I do feel for you - how truly awful. You must be beside yourself. Some of my goldies are 14+ years old and the 2 times Ive lost one because of my stupidity (water quality issues) I've been as torn up about it as losing any other beloved pet . Honestly, if I understood then just how aware and friendly and interactive goldfish could be, how long they lived, and what a steep learning curve it was to learn how give them the proper care (and unlearn all the BAD MISINFORMATION people like to give out) I might have chosen to not get them. Have you considered any sort of small pond? I'm already thinking ahead to when I move (3-5 years) and my next fish pond - it will be only about 300 gallons and be stocked with only 3 of my oldest goldies and some small short-lived fish like minnows. Big ponds and koi get a lot of attention, and rightfully so, but I wish more attention and appreciation could be given to small ponds (stocked with appropriate fish species of course). They can be so delightful in their own way.

Gambusia are evil fish? Dude, have you ever noticed that a majority of fish not only eat their young But also the young of other fish? as for release into the wild? I think that any one that would do such a thing is a total idiot! People have done this with many species of animals in the past (some with very good intentions) with disasterous results! I am not that stupid! (although I do admit to some less than "Albert Einstien" moments!LOL!) also, you state,"They are Okay at eating mosquitoes, probably about as good as guppies," have you ever kept this fish!? I have NEVER seen a guppie eat no where near as much as Gambusia!? They are not just "OK" at eating the larvea, They are little eating machines! =) to try to compare their appetite to guppies is a joke! another statement,"IMO a betta would be a better choice for moth larve control, as bettas are nicer fish in general, and pretty to boot" OK?...the bettas found in the wild are a much better choice than the slow, lanky, slow eating "showfish" people sell at most, if not all, pet shops, they are nice looking fish, but in my opinion thats all they are, one betta wouldnt be able to eat all the larvea in a month let alone a day! not even a wild betta, If I would have gotten a wild betta he would have had a steady supply of food for the rest of his life, thats all, the moths reproduction cycle is way to fast for the slow appetite of a single betta, my Gambusia knocked them out before the end of the day! Yes they are aggresive, as a lot of others are, but that was the kind of fish I needed for the job, not the slow betta? have you ever kept bettas with other bettas? (male or female?) they are among the most aggresive fish Ive ever seen! people dont realize this due to the fact that most have only seen the quite little guy hovering peacfully in his little bowl, yeah put him in with others of his kind, youll see what relentless little killer demons they really are! and the part that kills me is that they dont eat the other fish! they just want to kill them! They do this instinctively due to the fact that in the wild they live mainly in small "puddles" of mostly stagnant water and have to do this in order to survive in an environment that is lacking most everything, food, oxygen, and so on, they need what little they have for themselves, this is also why they are slow eaters and have a very slow batabolism., so yeah, Gambusias got the job done.

The Shelby County Vector Control Website: http://www.shelbycountytn.gov/FirstPortal/appmanager/scexternal/content?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=GovLevel3PortalPage&PortletName=Home.Government.CountyServices.HealthServices.EnvironmentalHealth Here is a link that might be useful: Gambusia Affinis at Shelby County Vector Control

It's difficult finding the balance. But what I've done to reduce mosquitos where I have containers with water but no fish is to introduce carnivorous plants, namely Utricularia gibba. Frogs will often lay eggs in these containers so they end up with a lot of tadpoles in them. The plants eat the mosquito larvae while they're still very small. However, tadpoles are too big even when newly hatched. I do also have a species of 'Mosquito Fish' but not the Gambusia. Mine are Delicate Blue-eye, Pseudomugil tenellus. They eat mosquito larvae but not tadpoles. I have tadpoles grow to full maturity in ponds with the Blue-eyes. It's good having the 2 options available. Utricularia gibba is very widespread and fairly commonly available. Sometimes people get it inadvertantly along with pond plants they buy.