First fish for child

[Doza]

Hi all, we had been planning on buying a goldfish and tank for our 10 yr old DD, this will be her first pet. However I have just read a thread in AIBU and they seem to need a lot more space that I thought! So what would be a good starter fish for a small tank?

Get a few guppies. Brighter colours, hardier than goldfish and though they say tropical they will survive just fine in room temp water

"Surviving" in room temperature water is not acceptable. Guppies are not temperate water fish and they need a heater. Ignore the above advice if you want to be a good fish owner.

First of all, well done for asking the question - you clearly care about the welfare of your first fish (and remember it's yours first and foremost rather than your child's as you will need to dictate the care and maintenance).

Right. Question: what's the largest tank you can get and what is your budget for everything? This will give me some boundaries when making recommendations. Generally, the larger the tank the easier it is to maintain. Small tanks need careful monitoring due to the ease with which things can swing out of control in such a small volume of water.

Thanks for the replies, sorry for the delay getting back.
I am ashamed to say I have no idea re budget as I had thought it was as simple as small tank +1 goldfish=??DD
However it would have to be quite small as it has to go in her room: she's been asking for a pet for ages and mean mummy vetoed a dog as we are never in during the day

You could get a 30-40litre tank, filter, small heater, sand, plants, light, and keep a single male Siamese fighting fish. They are beautiful and full of character.

Do NOT get a goldfish. They need very large tanks to do well.

dont forget to cycle the tank before adding any inhabitants, some of the shrimps are nice and bright

Would a siamese fighting fish survive in a warm house (consistently 20 degrees celsuis) without a water heater?

Hi kiwi.

I'm afraid the answer to your question is no.

We keep cold water fish and the natural temp of that tank is 23.5 as its in a very warm well lit room.

We also have tropical guppies and the heater is set to 25oc if the water falls below 24oc the heater will kick in.

Siamese fight fish or Bettas are tropical and should not be kept in cold water. I think there temp is the same as guppies as my DD had a choice between the two and opted for guppies instead.
You will need a heater. In our guppy tank the heater is pretty small and sits behind the filter so you can't even see its there.

yes don't get a goldfish, they need huge tanks otherwise it's cruel.
Once you've set up a tropical tank they are very low maintenance as long as they're not overstocked. We have a 25l tank with three small guppies in it (and a loach to clean the tank up). They are colourful and interesting to watch but because there's only three of them the tank never gets dirty.

(Sorry it's actually a 35l tank before i get shouted at!)

What kind of loach? None I can think of will do well in a 35L tank! Also they are social fish that need others of their own kind.

Fish are often an expensive outlay - equipment, tank, plants, etc, but once you have your bacteria up and running it should be a fairly easy and cheap ride.

The previous posters here have some very good advice - but I would also recommend involving your DD in learning about the fish and nitrogen cycle (even if its just the basics). I did this with my nephew when he got a tank in his room just to stop him from wanting to put his hand in the water/feeding the fish too much etc. Also - as DD gets older be aware that spraying anything airborne near the tank, such as perfumes/deodorants, can poison the water.

Hope it goes well. Fish are great pets.

Look at platys.

Don't get a goldfish!