Will my shubunkins harass my calico goldfishes to death?
I reckon your shubunkins are guilty in this case, but it’s hard to be certain unless you observe them being aggressive. Since shubunkins are single tailed, and quite agile and strong (among goldfish) it’s easy for them to pick on calicos and other fantails. I would suspect your black moore might be catching some aggression from them as well, since he can’t do much to get away. It’s also possible that a combination of aggression or stress from other fish all contributed to the death of the calico. Koi, when hungry, have been known to try and suck the slime coating off of other fish just to get by, and slow moving goldfish are an easy target. As with any sudden fish death, there’s usually a pretty obvious reason, and in this case it’s your other fish. If it was anything else, you would have noticed earlier. I figure once they get in the pond and have a lot of space, not to mention food for themselves, the aggression levels will drop. Until then, best of luck with it.
