Why This Collection
Choul Chnam Thmey, Khmer New Year, falls in mid-April and is Cambodia's biggest household reset of the year — homes are swept clean, altars are refreshed, and families dress in the colour assigned to that year's zodiac animal. Gold and yellow carry a specific weight in this tradition: they are the colours of ripening rice, temple gilding, and the New Year money envelopes elders hand to children, all tied back to abundance and a good harvest ahead. Many Khmer-Chinese households extend the same colour logic to the home itself, choosing gold accents — including a tank of gold-toned fish — as a small, living gesture toward a prosperous year, alongside incense, fresh fruit, and a freshly cleaned house.
This collection gathers our gold and yellow bettas and guppies specifically for that week — Yellow Fancy and Yellow Koi plakat bettas with solid, sun-bright colour, a Dumbo White PK betta whose pale gold body and oversized ear fins catch the light from every angle, and Full Gold and Dumbo guppy pairs that breed easily and fill a community tank with moving colour. We're not claiming a fish tank rewrites your fortune — that's between you and the pagoda — but a healthy, actively swimming gold fish is a genuinely nice thing to have in the room when relatives visit, and it's a tradition worth keeping simple rather than turning into a stressful new project days before the holiday.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put a Yellow Fancy betta in the same tank as the gold guppies?
Not safely. Plakat bettas like the Yellow Fancy and Yellow Koi are territorial fighters bred for short, sturdy fins, and they will chase or nip slow-moving guppy tails, especially the Full Gold and Dumbo guppy pairs' flowing fins. Keep bettas alone or with true community fish only, and house your gold guppy pairs together in their own tank instead.
Is it true that gold or yellow fish bring good luck for Khmer New Year?
It's a cultural tradition rather than a proven fact — gold and yellow are the colours of prosperity in Khmer New Year decor generally, from money envelopes to temple gilding to festive clothing, and many households extend that to a gold-toned fish tank as a small symbolic touch. We sell them because they're genuinely striking fish, not because we can promise fortune.
How many days can these fish survive without feeding while I visit family in the province?
Adult bettas handle 3-4 days without food with no issues — they're built to survive lean periods in shallow rice-paddy water. Guppies should get a slow-release feeding block or a trusted neighbour's quick visit if you'll be gone past 4-5 days, since they graze more constantly than bettas. Either way, never leave a full automatic feeder unsupervised on its first use.
What's the easiest gold fish to keep on a desk or small apartment shelf for New Year?
A single Yellow Fancy or Dumbo White PK betta in a 5-10 litre jar or small tank is the lowest-maintenance option — no filter cycling to babysit, no tankmates to manage, just clean warm water and a lid. It's the classic small-space choice for a New Year desk or shrine corner.