How long to quarantine new fish before putting in pond?
- Thread starter bagsmom
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You know, my imagination is working over time now. Yesterday, one of the goldfish (just one) was swimming all over the place. Today, there is no one. We looked at the trail cam and checked every video. It is very sensitive and gets every squirrel, bird, and even landscape fabric blowing in the breeze. No sign of any mischief. I wonder if I have a snake that likes to eat fish? If it was down low in the water, it might not show up. I'm still hoping the fish are all just hiding out till the weather is consistently warm.
By the way, I did go get two fish from the pet store. A shubunkin and a comet. They are really fun to watch in my little isolation tank! Both seem very healthy -- upright, nice fins and exploring and eating!
By the way, I did go get two fish from the pet store. A shubunkin and a comet. They are really fun to watch in my little isolation tank! Both seem very healthy -- upright, nice fins and exploring and eating!
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I became paranoid about KHV in koi and just decided I wouldn't add any new fish to my pond. My four had been in a closed system , together, for so many years and the risk wasn't worth it. I know the koi farm that gave them a new home quarantined them with a few of their fish and they were treated.
For your pond I think if you quarantine the new gold fish for at least a month, then add one from the pond ( even if it's a minnow ) they will probably be ok. As @WaterGardener mentioned, you could also give them a broad spectrum treatment prior to releasing in your pond.
For your pond I think if you quarantine the new gold fish for at least a month, then add one from the pond ( even if it's a minnow ) they will probably be ok. As @WaterGardener mentioned, you could also give them a broad spectrum treatment prior to releasing in your pond.
To be honest, I've never quarantined new fish... there - I said it! haha! We just don't have the space/equipment/length of pond season to do a "proper" quarantine.
Our initial plan was to stock the pond one time and be done - and that worked great! We had our pond full of fish that we bought from the same place at the same time so no need to take the risk of adding new fish. Then the Great Koi Disaster happened and we lost all our big fish. Decided we had enough small fish to soldier on and they nicely reproduced. Life was good. Then the great Fish Kill Off happened and we lost 3/4 of our goldfish and shubunkins. Once we got a handle on THAT and the fish had stopped going belly up on us, we happened upon a small fish and pond place in mid-July that was selling off the rest of their shubunkin stock for a great price and we bought them all. I'm talking maybe 25 small shubbies. Brought them home and added them straight to the pond.
We had no way to quarantine that many fish and didn't want to fool around with adding a few here and there - it would take years to build our fish population back up, especially when the pond season is so short - we can only buy pond fish from reputable sellers for a few months out of the year here. Once they've sold their supply for the season, they're gone. So we took the chance, introduced them all at once, and they were all fine.
Lucky? Maybe. But sometimes you do what you gotta do!
Our initial plan was to stock the pond one time and be done - and that worked great! We had our pond full of fish that we bought from the same place at the same time so no need to take the risk of adding new fish. Then the Great Koi Disaster happened and we lost all our big fish. Decided we had enough small fish to soldier on and they nicely reproduced. Life was good. Then the great Fish Kill Off happened and we lost 3/4 of our goldfish and shubunkins. Once we got a handle on THAT and the fish had stopped going belly up on us, we happened upon a small fish and pond place in mid-July that was selling off the rest of their shubunkin stock for a great price and we bought them all. I'm talking maybe 25 small shubbies. Brought them home and added them straight to the pond.
We had no way to quarantine that many fish and didn't want to fool around with adding a few here and there - it would take years to build our fish population back up, especially when the pond season is so short - we can only buy pond fish from reputable sellers for a few months out of the year here. Once they've sold their supply for the season, they're gone. So we took the chance, introduced them all at once, and they were all fine.
Lucky? Maybe. But sometimes you do what you gotta do!
I have a good feeling about these two that I just got. They really seem healthy. But I am TOTALLY mystified about what could have happened to the 8 goldfish I had. They are nowhere to be found, dead or alive. If they don't come out on our 81 degree day, I'm going to assume they have been teleported by aliens.
Some people add a small amount of aquarium salt to a fish tank to help fight disease. It is typically not done in a pond with plants and such, because it can harm the vegetation.
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Do you have mink or otters in the area? I've heard they are quintessential hunters and leave little to no trace. They especially like to hunt in the winter when the fish are slow. Hopefully this isn't the case. Your new fish sound like they'll be a nice addition to the pond.
No mink or otters as far as I know. I did see two of the white and orange goldfish and two shubunkins today!!!! So maybe there is hope that the others are there as well!
Sometimes I think fish can die in the pond and just never be found - like they get behind a rock or plant and nature does what nature does with dead things. Now EIGHT fish seems like a lot to lose and never see and sign... unless, like you said, snake! GAH!
I had one fish a shusui that as soon as it went into the pond I didn't see it again for almost two years granted it was small like only 5 inch but as a butterfly I thought it was a gonner. Got lucky that was not the case it's one beautiful fish today.
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I have never done it either. I have no where to put the new fish. The 250 I bought last summer all went right into the pond, no issues except becoming snake food.
I have four snake traps to put out this summer.
I had two 7 inch KOI go over the negative edge and I simply couldn't catch them. But after a huge rain that we had , they disappeared. I Figured they went down Shitz creek into the cistern." the over flow" Well I was wrong its been 3 months since I last saw them. that is until this evening. They swan out from under a boulder.