A neighbor wants to give me her last adult koi from her established pond. I can set up a quarantine tank and then introduce him to my pond or I can bring him to my classroom and winter him in a big tank. I live in CT and it is starting to get cold so I don't know how long I have before it's too late to put him in my pond. What do you think is the better plan?
Introducing a new koi
- Thread starter gloria
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I don't have experience with this, but would think having similar water temperatures would be crucial at the time of the transfer.
How big is the big tank?
Gloria QT'ing koi propperly normally takes eight weeks start to finish , in that time parasites and other problems should come to the fore enabling you to treat the koi which drops you right into the start of winter .
What size tank do you want to put this koi into and more importantly just what filtration do you have on the tank, how often would you plan to do water changes on the tank and maintain the filter if rhe koi goes into your classroom ?
If you choose to go down this route then it would be a good idea to add a smaller tank mate as koi tend to fare better that way being a shoaling fish
If your really worried about parasites then you could give the koi a short term 10 minute salt bath this should make the parasites if it has any abandon ship and die as they arent able to suurvive in salt water , interestingly Marine fish get fresh water dips to rid them of parasites see how to proceed with salt short term salt bath bellow :-
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/short-term-10-min-salt-bath-for-use-with-koi.15732/
However the eight weeks QT period would still stand in our veiw, "why" to protect against any that survived the dip if they are embeded deep in the koi's mucus layer ...
Val and I tend to look at the appoaching winter as the wrong end of the year to be introducing koi prefaring instead to buy our own in the summer months so provided it gets all of the above them it chould do well .
Being an adult koi I take it its large , if so your going to need a tank that allows it to swim freely and have enough room to be able to turn around , so it would have to be quite big and the filter would have to be man enough to take the prodigious amounts of waste koi pass , the best would be a large external filter
However its down to you which way you go with this classroom or pond .
I hope this helps you with your choice of which way to go
For 22 years we kept our koi indoors to give you an idea of our tank size see photos
It was 6 x 2 x 2.5 and with filters cooler etc held 220 imperial gallons of water which works out at approximately 1 ton of water , so for the koi and a tank mate your going to need a tank 4 ft in length
Personally Gloria I'd tell your neighbour just what weve said and ask nicely if they could possibly keep this koi in their own pond until late spring summer of 2015 for you
Interestingly in a seperate thread Dr Dave says the same thing:-
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/introducing-a-new-shubunkin-in-cold-weather.5501/
Dave
What size tank do you want to put this koi into and more importantly just what filtration do you have on the tank, how often would you plan to do water changes on the tank and maintain the filter if rhe koi goes into your classroom ?
If you choose to go down this route then it would be a good idea to add a smaller tank mate as koi tend to fare better that way being a shoaling fish
If your really worried about parasites then you could give the koi a short term 10 minute salt bath this should make the parasites if it has any abandon ship and die as they arent able to suurvive in salt water , interestingly Marine fish get fresh water dips to rid them of parasites see how to proceed with salt short term salt bath bellow :-
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/short-term-10-min-salt-bath-for-use-with-koi.15732/
However the eight weeks QT period would still stand in our veiw, "why" to protect against any that survived the dip if they are embeded deep in the koi's mucus layer ...
Val and I tend to look at the appoaching winter as the wrong end of the year to be introducing koi prefaring instead to buy our own in the summer months so provided it gets all of the above them it chould do well .
Being an adult koi I take it its large , if so your going to need a tank that allows it to swim freely and have enough room to be able to turn around , so it would have to be quite big and the filter would have to be man enough to take the prodigious amounts of waste koi pass , the best would be a large external filter
However its down to you which way you go with this classroom or pond .
I hope this helps you with your choice of which way to go
For 22 years we kept our koi indoors to give you an idea of our tank size see photos
It was 6 x 2 x 2.5 and with filters cooler etc held 220 imperial gallons of water which works out at approximately 1 ton of water , so for the koi and a tank mate your going to need a tank 4 ft in length
Personally Gloria I'd tell your neighbour just what weve said and ask nicely if they could possibly keep this koi in their own pond until late spring summer of 2015 for you
Interestingly in a seperate thread Dr Dave says the same thing:-
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/introducing-a-new-shubunkin-in-cold-weather.5501/
Dave
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Dave! That's a heck of a tank!!!!! I love it! Its like a glass pond! Now I want one like that too! LOL!
I agree with Dave, some sort of quarantine would be a good idea. Maybe you could try the salt bath and a shorter quarantine period if you don't have the kind of set up Dave has.
I agree with Dave, some sort of quarantine would be a good idea. Maybe you could try the salt bath and a shorter quarantine period if you don't have the kind of set up Dave has.
