Blog updates

People always say that fairground fish don’t have a long life span. That couldn’t be further from the truth, for a couple called Keith and Mary in Worcester and George the goldfish .

When Keith Allies now 75, won two  fish for his then  18 year old girlfriend as a romantic gesture at the local fair naming them George and Fred. Neither knew that this fish they named George would then become Britain’s oldest  fish dying just before it turned a ripe 45 (yes that’s right George the goldfish made it to a strong 44 years of age!)

The couple married 5 years later and kept the fish as pets in their family home. George surviving for over four decades outlived two family dogs.

The passing of George the fish

George the goldfish passed away after a month of being ill and struggling to swim around his fish tank. He is set to be buried in the family’s back garden next to their other family fish Fred who had passed away a few years ago aged 42. Mary said that she had rang her daughter Emma in tears to tell her that their family fish had passed away as after all these years he had become part of the family and was adored by everyone.

Mary also added that they didn’t expect the fish to last a week. Never mind 40 years, and after out living the two family dogs they began to think that the fish may live on to outlive some family members. 

George the goldfish – oldest in Great Britain

George the goldfish is said to be the oldest in Great Britain and possibly the world. Which means when he passed away he has left a legacy behind.  George and Fred have had numerous goldfish tanks in their life span. The largest being three feet wide in order to give them more room for swimming around. They was fed regularly and always made a fuss off by the family.

I reckon the key to a long healthy goldfish life is plenty of exercise swimming around the bowl. A healthy meal of fish food flakes and clean water

It turns out that its quite common for goldfish to have a similar lifespan. An article at Tankarium discusses this further.