Lion head Oranda that is pregnant

Question
First experience with a pregnant fish!  Getting cold here in WI and time to bring her indoors along with my other Koi.  Do I have to separate her from the other Koi?  We have identified her partner, should she be put in a separate pond with him?  Will she keep her babies until Spring?  She is really HUGE.  Help!  What do I do with the eggs when they are born?  Do I have to have any special kind of area for her to deposit her eggs?  ANY information you can give me will be appreciated.  Will she be stressed when I have to move her indoors?

Answer
Hi Jacquie;

Goldfish really don't get "pregnant", just full of eggs. Usually the eggs are re-absorbed if they aren't laid but sometimes a female can become egg-bound. (More about that later.) Goldfish females will lay eggs with any other male present so you don't have to worry about which one is hanging out with her the most. It is actually best for her to have more than one male to get the process going. If you want the eggs to be laid you could put the parent fish all together in another pond but the weather may already be too cold for them to want to. They need an area with thick plants for her to swim into to help her expel the eggs but it has to be warm enough.

Once the eggs are laid you will need a separate large aquarium to put them in for hatching if you want to raise the babies.  Provide air bubbles with an air pump and it can also operate a sponge filter. You don't want a regular power filter or anything because the babies will get sucked in.

If she doesn't lay eggs, it is possible she is bloated or eggbound. These can be very dangerous conditions that are usually related to lack of fiber and too much rich high-protein food. Get her to into an aquarium where it's warm enough to digest food properly and feed her only cooked peeled green peas for a few days. Remove what isn't eaten right away. Hopefully this will help clear her digestion if that's what's wrong.

Moving a fish is always stressful for them but doing it slowly to minimize stress is important. Acclimate her slowly by floating her in a bag of pond water in the tank for 20 minutes and add a little tank water every few minutes during that time. Then net her and add her gently to the tank. Throw away the bagged water. Or, put her in a bucket of her pond water and slowly add a cup of water every few minutes until the water in the bucket is at least half tank water. This will slowly get her used to the tank water before you put her in. Check her water bucket temperature to make sure they are the same before you net her to the tank. Let me know how it's going...

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins