Dear Robyn

thank you for this site, which sadly I seem to have read too late, but has affirmed what I previously thought, which is that goldfish are not happy in bowls! My boyfriend bought me 2 beautiful goldfish for christmas which he rescued from a very cruel looking stand (we are in china), and after looking on the internet assured me that goldfish are very hardy animals and as is popularly believed, only have a 3 second memory, or very basic awareness of their surroundings anyway. they are in a bowl about 5 litres big.

trying hard not to neglect them, I fed them dutifully every day, trying only to feed them a small amount, as much as they could eat in three minutes as the packet recommended, 2 or three times a day.

I also cleaned their bowl every day, in the only way I could see how, which was to put them into separate little bowls, pour all the water away, and put fresh water back in, then replace the fish. I now think this might have been wrong, should I just have changed half the water at a time? (i didnt touch the fish when doing this, just scooped them into little bowls). One fish always seemed to be "breathing" at the top of the water, blowing little bubbles, so I thought maybe there wasnt enough oxygen in the water?

anyway for one reason or another, one of my fish was looking unhappy for days, always sitting at the bottom of the tank and now seems to have died, and the other seems to have one cloudy eye and is swimming on her side, so also not healthy (I say her, I have no idea if she is male or female really).

Anyway having read your webpage I realise that there are probably a million things I did wrong in taking care of my fish, which as I suspected to begin with, seem to need much more care than people usually think. any tips on how I might be able to save my last fish and treat her properly? I would really like to know how to feed her properly, how to clean the bowl, and how to maintain the water - do I need a filter? or to aeriate it? how do I do this? Also how can you tell if a fish is dead? I know this sounds like a stupid question, and if I cant even tell if my fish is alive then I really have no business keeping fish, but I always thought fish float to the top when they die? this one is at the bottom but is absolutely not moving, and didnt move even when I put him into another bowl.

I didnt have any plants or rocks in the tank either (I got the fish about 2 weeks ago) and I half suspect they might simply have died of boredom - I know I would have.
Please help me save my last goldfish if you can,

a very sad and guilty-feeling moley

"as is popularly believed, only have a 3 second memory, or very basic awareness of their surroundings anyway."

Actually, new reports show that goldfish have pretty good memories. My goldfish know when I approach the pond. When it's warm, they swarm to be fed but ONLY if I am the one to approach, and it is near their feeding time. So, they remember how my footsteps sound or maybe my shadow versus other people, and they can tell time pretty good! After a heron attack, they hide. If they come out, they hide quick when any shadow appears for weeks afterwards. So, they remember that after a heron attack, a shadow means death, and they hide. Fish aren't dumb at all!

"they are in a bowl about 5 litres big."

That's just 1 gallon! Experts say for medium-sized goldfish, each fish should have at least 10 gallons.

"trying hard not to neglect them, I fed them dutifully every day, trying only to feed them a small amount, as much as they could eat in three minutes as the packet recommended, 2 or three times a day."

Sounds good. I feed my fish twice a day.

"I also cleaned their bowl every day, in the only way I could see how, which was to put them into separate little bowls, pour all the water away, and put fresh water back in, then replace the fish. I now think this might have been wrong, should I just have changed half the water at a time?"

While that helped keep the bowl cleaner, it was extremely stressful to the fish. Don't change more than half at any one time. Don't move the fish to do it either. You can use a piece of air line tubing to vacuum and drain water from the bottom of the bowl. If you have chlorine in your water, be sure to add a dechlorinator to deactivate the chlorine. 100% water changes are stressful for these reasons among others: changes in water chemistry, temperature change (try to match temperatures), physical damage if the fish are moved around even if you're gentle, and low oxygen levels as tap or well water is low in oxygen when it first comes out.

"(i didnt touch the fish when doing this, just scooped them into little bowls). One fish always seemed to be "breathing" at the top of the water, blowing little bubbles, so I thought maybe there wasnt enough oxygen in the water?"

Yes, the fish was trying to get oxygen from the air. The water should be aerated and filtered.

"anyway for one reason or another, one of my fish was looking unhappy for days, always sitting at the bottom of the tank and now seems to have died, and the other seems to have one cloudy eye and is swimming on her side, so also not healthy (I say her, I have no idea if she is male or female really). "

My goldfish page has information on sexing for older goldfish. Infected eyes and problems swimming are just a few problems that may manifest in situations where the fish are in high stress situations without filtration, aeration, room, etc.

"Anyway having read your webpage I realise that there are probably a million things I did wrong in taking care of my fish, which as I suspected to begin with, seem to need much more care than people usually think. any tips on how I might be able to save my last fish and treat her properly?"

Read over the various pages on my site.

"I would really like to know how to feed her properly, how to clean the bowl, and how to maintain the water - do I need a filter?"

Put in a small pinch of food (as much as eaten in a few minutes) a few times a day. To clean the bowl, suck half the dirty water out by gravity using air line tubing if you can get that. Sometimes a turkey baster or pipette works. If you can't do this, then get another non-toxic container in which to gently pour the fish and half the water to hold them while you clean out the rest of the bowl. I think you need a filter but you can't fit one on a bowl.

"or to aeriate it? how do I do this?"

You buy an air pump, airline tubing, and an air stone. You put the stone attached to the tubing into the bowl. The other end of the tube goes to the pump which pushes air into the line and out the "stone" to aerate the water.

"Also how can you tell if a fish is dead? I know this sounds like a stupid question, and if I cant even tell if my fish is alive then I really have no business keeping fish, but I always thought fish float to the top when they die? this one is at the bottom but is absolutely not moving, and didnt move even when I put him into another bowl."

Goldfish when ill may just sit around sometimes. When truly dead, the fish will stop moving its gills, not respond to being touched, and end up in odd positions. A live fish who's really sick can also do those last two things but its gills will move, even if they're slow. Most dead fish sink but some float if they had a lot of gas or air in them. Once they've been dead a while, they may float when full of decomposition gases. If left dead for a day or more, it will be obvious as dead fish will start to degrade (scales fall off, eyes turn opaque), and if you smell it, you will know it's dead as they really, really stink!

"I didnt have any plants or rocks in the tank either (I got the fish about 2 weeks ago) and I half suspect they might simply have died of boredom - I know I would have."

Fish won't die of boredom. However, they may be less active and seem depressed without the stimulation of places to explore and things to do.

Good luck!

Actually, goldfish (and many other fish) have something called "Animal Instincts". Some connect this with memory, but in all honesty, it isn't exactly their memory that tells them what to do in a given situation. A goldfish could come to expect food when the light is turned on, or if you walk past the fish tank... this is based on past experiences. In that respect, yes they are retaining information from the past. However, memory is complex and involves remembering why you are doing what you are doing. I, personally, do not believe that a fish can tie why s/he comes to the surface when you walk past him, with a past experience. All they know is food is coming soon, but why? They do not know… that’s my take on it.

As for the old 10 gallon per goldfish “rule”, I hate that rule. It is so misleading, and grossly abused by many unskilled aquarists that I choose to forget it most of the time. A goldfish is going to grow to be several inches long (6+ for fancies, 12+ for commons), and they need the ideal tank to grow in from the beginning. Making “upgrades” as they grow is risky – and very dangerous. Nobody knows when and if a fish will become stunted, all we can do is provide our animals with the idea solution before hand. If you choose another option, you are playing Russian roulette in my opinion.

1 gallon is to small for any fish in my opinion. Goldfish need space. Get a tank!

my fish come to the top, side of the tank when i come near ond only at feeding time also!!!!!!!

I reccomend you get a 20 gallon and add a second goldfish!!