Fish for a three year old

[milkmommy]

Is it dumb to set up a little fish bowl with some gold fish for a three year old? I'm thinking of doing one for her birthday?
Deanna

[2sunshines]

No, definitely not dumb. :)

My ds got fish for Christmas from my brother when he was 3. He loved them! They are low maintenance and he loved feeding them and talking about his "pets" and naming them.

[flowermama]

I think it's a good idea! :tu Just don't expect her to take care of it (I think you know that already :giggle). ;) My four year old has had a beta fish for awhile now. She enjoys watching it some and comments on it from time to time (we have it on the counter in the bathroom). :) She keeps telling me she wants a "finding nemo fish" when this fish dies. :shifty :giggle

btw, we finally got a little tank with a filter for about $15 at Petco because I wasn't doing very good at keeping the bowl clean. The fish is much, much happier now.

[Epieikeia]

I have a Beta (Bart) that is going 3 years old. I have in a vase with glass stones in the bottom and a water plant.

I never thought I would like fish(I got him after a co-worker left him at work when she got fired--no one else wanted him), but I really like Bart. Betas have personality--which I was a bit suprised to discover.

I only change his water once every 2 weeks or so--I actually have 2 vases so that transfer is easy.

I set up the clean bowel and then transfer him directly from the dirty vase to the clean one--it works well. :grin

I will actually be sad when I lose Bart--he's my kitchen buddy(our dining room and kitchen is one big room).

[Sanveann]

I do know a couple of toddlers who've poured things into the fish tank/bowl and accidentally killed the fish, so I would make sure yours is either out of reach or has a cover of some sort.

Also, goldfish produce a lot of waste, and their water has to be changed quite regularly.

This article has some good info on goldfish care: http://www.geocities.com/howtokeepgoldfish/

Also, this is an awesome fish-care forum: http://www.aquamaniacs.net/forum/viewforum.php?f=24

[milkmommy]

I do know a couple of toddlers who've poured things into the fish tank/bowl and accidentally killed the fish, so I would make sure yours is either out of reach or has a cover of some sort.

Yea I'd figure I'd do both :)
Also, goldfish produce a lot of waste, and their water has to be changed quite regularly.
Is this true of all fish or is another a better choice, gold fish here are .28 so I can get her say two for next to nothing but would something else be better? I'd like to have more than one..

Deanna

[greenemama]

when my bro was three he was notorious for scooping fish out of the bowl and squeezing them. my mom found half of one in a toy ambulance. :ex

[milkmommy]

when my bro was three he was notorious for scooping fish out of the bowl and squeezing them. my mom found half of one in a toy ambulance. :ex

YEa I could see Cecilia doing that thats while we will keep it outta reach and screened off..

Deanna

[domesticzookeeper]

I guess my only concern would be for the fish itself. Unlike Bettas (which stay small), goldfish can grow to be quite large. I'm sure you've probably heard that a goldfish will grow proportional to the size of its tank. What that means for goldfish kept in little bowls is that their growth is actually stunted. Skeleton, organs, etc. They become much more susceptable to stress and illnesses, and their lifespan is usually cut short :(

[milkmommy]

I guess my only concern would be for the fish itself. Unlike Bettas (which stay small), goldfish can grow to be quite large. I'm sure you've probably heard that a goldfish will grow proportional to the size of its tank. What that means for goldfish kept in little bowls is that their growth is actually stunted. Skeleton, organs, etc. They become much more susceptable to stress and illnesses, and their lifespan is usually cut short :(

:think didn't know this ?? I had gold fish in large tanks as a child and they never grew much if any :think something to consider can you double up a betta I thought they were a one a tank fish?

Deanna

[domesticzookeeper]

Well, there are different varieties of goldfish. But if you're talking about most "fancy" goldfish, they can easily be 3-5" and then some...

Male bettas should be housed on their own. Females can be kept together.

[milkmommy]

I was thinking about this tank (http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=84552444180 7849&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302030056&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023693&bmUID=1128368282755)
or some simliar and like two run of the mill non fancy ,28 cent gold fish.. or one beta (how much are bettas?) what do you think?

Deanna

[JessicaTX]

When my son was three he loved fish. He took them for walks, took them for rides on his bike, tried to sleep with them. It was really hard to explain to my loving little boy that his actions were killing his little friends. He understood that they needed to be in water to live, that's why he scooped up a handful of water when he took the fish out. So not only did we have dried out fishies (gyotaku anyone?) we had fishy water trails through the house.
If you are gonna have fish, keep them in a covered container high out of her reach.


As a side note, I've always laughed when people told me to keep stuff out of my kids reach, as far as I know there's no such thing as velcro ceilings.

[milkmommy]

As a side note, I've always laughed when people told me to keep stuff out of my kids reach, as far as I know there's no such thing as velcro ceilings.

