People have a lot of miss conceptions about fish as pets, and fish in general. Maybe this is because they are not classed as an animal (the RSPCA does not have any responsibility over them), maybe it's because we can't touch them. Whatever the reason fish still do however, make very entertaining pets.

The main problem people have is the set-up costs. With Cats, dogs, rabbits etc the set-up cost is lower but the on going cost is higher.

So what will you need to start fish keeping (gold fish)?
- Tank (2inches of fish per US gallon of water -most gold fish grow to about 5-7cm)
- gravel
-Plants (plastic or real. The real ones do get eaten, however surly that is a good sign that your fish has a varied diet)
- water conditioner (this is to make tap water safe)
- two weeks (to cycle the tank)
- a good local knowledge source or the internet (I have found yahoo answers to be very good as well as lots of forums).

Then once they are set up expect that your gold fish will live between 3 to 7 years. Always cure any illness quickly and clean out some of the tank once a week and never use soap!

All in all if the practice of keeping goldfish is understood then you will have healthy happy goldfish, which means you will get more enjoyment out of them. However like all pets do not even consider keeping them if you will not commit to keep them healthy and happy for the rest of their natural life.