Im sorry but if it is fine in the neighbors pond, an 8 week QT is not needed. What new behavior would one expect it to exhibit? It has basically been in an observation period in your neighbors pond for it's entire life.
Thanks for your replies! I am a high school biology teacher and we have several tanks near the size as Dave's above. We have wintered other peoples' koi and goldfish in the past. My neighbors pond is being dismantled so the koi needs a home now. I do not have another fish to put in the tank with him unless I take one of my fish out. My neighbor's koi is about 10 inches in length, she has been on her own for a while because the other two koi she was with were taken by racoons. My pond is much bigger and is netted permanently.
Sorry dp my friend but your wrong there mate, it has been know that a fish that is fine in a neighbours pond be put in the other pond and within 7 days all those koi have gone down with parasites .
You also have to think about both bacterial and viral infections , this is why we have a QT period in the first place ?
Its a little like when we were kids and you got chicken pox from the kid next door
Dave
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Perfect Gloria , then put him in the school tank , I sold off the tank in the photo over 5 years ago now and it is now a marine reef tank
Dave
Dave what would you expect to learn by putting the koi into something called QT that you wouldnt have already learned in the neighbors pond? There is no difference. Plus Meyer liked my post so I know I'm right
The neighbours pond is a totally different system to that of glorias, meaning it may be hiding something within it that isnt in glorias pond , as such the koi needs to be QT'd .
You start doing things your way and pretty soon you'll be in a whole heap of trouble but hey thats up to you my friend you take your own advice and only you will have to come online saying hey Dave you know what you were right so can you now please help me with the fact that half my koi are ill me I'll stick by the rules and do things in a propper manner .
I know gloria's neighbours fish is being given too her but its no different than when buying a koi from a private individual :-
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/proceedures-when-buying-a-koi-from-a-private-owner.10505/
Dave
You start doing things your way and pretty soon you'll be in a whole heap of trouble but hey thats up to you my friend you take your own advice and only you will have to come online saying hey Dave you know what you were right so can you now please help me with the fact that half my koi are ill me I'll stick by the rules and do things in a propper manner .
I know gloria's neighbours fish is being given too her but its no different than when buying a koi from a private individual :-
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/proceedures-when-buying-a-koi-from-a-private-owner.10505/
Dave
Dave you don't seem to "get it". What is the difference if it is QT in the neighbors yard or in Glorias yard? No difference. If Glorias
fish are going to react to something in the neighbors pond, you will have to put the fish together or in the neighbors pond to find out. Looking at the fish in one yard or the other won't help.
fish are going to react to something in the neighbors pond, you will have to put the fish together or in the neighbors pond to find out. Looking at the fish in one yard or the other won't help.
hello dp knock knock are you in there tonight ,you know that I only give good sound advice out
Each pond be it a neighbours pond, my pond, your pond, Maggies pond, Marias pond, Larkins pond, Charles pond any members pond are all seperate systems to one another just because a koi looks healthy dosent mean it is
If you were my neighbour and you offered me a koi it would go into my QT for eight weeks , how do you know if her neighbours koi was a KHV survivor and thus a carrier it would seem healthy but in acctual fact its a type of Typhoid Mary next thing you know all your koi are dead, thats just one example i;e viral.
Next you could have a healthy looking koi given to you by your neighbour that has the start of a bacterial problem your koi have never been near before with the same outcome , do I need to carry on ?
You did this too me once before as I recall so if your starting to get in one of your funny moods again go away and take a chill pill go off line for a while and we'll chat again tomorrow I dont wish to argue with you nor have to report you nor do any other people again
Dave
Each pond be it a neighbours pond, my pond, your pond, Maggies pond, Marias pond, Larkins pond, Charles pond any members pond are all seperate systems to one another just because a koi looks healthy dosent mean it is
If you were my neighbour and you offered me a koi it would go into my QT for eight weeks , how do you know if her neighbours koi was a KHV survivor and thus a carrier it would seem healthy but in acctual fact its a type of Typhoid Mary next thing you know all your koi are dead, thats just one example i;e viral.
Next you could have a healthy looking koi given to you by your neighbour that has the start of a bacterial problem your koi have never been near before with the same outcome , do I need to carry on ?
You did this too me once before as I recall so if your starting to get in one of your funny moods again go away and take a chill pill go off line for a while and we'll chat again tomorrow I dont wish to argue with you nor have to report you nor do any other people again
Dave
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Go ahead and report me Dave. I am simply asking you... What is the difference in watching the fish in the neighbors pond or in a QT tank? NO DIFFERENCE!