Big fish in small pond

[Maria]

I have a small garden pond with 2 4-ft diameter pools about a foot deep with a small waterfall between & waterlilies.

I was given about a dozen baby koi/shubunkin this year. Not sure exact variety, they're currently 3-6 inches long. Now I'm having panic attacks about what to do with them over the winter. I live in Buffalo NY where the temperatures fall below zeroF in the winter. From what I've read, the pond is too small to keep them outdoors even with de-icing & aeration. Maybe even too small to keep them long-term

I'm thinking of setting up a basement pond. Shopping for tank, thinking 200 gals would be good. Maybe use the bubbler and pump from my outdoor pond for aeration and filtration. Bring in some of the waterlillies for a more balanced ecosystem. Any advice or links to articles would be helpful.

 

[Jhn]

Yeah, a foot is probably not deep enough up in Buffalo. My advice is enjoy the koi for now but instead of bringing them inside rehome them to someone with a larger pond. Those are definitely koi in the pics, if some of them are shubunkins you could bring them in for the winter. The koi are going to be work to keep them from overwhelming the biofilter in a 200 gal. tank over the winter. Also, they will eventually get big enough to overwhelm your ponds biofilter in the near future too, as your pond isn’t all that large.

 

[Mmathis]

Can you be a little more specific about the dimensions of your pond(s). Do you have 2 ponds, each 4’ in diameter and a foot deep? Can you show us pictures of both ponds and the waterfall?

 

[Maria]

Can you be a little more specific about the dimensions of your pond(s). Do you have 2 ponds, each 4’ in diameter and a foot deep? Can you show us pictures of both ponds and the waterfall?

 

[Tula]

I would definitely find new homes for the koi.

I wonder if you cover your pond this winter and use a Pond Breather, de-icer device, if the shubukin would be OK ? We cover our pond with a pool solar cover in the winter.

@callingcolleen1 is overwintering guppys in a small pond in Canada. You could look at some of the videos she's posted. She covers the small pond and I believe she has an aquarium heater in it.

 

[Maria]

Thanks everyone for your input! I know I can't keep the koi in such a small pond. This is crazy, but I've gotten so much enjoyment from the fish in the couple months that I've had them, I'm looking into expanding the pond. I have room and funds to make the bottom pool 12ft long, 5ft wide, and 4ft deep. I've talked to one pond place so far, no definitive plans yet. With a de-icer setup that should be good to keep them through the winters here. They're like pets now. I've given them names & know their personalities. If I need to give some of them away I have a family member who has a farm pond, but I hope I can build them a good home here.

 

[addy1]

Even though small, very nice ponds!