While many pet stores claim ALL goldfish varieties can successfully be kept together, this really is not the case. In general, you should try to group the movement impaired with the other movement impaired, and so on. This gives everyone an equal chance to eat come feeding time – when you try to compromise between fast and slow moving Goldies, you will end up with a combination of obese fish and very poor water quality.
Some goldfish are actually known to be relatively aggressive, like the Ryukin. Because of this, they should not be kept with more delicate breeds, such as Bubble Eyes or Pearlscales. A good tank mate for a Ryukin would be Fantails and some of the single-tail varieties, such as the Shubunkin or the Comet – or of course other Ryukins!
Oranda’s generally do okay with other slow moving types of goldies, such as longer finned Telescopes and Moors. However, sometimes this doesn’t even work out because the Oranda may start picking at the Telescope’s eyes – or it may be reversed where the Telescope or Moor begins to nibble on the Oranda’s wen!
Goldfish such as the Pearlscale and the Bubble Eye should only be kept with their own kind due to how fragile they are. You should always pick out their tank decorations with caution as well, since sharp ornaments can rip scales off and puncture eye sacs.
Some Final Words About the Different Types of Goldfish
![black oranda goldfish]( "black oranda goldfish")
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Goldfish may be a very popular first pet for many people, but they certainly aren’t for the majority of beginning fish keepers. There’s a lot of information to learn about their care before you can ever hope to see one grow to adulthood.
Many goldfish can tolerate less than perfect fish tank conditions for a short amount of time, but you should always remember that just because your Goldie is surviving it may not be thriving – and isn’t the goal of keeping any living animal in captivity to have it thrive in its environment?
