Aquascape. It's in a powder form. Water stays balanced. 3 regular gold fish have lived in it for the past 6 Winters. From June to October, I add my Lion Goldfish with them too. I cut the tree that's made so much shade last Sunday. A smaller one is growing and will soon take over. Meantime, I installed netting which protects and allows me to see the beauty of the fish and the pond. The two spruce trees allow plenty of shade on the south side. The filter in the center runs year around and keeps the water moving, so my fish survive the rigorous Vermont weather. I see them through the ice in the Winter. I do not feed them from about November to March. When they start eating, I feed them frozen shrimp and goldfish pellets that soak overnight in my fridge. The longest one is 9'' long now and the size of a coke bottle. When I first got them, they were all about 2" long and the size of a nail clipper. One of them had a baby (black at first) three years ago, but it turned orange by the end of the Summer.

It's a good idea to keep a Heron decoy to scare the real ones away, as you see in my first photo at the top.

My cats watch the fish from the 3 season porch. What a treat for them!

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Comments (20)

pikecoe
16 years ago
I could try sending you some bluegills. Don't know if they would make it and I don't know if it would be legal for me to send them. But then you would have hundreds of bluegills. We have a couple of fish stores that will take them. But not Wal Mart or Petsmart or Petco type stores. Glenda
cydriasgarden
16 years ago
LOL..Goldfish are like rabbits. You probably had a bird plant a goldfish in your pond..to begin with. Probably stolen from someone elses pond. I could tell you a funny story about pond fish sometime..lol But back to your question. Your size pond will hold about 15-30 goldfish depending on size.. I have found places like Craigslist a godsend for getting rid of fish. (I have 5 goldfish left) I know what you mean about they are pets. Most of who you find to adopt goldfish, are actual people looking for housepets..not pond pets. But you can also advertise in your local paper that you have pond goldfish for sale..depending on size, you may get a few bucks for them. I was offered 10k for my baby "Rocky" He was just your regular run of the mill comet Goldfish. Except that he was 36 years old, and 15 inches long.(God rest his little body, he passed on last year) But as to stop them from breeding..Remove all the male Goldfish out of the pond, dig another pond specifically for the Males..Done..unless another pesky bird transfers one..lol But The way you can tell them apart is by the fin..underneath, by the anal fin. The female has a concave fin, where the male has a convex. Or you can look on various websites..Spring is the time to tell the males..They get a white pimple like rash on fins and around the gills. If any problems with water conditions, remove about 10% of the water weekly, replace with clean. That way there is no shock, but your keeping the toxins down. Good luck, and if you have any questions..let me know!
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My pond come winter freezes completly. All the way down to the bottom. I guess I could get one of those heaters, but they seem to do fine when I bring them in (except for this year's mishap) Usually around March I have to remove the ice using a shovel so I can ready it for spring. If I didn't that puppy wouldn't fully melt untill May. I decided it would be fun to put my underwater camera in the pond to see if I could see anything interesting. I set it in various spots and clicked record and came back few mminutes later to watch them. Didn't see much, no water beetles which was surprising but I did notice that my white comet is defently a male! From the frames you can clearly see those white bumps on his gills. I didn't notice this on the other bigger comet but boy was she fat. I'm assuming 'she' based on her plumpness and cause I'm hoping her to be one! I did notice the white comet chased her around a bit for a couple seconds a couple of times. It wasn't constant pestering but there was a chase or two. I guess I'll just have to let them be and make nature do its course! Will be easy as I'm going away from two weeks. Thanks.
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lefd05
16 years ago
Did you bring home aquatic plants from the nursery too? That is another way that goldfish magically appeared.
Its also not unheard of for people such as neighbors and relatives to slip their kids unwanted pet goldfish into your pond when you are not home.
Check with your local pet stores on their policies on taking fish. Some do it, some don't.
lefd05
16 years ago
Another thing you can do is run a classified ad in your local papers to give them away. Most papers will run the ad for free if you're giving the pet away.
always_outside
16 years ago
I placed an ad in craigslist for a free baby koi and received about 20 replies in one week from local ponders. Just be real specific in your ad - maybe say that the person has to be in your area and that they have to meet you at your specific location of choice. Oh, and make sure they are honest ponders and not just looking for snake or larger fish (i.e. oscars)food!!! I gave mine to the person who seemed the most passionate about fish and even sent me pics of his pond. I wanted to be sure my fish was getting a good home. BTW, craigslist.com is free.
mybusyfamily6
16 years ago
I use Craigslist Too.. Its the best place to list things for sale or free.

www.craiglist.com
helvidius
9 years ago
You can always take them fishing!
helvidius
9 years ago
If you cant take your pets fishing, then sell some to local fishermen...They will buy your excess for bait...Hey could be an idea to bring in extra cash!
Sherry Marshall
9 years ago
DO NOT sell/use them for bait or let then loose in a natural lake/pond/stream. It is ILLEGAL! They probably came in with one of the plants. Their number will level out at some point. The big ones will eat the little ones. However the bigger ones will suffer more from bad water conditions. I have thought about removing some of mine over the years...but how to decide who goes and who stays? I don't have the heart to do it.
ccecilm
9 years ago
Make or purchase 2 large spawning mops and rotate them out of the pond every day until spawning stops. Rotating them on a daily basis insures that the eggs will dry/die each day. You can also use an industrial string mops. We use them every year with excellent results.

Make your own

String Mop
Allyson Goyette
7 years ago
We have had the same thing happen. My question is does your pond freeze solid? How far north are you? We bring ours in for winter but the little guys are nearly impossible to catch. Can they survive ice?
chas045
7 years ago
Goldfish can easily withstand frozen over ponds. I'm in 7b zone and temps can get down to 5 F. But my pond is almost 3' deep and it only has frozen an inch or so. It could be stood on.
hemlock140 Zone 8B
7 years ago
My pond is only 24" deep, and my goldfish have survived with 3" of ice over it. I thought goldfish will stop growing when they reach the maximum capacity of their water environment. Currently I have 8 and they seem to be staying at the same size now, about 6-7" for the last couple of years, they are now over 6 years old.
Denise
7 years ago
We got 7 goldfish for our pond a year ago and just noticed the spawn behavior. I quickly google to learn what next. All of the sites said the older will eat the eggs, or they will get sucker into the filter or the fry will starve without proper food. Now I read here that you guys have too many!? Should I just leave it all to nature? Or at least try to section off the adults? I would love to have babies.
chas045
7 years ago
Well, what all you just said is true. Eggs will be eaten in proportion to adult population; more adults = fewer babies, but (at least at first) babies may overshoot a good population. I would guess that 7 one year olds would eat most eggs but a few will get thru and you will probably get just what you want.
chmuller
7 years ago
Let nature take it's course. At a certain point the fish will get into a balance based on how may fish the size of your pond can support.
tropicbreezent
7 years ago
As long as the baby ones don't have long floppy ears .........
4carriescorner
6 years ago
How do you keep the cats out of your pond?
Fiona Menadue
7 months ago
Put water in it

Goldfish magically appeared, now they are breeding like rabits!

PJrocks Benoit

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pikecoe

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