:giggle I'm thinking of keeping it eaither on the piano top the bathroom our room or the kitchen counter all these places are where cecilia knows she can't take things off already so we'd be 'countinuing the rule" she can't go outside without me so I'm sure I notice her taking it out and it will have a top (no open glass bowls here)

Deanna

[SouthPaw]

For a small tank, goldfish are a definite no...even though they are in all those pictures! Their growth gets stunted, their insides keep growing & their outsides don't in a small bowl. A normal goldfish lifespan is 20 years, so even when people say "mine lived 3 years", etc. .... that is like being able to keep a puppy alive for 9 months before it dies, and then being proud of it :( :td

You could either get a little tank like that, with a betta - they are very pretty!

Or you could spring for a 5 or 10 gallon and get some really neat fish. In a 10 gallon you could have a dwarf gourami, some little catfish (otocinclus) and 2 or 3 other little guys.. maybe some platys. Much better than some boring goldfish!

Here is a link to a message board/information site on fishies. There are a lot of neat articles on it http://www.aquahobby.com/e_home.php

I know you probably didn't want to go through so much effort, but fishkeeping is really a hobby, it's best to know what you are doing - even little fishy lives are important! A good way to teach 3 year old some basics of animal stewardship, maybe :)

Or the easy route - buy that tank, fill it with spring water (not tap or distilled), plunk a betta in it, feed him once a day, change 1/2 his water once a week, and all should be good. :tu

[milkmommy]

Well we don't have anyplace for a larger fish tank soo a beta might be our best bet? Anyone know how much those ussually run?

Deanna

[SouthPaw]

Like 3 dollars? Buy one from a pet store, not wal-mart... unless that is the only place nearby. Pet stores usually will offer you another free fish if you accidentally kill the 1st one in 2 weeks or less. A betta would be very happy in that tank you posted... a lot of people stick them in tiny tiny (like maybe 2 cups worth of water) enclosures since they can *live* like that - but you will enjoy mr. betta a lot more when you can actually see him swim around :) so good choice!

[milkmommy]

Would pets smart be considered a "pet store" I think thats the closet I'm going to get to one.. $3 is nothing so thats deffiently doable and like said earlier even fishies deserve a great life. Glad I came here first, DD will be thrilled to watch her Nemo swimming around.. :tu
On the spring water is this a must or is is just the most ideal choice? Just wondering do if so do I need to condition the water or is like opening a bottle of water once a week enough? If that makes sense?

Deanna

[AKCristyMJ]

We did!!

Uhm all the goldfish died and that was hard on her. :shifty
But it went from a bowl, to a mini tank, to a larger-in-the-living-room aquairum full of a variety of fish. :grin

But boy oh boy do fish die!! :hunh
Sheesh!

We have this very pretty shimmery yellow Angel Fish.
I dunno how but that sucker has outlived EVERYONE!!
We got it from dh's friend. We estimate it is like 6yrs old!

It even outlived the other 2 Angel Fish we had.
They were all good friends at one time, and the other 2 did live atleast a year. But then one died, and few weeks later the other, and I think the yellow one misses em. :neutral

I think we must be awfull fish owners maybe.
Cuz we gotta buncha little snails to throw in the tank and they bred like mad and then a year later...they all died in like one week and I hear snails are very hardy. :sad2

*sigh*
Lidia tho is pretty used to it by now! lol
Is that a good thing? :shifty

[SouthPaw]

Hehe... I have accidentally killed my fair share of fish too :blush It just comes with the hobby I guess

Yes, PetSmart would be fine.

For water you have 2 choices
-use tap water and condition it
-buy spring water

With a small tank, it can be convenient just to get a gallon of spring water...if you change half of the water say, every 2 weeks, you'd only have to get 1 gallon a month. (you have to change the water otherwise icky ammonia or nitrites or nitrates build up and kill the fishy)

You can do water conditioner...(i would recommend amquel-plus) what I would do for a small tank is get an empty gallon jug, fill it with tap water, and treat the whole thing. Then you know that water is safe, and it is easier to measure that way. The worst thing to do is buy water conditioner, change the water in the tank (using tap water), and then say "Honey, I thought you put the water conditioner in the tank!" and then watch your fishies die. Trust me... I know.. :shifty

[milkmommy]

:tu :highfive Thanks I'm excited!

Deanna

[UltraMother]

Another :td for goldfish. They makeso much poop that it's not worth it, at least in a small tank.

[This Busy Mom]

I will actually be sad when I lose Bart--he's my kitchen buddy(our dining room and kitchen is one big room).

Oh how funny!! He's not blue, is he? I put a plant in my fish's water about a month ago... I was wondering if I should start changing it regularly (I did when he was in a little tank). He's looking kinda mopey. He was extremely happy when I gave him the plant, LOL.

Ours is named Buddy ;) .

I'd recommend a beta. They are easy to care for, pretty, and live around 4 years if they are taken care of properly, and they don't require a filter.