My goldfish pond

[j.w]

Lol now there's another reason you thought up to buy more koi! Oh yes I can feel it in your words, you are definitely going to get more koi...............you can't help yourself !

 

[CometKeith]

Thanks JW. Well I have been very good the past 10 years not overcrowding my pond. I'm sure it's at least 2000 gallons and maybe even a little more. If I add some more Koi and they grow I can always dig it deeper with the same size and shape it is now. That would almost double the volume of water so I really shouldn't be afraid of having a few larger fish! The question I guess I'm having is should I get several medium quality Koi or should I just buy just one with what I'm willing to spend and try to get a nice one? My real problem is I'm starting to learn what makes a Sanke or Showa more desirable and naturally I would prefer a good one so I guess I answered my question... just get one for now!

 

[Tula]

Personally, I'd buy for quality over quantity . I only have room for 4 koi in my pond and because I'm committed to them, I lust over the idea of an ochiba....but alas...no room

 

[CometKeith]

Well I think i have looked at over 1000 fish on the internet over the last few weeks. Tonight I bid on one on an auction site but I'm sure I won't get it. I think if we actually had a warmer weather I would be outside fixing up the pond for the spring instead of thinking so much about buying new fish. I do want to get one new Koi to replace the one that died over the winter.

 

[Gemma]

Been doing the same thing for weeks and I haven't found that "must have" fish either!
My fear is that things could turn to the other extreme, and I find myself with too many "must have"

 

[CometKeith]

Gemma. This is the one I bid on. It's a 12" Sanke. I doubt I'll get it because I'm not willing to go very high but so far I have the high bid. I'll know in 1 day 23 hours 15 minutes and 13 seconds!

 

[addy1]

I'll know in 1 day 23 hours 15 minutes and 13 seconds!

That is when all jump in at the last second and drive the price up.

 

[Gemma]

Gemma. This is the one I bid on. It's a 12" Sanke. I doubt I'll get it because I'm not willing to go very high but so far I have the high bid. I'll know in 1 day 23 hours 15 minutes and 13 seconds!
View attachment 109331

Good looking fish! Is it a female?

Lol @addy1

 

[CometKeith]

Gemma. They didn't list the sex. Usually on Tosai they don't know the sex yet because they are still considered juvenile. Well I bid on it again this time by accident.... I was trying to look at the bid history and hit the key "bid" so I am the high bidder! I'm $41 higher than my first bid. I'm still $39 below what I would consider the most I would pay but definitely have cold feet and hope I don't "win" it for several reasons. One we are putting pavers this spring in our yard and I don't want the dust from the project hurting the fish even though I plan on covering it during the work. So not the best time to buy a Koi. Two, our neighbor is starting her 3 year of construction on her place and has not landscaped or built her back porch. It seems like everytime they do work next door the dust flies towards us whcich can't be good for the fish. Also I'm thinking it's smarter to get some smaller fish until I'm really happy with my filtration and not do too much too fast. 6 hours 36 minutes 21 secs and counting....
One more thing.... if this was a Showa I would be a lot more excited. What I have learned is black gets more predominant with Sanke Koi and can really take over. For that reason most people like black that is smaller and not so bold in Sanke. Now if it was a Showa the black would darken but not enlarge so much so it would be a much more valuable Showa than it is as a Sanke. I guess it takes a lot of training to really understand how Koi change as they mature into adults but these are the basics.

 

[Gemma]

@CometKeith you sure you don't want to enlarge the pond before laying down those bricks?

I'm liking the changes my Kin Kikoruryu are showing this year, and it doesn't matter where they go from here, they'll be still so much better than they started out.

 

[CometKeith]

Haha. Gemma. I went the biggest conceivable before digging it. It's 1/3rd of our yard! That's great about the Kin Kikoruryu. Is that the one that lost it's color? Well I'm not the high bidder anymore.... what a relief!! Still 2 hours 55 minutes and 36 seconds to go but I won't be bidding

 

[Gemma]

Well I'm not the high bidder anymore.... what a relief!!

The koi that lost color is the Sanke.
Kin Kikokuryu do change a lot especially in the first few years, but mostly they rearrange their patterns and colors...the metallic orange on my female is still there, but the pattern is much more interesting, she now has a deep black mask on her face I really hope she keeps that

 

[CometKeith]

Sorry about your Sanke but great about your other fish. Do you have before and after pics? I didn't "win" the Koi and it's funny it sold for $1 more than my original high bid I was going to go to. I might get some smaller Koi later on after my pond is settled. I'm not is a hurry to have a lot of big fish so why not buy them smaller and watch them grow? I worked on my pond a little today even though it was just in the mid 30's outside. i just can't stand sitting inside any more this time of the year!

 

[Gemma]

I think I might have some pics from a year ago, in the external drive, and I will definitely take some more as soon as I can

Sorry you didn't get that fish! I stay away from actions, they're bad for blood pressure

 

[CometKeith]

Well i played around with my waterfall on Sunday. Monday night i worked rather late and notice the waterfall wasn't splashing much so I made a slight adjustment with the hose from the pump and the rocks it splashed on to. It was dark out so it was a little hard to see. Well Tuesday morning my pond was down about a foot! That is about 1000 gallons. I have been filling it the last few days and it is close to normal. Update on the fish. The goldfish all look happy, The Sanke... I haven't actually seen in 4 months but I can kind of see him. The kuahku looks like it's dead, but it did move to another spot from the other day. I think I'm better off with goldfish for some odd reason....