(Medium)
AquA AnimaniA is your #1 local source for Red Lionhead Goldfish. Stately and stubby with a roaring red head, the Red Lionhead is definitely an attention-getter. Visually, Lionheads are notable for their lack of a dorsal fin. The Lionhead Goldfish is by far the most popular and well known of the dorsal less goldfish. Rather than having the long slender body of the Common Goldfish or the Shubunkins, the Lionhead Goldfish is one of the more rounded or egg-shaped fancy gold fish.
Lionhead Goldfish have a double caudal (tail) fin and a double anal fin. This goldfish variety is very similar to the Ranchu Goldfish, a variant that was highly developed Japan.The Lionhead can be distinguished by a less curved contour shape to its back. Also, its caudal fin is quite similar to that of the Fantail Goldfish, while the Ranchu has a tail fin that splays out to the sides, often being almost horizontal.
This goldfish was bred in China to develop a “hood” that depicts the image of the mythical Chinese lion-dog. The distinctive raspberry or lion’s mane appearance of the Chinese Lionhead Goldfish have led to its common name ‘Lionhead’ Goldfish. The amount of head growth differs for each fish. For some the broad head, except for its eyes, mouth and nostrils, can become completely covered with fleshy growth (sometimes impeding their vision) while others will develop hardly any head growth at all.
These goldfish are available in a variety of colors. The solid metallic types include red, orange, chocolate, blue, and black. The nacreous types can be calico, bi-colored combinations of red and white or red and black, or tri-colored combinations in red, white, and black. There is also a red-capped variety with a bright red head and white body. Though pretty rare, there is also a long finned variety.
The Lionhead Goldfish is considered a rather delicate fish and is not recommended for beginners. Its swimming ability is cumbersome because of its rounded body which is further diminished by the lack of a stabilizing dorsal fin, a trait that is also seen in the Water-Bubble Eye Goldfish and the Celestial Eye Goldfish. Many of the elongated goldfish varieties like the Common Goldfish, Comet Goldfish, the Shubunkin, are not really good companions for the Lionhead Goldfish because they are fast swimmers and too competitive during feeding time. Better tank mates would be the similarly handicapped but less hardy Water-Bubble Eye Goldfish, Telescope Goldfish, and Celestial Goldfish. It won’t win any races, but if kept with other slow-moving varieties the Lionhead Goldfish should get plenty to eat and do well.
Since they are omnivorous, the Lionhead Goldfish will generally eat all kinds of fresh, frozen, and flake foods. To keep a good balance give them a high quality flake food everyday. To care for your Lionhead Goldfish, feed brine shrimp (either live or frozen), blood worms, Daphnia, or tubifex worms as a treat. It is usually better to feed freeze-dried foods as opposed to live foods to avoid parasites and bacterial infections that could be present in live foods. Due to their fleshy head growth they can have poor vision and a harder time seeing their food, so need extra time to feed.
Goldfish are very social animals and thrive in a community. Not only are they a great community fish but they are great scavengers as well. It is really not necessary to add other scavengers or other bottom feeders to the aquarium when you have goldfish.
When choosing tank mates, keep in mind the physical traits of the Lionhead Goldfish. Like the Telescope Goldfish and the Celestial Goldfish, the Lionhead can be visually handicapped. Further its swimming ability is cumbersome because of its rounded body and the lack of a stabilizing dorsal fin, a trait that is also seen in the Water-Bubble Eye Goldfish. While the Lionhead cannot readily compete for food with fast swimming types of goldfish, these similarly handicapped varieties can make good companions.
AquA AnimaniA is your #1 local source for Lionhead Goldfish and other freshwater fish, saltwater fish and pond fish, plus a wide variety of small animals, pets, amphibians, reptiles and more! To properly care for your pets, we also carry a comprehensive and extensive line of pet supplies including equipment, foods, treats, aquariums, tanks, cages, supplies and toys for dogs, cats, birds, small animals, amphibians, reptiles, fish, exotic pets and critters.