Mellie came from the same pet store as Sammy and Jackie, on the same day as Tony.  I like to think she was from the same family as Jackie, since their markings were very similar.  Distant cousins, perhaps?   

She wasn't the smartest fish in the bunch, and for most of her life she was more shy and aloof than the others, but she was a wonderful nurse and friend to Addy.  After Addy passed on, I was her "other fish" and she grew very attached to me.

In her old age her swim bladder gave out and she wasn't able to swim anymore, just sit on the bottom of the tank.  I removed the gravel so she wouldn't hurt her belly, and ended up hand-feeding her twice a day.   She got much friendlier when she came to associate my hand with food.  ;)

Mellie was a wonderful, sweet fish and by far the longest-lived of any of my goldfish.  She was the matriarch of my fish family, and the last survivor of my original five goldfish.  Her big round, white face will be greatly missed.

Mellie's Stats:
Age:  She lived with me from Sunday, January 27, 2002 to Wednesday, November 19th, 2008.

Species:   Carassius auratus (a.k.a. goldfish) of the Fantail variety

Size:   Around ten inches including tail

Gender:   Probably female

Hobbies:  Catching pellets as they sank, watching out for Addy, sticking her tail in the bubbler, "following" me (swimming to whatever end of the tank was closest to where I was, even if I was in another room)

Dislikes:   Anyone approaching the tank quickly or loudly, nearby doors slamming, furry objects

Diet:   Same as the others, although she wasn't crazy about Omega One pellets.  For the last year I had to hand-feed her AquaDine.

Habitat:   37-gallon tank near my computer.  She used to live in a 5 1/2 and a 10 gallon but outgrew both of them! ;)

Tankmates:   Tony (2002-2003) and Addy (2002-2006)

Nicknames:  I called her "Mel" for the first few months that I had her.  Later she became "Mellie Belle."  In her older, post-Addy days often called her "Miss Mellie," which seemed to suit her, as the grand old lady she was.

Namesakes:   I was thinking of unisex names, and I thought of Tony/Toni.  "Tony da Fish" sounded like a mobster, which cracked me up.  ("You're gonna sleep wit' da fishes!  Er...you know what I mean...")   Then I started looking for a second name, and my mom suggested I name them after Antonio Banderas (*drool*) and Melanie Griffith.  I got to use Tony after all, and Mellie worked with it!

Photo Album:   Watch Mellie grow and change!

- home -