The Importance of Koi Care

---

     Koi fish are by far one of the most popular fresh water fish put into ponds. The Koi are in the waters of thousands upon thousands of ponds around the globe. Koi fish aren't just desired for their various colors and patterns, it has to do with how long Koi fish can live. I was reading that it has been recorded that one particular Koi lived to the ripe ole age of 226 years old, now that's a long living fish making them great for outdoor ponds.

Carp in Japanese is Koi. Over the years since back in the early 1800 they have been domesticated and breed so that now we have a huge selection of patterns and colours like red, orange, yellow, black, white, silver or even blue or green. It amazes me to think about the patience required because of the fact that their diet and environment affects their colours.

Koi don't really school much but are a friendly bunch and very sociable with other fish. One thing to remember is that Koi will tend to eat smaller fish so it's wise to keep them all about the same size or you might find some get bigger while others get gone.

Koi care must be taken when stocking your koi pond. This is due to the fact that Koi can become large fish. You either have to really pay close attention to the size they grow to so that you are sure you have the right amount of water to maintain the fish at their current size. Some like to keep a smaller pond that say five hundred or so gallons so they will continue to buy small Koi fish and give the bigger ones away.

Koi care includes giving your fish some elbow(fin) room, they will be much healthier and pay attention to the quality of water as it's vital to the health of your Koi fish. Goldfish might be cheap and allow you to fail a little more but Koi tend to be expensive so you won't want to learn to many lessons that hard way.

Note: Koi fish are a cold water fish so they do best in water temperatures that are between 61 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

It may sound scary and dangerous for your Koi fish but because they are an amazing fish they can even thrive in colder water, making them able to remain outside in the winter. Of course if your Koi pond is too shallow your fish will become frozen fish so be sure your pond is more than 3 feet deep if you plan to leave them outside.

NOTE: As the temperatures begin to drop through the winter months your Koi fish will begin their winter hibernation. Their digestive systems all but stop for that time. Take care not to feed your Koi in temps less than 50 degrees Fahrenheit as the food would rott in their gut if they aren't digesting food at that temperature.

I love how relaxing it is to listen to Koi ripple the water when they surface but it's also pretty cool to have a little water fall as part of your Koi pond experience. So remember Koi care is important to learn before you start caring for your Koi fish.