Gill
There is no rocket science involved in keeping a koi......or a pond.
Its a no brainer. Keeping a smaller closed system such as a tankopf 20
gal is much harder and more of a headache. If you can provide decent
water, and odds are yu can if y do not decide to take short cuts and
stay on an established routine that is proven, and that info is out
there and also available here, buy what price fish yu can afford. I
bet some of those future marine fish are gonna cost a heck of a lot
more than most koi will, and are much more prone to kicking than a koi
is. Koi are pretty darn hardy and take a beating pretty good. Same
for goldies, they do not require a lot, just what they do need has to
be fairly decent.....and then there is even room for screwups.
Usuallay not the case with marine critters. Knowing a place has a
source for their koi and have them QT'd already before selling them is
already a big step most folks do not have, that, pay cheap prices at
chain stores.....and plop em in a tub for a week or two....and think
they have a qt'd koi of quality because its nice and bright and bold
in colors, when in all reality its a cull peddled off to a chain
store. Don't get me wrong, culls can be nice but there is a reason
fish are culled, and american bred fish are not as heavily culled as
japanese fish are.......Heck even those tanks of feeder comets have
some nice el cheapo comets in them as well so why would a vendor sell
them comets for 10 cents a piece when they also sell similar sized
fish for a buck or two.........because those fish are problematic and
a cull, and the american way is if it can be sold sell it and do not
worry about ethics involved in selling inferior fish.......


On Mon, 19 Mar 2007 18:34:06 CST, Gill Passman
wrote:

drsolo wrote:
until you can tell the difference between a $10, $100, and $10,000 dollar
koi, get the $10 one. HOWEVER.... what is even more important is to find a
place sells healthy koi and you wont get one from petsmart for sure, and it
is unlikely you will get one from any old pond store.

Well said, Ingrid.....just wish we could get $10 Koi over here in the UK....


You need to find the
place that quarantines their koi for at least a couple weeks after getting
them in, and before they sell them to the public. of course you dont tell
them you are looking for quaratined koi, you ask them when they got the fish
in, or "when are you getting the fish in so I can be first in line to pick
the ones I want" and see if they bite on that.

The place I buy my fish already has posters all about where they get
their Koi and the fact that they come either from a certain place or are
QT'd there.....maybe MA should branch out into the US.....right now
those of us lucky enough get really good service and expertise.....


Now, if what you want is a pond with koi, then that is really all you need
to know. If what you want is a koi pond, then you are going to have to
search on the net for discussions about the different types of koi, color,
desirable shape, etc. there are a lot of badly bred and raised koi out
there with bent backs, huge heads, etc. If your pond does well then
consider that you are going to be looking at that same gorgeous (or ugly)
koi for 50 years.

I remember on rp someone posting some beautiful Koi pics - can't
remember if it was you, Jan or Roy but these were great looking fish but
at a price....until I really get into the keeping of Koi a nice healthy
looking fish, fed and kept correctly and thriving will suit me down to
the ground.....

Gill



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I forgot more about ponds and koi than I'll ever know!