Goldfish questions.

AngeloG

AngeloG

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Jan 30, 2009
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Went on a roadtrip yesterday to a not so LFS. They had a way better selection than Ive seen at petsmart. I was a bit skeptical tho and didnt buy any. I want to find out some things first.

1. Do Blue Orandas have smaller "hoods" and are supposed to have some bronze coloring? These were small sized . Will the hood grow in time? Will they eventually turn gold?

2. Are Panda butterflies just Black Moors loosing their color. They looked like Moors and some had silver/grey coloring too.

3.They had some great lionheads. Their hood almost completely covered their heads on some. I read that true lions have a curved back. Some of them werent so curvey. Is this still ok?

4. I thought i had a real chocolate oranda until i saw theirs. Mine looks like a common tan goldfish with a little hood. Theirs was a deep chocolate color with a full hood. Plus they were smaller than mine. So is mine pretty much a petsmart reject?

All these nice fish were about $20 each and were medium sized except the blue orandas.
Thanx for any input you give me.
 
I don't know all of the answers, but I can tell you that hoods on both orandas and lionheads grow more as they age, and also (most importantly) according to water quality. Hopefully someone who knows more about colors will stumble upon this soon and be able to tell you the rest of what you want to know.
 
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The ones Ive seen a petsmart barely have a hood while the ones I saw at the store were a little bigger with hoods that almost covered the whole head.Someone here told that even and a young stage you can see good hood growth.
 
Panda Moors are more often than not young black moors. A fully grown black and white moor is rare.

I think that ranchus have a curved spine and lionheads spines tend to be much straighter in comparison.
 
1. Do Blue Orandas have smaller "hoods" and are supposed to have some bronze coloring? These were small sized . Will the hood grow in time? Will they eventually turn gold?

Hood size is not so much determined by color as it is dependent on genetic potential and care. A diet high in protein and very clean water will best allow a fish to reach its genetic potential. Blue is one of the less stable colors, meaning it may fade to white over time. A larger fish will tend to hold its color better. If the blue reaches all the way down to the belly, and there are no tinges of white or gold, it is more likely to remain that color.

2. Are Panda butterflies just Black Moors loosing their color. They looked like Moors and some had silver/grey coloring too.

Again, the larger the fish, the likelier the colors will stay. Small panda colored fish almost never retain their black, and most will fade to entirely white over the course of their lives.

3.They had some great lionheads. Their hood almost completely covered their heads on some. I read that true lions have a curved back. Some of them werent so curvey. Is this still ok?

Like the other posters pointed out, ranchu are the ones with the curved back. Lionheads are supposed to have a much straighter back profile.

4. I thought i had a real chocolate oranda until i saw theirs. Mine looks like a common tan goldfish with a little hood. Theirs was a deep chocolate color with a full hood. Plus they were smaller than mine. So is mine pretty much a petsmart reject?

Fish with full hoods at smaller sizes may have entirely too much hood as they grow older. It is worth it to note the different types of hood, namely whether it grows in tight and on the hard side, or voluminous and elastic. These factors can affect the rate of hood growth as well as the amount of hood that a fish eventually finishes with.
 
Wow! Thanks for the info. I was happy to see these variations of fish because I never see them at the local Petsmart.
 
i have mostly oranda and ranchu's and water changes are VERY important and cant be neglected if you want great development. goldfish are very dirty as you know and the larger they get, they are just massive poop machines. my goldfish are all large now the size of a apple and i do water changes 3 times a week 25% each time and they thrive and are very healthy.
 
Here's my .02.

- Blue orandas often have some bronze patches. I believe it's a common occurrence in the blue strain. As in any goldfish, the coloration will shift over time as the fish becomes an adult, but they should retain the blue color throughout their lives. Wen growth is affected by food, temperature, lighting, tank size...
- Panda orandas are often a "time sensitive" fish - you rarely see an adult panda that has maintained the panda pattern. Usually these fish end up being pure white telescopes as adults.
- Ranchu and lionheads used to be very different fish. A classic lionhead has a straight back, but recently lionheads with curved backs have become more acceptable. You may have been looking at a "lionchu" - a cross between the two.
- Your tan fish may be a cull, but remember that food and lighting will affect hood growth as well as coloration. Many breeders keep their dark fish outside for maximum UV to enhance that chocolate color. And of course, the more expensive, well bred fish will show deeper colors.
 
Thank U

This particular fish store gets livestock from all around the world everyweek.....Very nice selection of fish..I picked up a Lionhead and a red & Black Ryunkin...Way better than any Ive seen at my LFS.
 
The bodys of the baby goldies I buy are thumb size not counting fins at that size I'd guess they were 12 to 18 week's old
6 to 9 months later that same baby will be XXL Egg size. My granddaddy
Bubble eye at 4 years of age his body is small apple size his tail is 3 almost 4 time as long as his body. So don't forget that what you buy as a baby has a lot of growing to do and will change a bunch
 
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