Gold Fish in a Massive Bowl?

Question

a friend of mine has given me a massive glass bowl /vase recently. I was hoping to keep some gold fish in it. I looked at a few sites and they seem to be negative about keeping fish in bowls due to problems with the fish not getting enough oxygen.Can you keep a fish in a bowl if you used a filter / oxygen pump? or is it a complete massive no no!

Answer 1

It will be fine as you use an oxygen pump. I'd avoid the cheap ones as some can be quite noisy, the lack of oxygen is due to the small opening on the bowl. Try some live plants to they would also help

Answer 2

It is perfectly ok to keep goldfish in a large bowl. Having pond weeds and reasonable light will maintain suficient aeration of the water. You don't say how big the bowl is but something in the 400 mm range would accomodate two goldfish provided they are not too big. It is essential that you keep it clean and don't over feed. Only feed as much as they can eat. Dog biscuits make good fish food.

Answer 3

i dont think there is anythng wrong with that...

big tanks are good anyway... gives them more room :P

Answer 4

i have two fancy tailed gold fish in a bowl, to get round the lack of surface for oxygen i use my filter it has a bit of tubing full of holes so it can push the filtered water back in to the tank  it comes out of the actual filter and moves in all directions so i have this sticking out of the top of the water pointing downwards as the filtered water splashes back in to the water it creates air in the water. i have had this set up for a while now and both fish are very happy  

Answer 5

she's a mystery and Arprmp are misinformed, I know for a fact your goldfish in these small tanks and bowls did not live long healthy lives. Goldfish should live 15, 20, or 50 years! That is a long healthy life for a goldfish. This cannot be accomplished is a small tank or bowl. I don't mean to sound mean or to Brade anyone I am just tell facts.

A goldfish can be in a bowl as a temporary (1 or 2 months) home that is cleaned out often. Should be upgraded as soon as possible. Fancy goldfish can get 6-12 inches, comets 16 inches, common (feeder) up to 24 inches and koi up to 36 inches. These are not small fish. It is a total misconception with these "goldfish" bowls.

A little history on goldfish; in China goldfish were kept in ponds and during special dinners orange, and red goldfish were placed in bowls and set as center pieces on tables. They were put back into ponds after wards. They should be kept in large aquariums or ponds.

Now back to the question at hand, the only fish I can say would do well in that environment would be a betta. I would only do this if the bowl/vase is around 2.5g or larger. It must be heated and possible filtered if feasible.

I hope that I helped with your question.

Answer 6

what about a beta? Myfriend had one in a ornate large glass vase with a plant floating on top...it did fine

Answer 7

Large bowls are ok so long as you don't fill to the top....only fill about two thirds so you leave as much surface area as possible.Also a partial water change every couple of days is advisable.

Answer 8

I have never used a filter/oxygen pump with goldfish and they have lived long, healthy lives!

I kept them in a tank like this-

http://www.petsathome.com/Assets/PetsAtH...

(although a lot less pink and a lot less mermaids lol)

they were happy and healthy, and once a week i cleaned them out.

The only thing i would worry about with a bowl/ vase is that it does not have a lid...

dont do this if you have cats! and bear in mind that fish can jump... make sure it is REALLY big and you dont fill it all the way up with water or else it may jump out by accident.

:)

x

Answer 9

Just put an air pump and a filter to make it into a normal fishtank

Answer 10

if you have a filter and pump then its not so much of an issue. Its just that a bowl by its shape has very little surface area for the volume, so it is very poor at gas exchange. Biorbs or spheres though and they have filters and pumps and such so you can use em. just dont try and move it full!

Answer 11

Og course you can. If you want you can use an oxygen pump. If yu choose not to you just have to remember to change the water every few days. You will probably want to do this anyway to clean the bowl. If iits so huge you couldnt lift it full of water then you can get a special vaccuum to clean it out and change the water. The only thing is if you use tap water your fish should be fine but if you have city water you would have to buy water or filter the water. You might want to ask about that at a pet store. We have well water and just put it in the tank and the fish were fine and I had many of them including a coy I just had to treat the ph but that was because we had a tank and only changed the water every few months.

Answer 12

As long as the bowl is big enough and not over crowded with fish, an oxygen pump should be fine.  Though I never understood why it's a no for bowls, kids have been having those bowls for years and years and it's never made any difference.  As long as they're home is clean and fed regular then I don't see the problem.  

Answer 13

Obviously no one who answered you has researched the long term needs of fish. Goldfish are pond fish, and comets can get up to a foot in length. Fancy goldfish get to 6 inches or so. One goldfish needs at least 30 gallons, and I doubt the bowl is that big. It is not okay to keep any kind of fish in a bowl. Fish grow throughout their whole lives. When a fish is kept in too small of a container, its body will stop growing and sometimes become deformed. But the really bad stuff happens on the inside. The fish's organs continue to grow in its too small body, pressing on each other and the swimbladder and eventually causing your fish to die what is probably a slow, painful, and definitly premature death. Goldfish should live at least 15-20 years if properly cared for. So the answer is, the bowl is unnacceptable, even with a pump or filter.  

Answer 14

That would be fine. I have a biorb and it is great!  

Answer 15

the bigger the tank / bowl the bigger your fishy will grow