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I have 2 shubunkins and 3 comets in a 500-gallon pond. When I bought them at the beginning of the season, the guy in the pond shop told me they were way too young to spawn, but I guess he was wrong because today when I was feeding, I was shocked to see a baby come swimming out from beneath a water hyacinth.

The baby is pale orange with a black spot on its head, and is at least an inch and a half long -- maybe closer to two inches. How old would that make him?

I had the exact same thing happen with my shubukins and comets. I remember thinking "Where did that fish come from?" Now I've got several crossbreeds.

Awwwww what could be better than goldfish in ponds but baby goldfish in ponds ...Congrats .

^_^

I'll take a somewhat wild guess, as I have 3-4 week old shubunkin or koi babies that are still only about 1/2". I'll guess they must be a couple of months old, at least. Got any pictures?

No pictures, but I'll try to take some. He moves around fast, though -- no promises as to how they'll come out!

I've revised my original size estimate -- he's probably at least 3 inches. He's also a major piglet -- doesn't come to the surface to feed with the others, but hangs out just below them, waiting for something to drift down. I've been feeding the usual pellets, but added a small pinch of goldfish flakes, which seem a little easier for him to handle -- those pellets are still too big for his little mouth. I've also been crushing up some dried baby brine shrimp, and they all go nuts over that!

I did some pond maintenance this weekend, and moved around some of the water hyacinth, and had a very similar experience- I found a goldie baby (either shubunkin, comet, or koi, or some combo of the previous) about the size of a male platy (about 1 1/2"! He must have been born soon after I bought my fish about 2 months ago. In the countless hours I've spent watching and maintaining my pond, I've never spotted him before, I've only seen lots and lots of tiny goldfish fry.