Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain Goldfish

I know people use goldfish for bait. I've never seen anyone recommend them for a pond. Do they not reproduce fast enough to be a good forage fish?

I don't know enough to give a really good answer, but here are a couple of anecdotal stories from people I know who have them.

1. They can grow very, very big in a pond. I've heard of three pounders.

2. They're essentially little carp, and like to root around on the bottom.

3. They may revert back to a more subdued coloration in subsequent generations. One pond owner I know says his second generation goldfish are brown.

4. They'll eat pellets.

5. They love invertebrates.

I don't know if that helps any. I haven't yet heard of any problems with massive amounts of reproduction.

Golden shiners are a much better option. They can get pretty big, but not nearly as large as goldfish. Fish with them, but dont stock them.

Another advantage to golden shiners might be the palatability issue. If a goldfish is like a carp then that dorsal spine might feel a little rough going down. If I were a predator fish, I'd like that golden shiner better.

It is illegal to use them in FL for bait, but I know of some that have before. I think the coloring is a big attractor for bass in colored water.

I have some in one of the ponds at our house. They are 4 or 5 years old and they are rather large. Actually have some that crossbred with a Koi. The are all dark grey with a little gold on their heads.

Goldfish can and will reproduce quite prolifically without predation. They grow quickly and can make an ongoing mess by stirring up the bottom. If you think you have a 100 Gold coloured goldfish after they have been in a pond for a while, you likely have 1000's more muted, dark coloured ones you don't see as they do indeed revert to natural colouration, though not all of them. Most places here in Canada it is illegal to use them as bait as well I believe. Negatives can really outweigh the positives of stocking goldfish unless you like the looks of them or don't mind a bit of a stirred up pond. And they will eat anything they can fit in their mouths so count them as part of your predator and prey food chain.

Some say they do not like a goldfish because they stire up the bottom what if that is what you would like? do asian carp do it for a pond as well? Would 8 asian carp in a3/4 acre pond stirr up some of the bottom? I want it because my pond is too clear, I have 4 now, but only 16 inch, my first reason was to help cut back the veggies in the pond, should I add twice as much?

The Texas state fish hatcheries raise koi carp for the forage for the LMB because they grow fast easy to raise and the dorsal spine is not a problem.

If you have LMB they won't last long. And if you have any LMB of good size a 8" goldfish won't be a problem for them.

Texas715,

It's interesting to me that in our area now baitcamps are selling Koi carp for bait and presumably some of the buyers are LMB fishing and not trot lining. The price of Koi is cheap also...I bought 1/2 pound for my micro pond for $4 bucks....same price for gold fish and rosy reds. Cheap way to stock a micro-pond. Stocked the whole thing for less than $20. Makes me wonder about all these people that are reportedly paying thousands of $ per fish for Koi. They must know something I don't.

funny , i saw this topic. i have HBS about 5 to 7 lbs. there getting tough to catch as they get bigger. someone i was talking to mentioned some lake in Tx. with HBS , that it was illegal to use goldfish for bait. anyone know if this is true. could be my new ticket to fun.