Goldfish looking at mirror for hours at at time. Should I get him a friend?

[SparklE fin]

Well, I have my adorable little Aki in an unknown gallon tank (I thought it was a 20 gallon but had it at 18 gallons. Added 2 more gallons and wasn't at the top about 7 more inches to go. Afraid to add more :p).PH is 7.4 Ammonia 1 Nitrate 0 Nitrite 0.

Well, I was moving his tank and now he's front of a mirror, now he's staring at it for hours at the time. He's in a room where it gets a lot of movement too. Does it mean he's lonely? I heard goldies are social, so I'm guilty about keeping him alone for so long .

My only concern is he cannot swim fast if he wanted, I think his tail was hurt as a fry or something. He cant even swim fast when I put his favorite vegetable on the clip. So is there a goldfish with a similar disability or what?

[3l1zabeth]

Get him another goldfish!!!! I dont think that you would need to get another goldfish with a disability because goldfish are generally nice to each other.

[LebronTheBetta]

Is your Goldie a Fantail?

[SparklE fin]

Originally Posted by LebronTheBetta

Is your Goldie a Fantail?

I think so. But I'm worried that he won't be able to get to food if I got another goldie

[MyRainbowBettaFish]

I believe:

fancy goldfish(fantails,moors, orandas, etc)= 20 gallons, then 10 gal. for each additional fish

comet goldfish(aka feeder or 25 cent goldfish)=55 gallons

[Pucky21811]

I agree with MyRainbow; I wasn't sure of the exact numbers, but really do consider the min and max gallon amount for each goldfish; Five or six years ago my sisters and I won carnival goldfish to save them, and let's just say we didn't think they'd still be alive today. Unfortunately the best I can do for the two that have survived is for them to be in a 20 gal, and a filter only fit for a 10-15 gal. Poor fishies. If I had the money/space in my parents' house I would make it better for them, but for now they have to deal with a teeny tiny 20 gal. :/

[MyRainbowBettaFish]

Originally Posted by Pucky21811

I agree with MyRainbow; I wasn't sure of the exact numbers, but really do consider the min and max gallon amount for each goldfish; Five or six years ago my sisters and I won carnival goldfish to save them, and let's just say we didn't think they'd still be alive today. Unfortunately the best I can do for the two that have survived is for them to be in a 20 gal, and a filter only fit for a 10-15 gal. Poor fishies. If I had the money/space in my parents' house I would make it better for them, but for now they have to deal with a teeny tiny 20 gal. :/

Good for you rescuing them :)!

[SparklE fin]

Then I guess Aki gets a friend. I guess I'll get another fantail. Although, I don't wanna, I'll do it :/

[LebronTheBetta]

I don't think you can add 1 more. You need 10 additional gallons, remember?

[PaintingPintos]

Goldfish do not "need" friends.
It is the breeding season and goldfish are clearly going to be interested in mating.
Because your goldfish likes a mirror doesn't mean you need a friend.
Your tank is too small for another fish, anyway. If your fish is a fantail then it will NOT have any trouble "competing" for food anyway. If you have a Black Moor or Telescope Eye or Celestial Eye then it WILL have trouble eating and finding food because its vision will be impaired.
I have a Pearlscale and a Black Moor in the same tank.... They are female and male, and the only reason they find companionship in each other is to mate. They mate every morning (more like the male attempts to mate with the female) and when that is over with they ignore each other and act like the other is part of the scenery.
If you have a Fantail and insist on another fish, upgrade your tank to 30 gallons or more. Ryukins tend to be very aggressive so I would keep them singly or not at all. Comets and Common goldfish aren't very good matches for a Fantail though they are similar in body shape, because the former are more aggressive and play rough.
Good tankmates for a Fantail would be Black Moor, Pearlscale, Oranda, or another Fantail. Any aggressive fish should not be kept with the Fantail. But if you insist on a large-eyes fish, be sure that it receives extra food as the Fantail will be quicker at spotting food, and will eat most of it before the large-eyes fish even realizes that food is around.