I went to a bonsai nursery and they had some amazing koi carp. All different colours but one of them was enormous and fat. How big do they get and are they hard to keep? Does anyone know about them? I bet they are really expensive to buy.

I had no idea there were so many different varieties of Koi:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koi

Some of the rarer varieties I have seen advertised for sale as much as $950 USD (or over 460 GBP). Those were small, by the way--around 20 cm.

Kingfisher

Well Koi , what can I say I have kept koi for the last near enough 30 years. Unfortunately all things went wrong last year. We moved our pond up in anticipation of building a conservatory. It all went horribly wrong. Out of 10 fish we were left with 4.he heart breaking thing was that, some were nearly 30 yrs old, they were my mothers.
I do have experience of building a few ponds spanning 25 yrs but last year took its toll , so in aug we are having a new pond built (weather permitting). We think those fish died because of a bad dose of flukes but like all fish Koi can be fickle so we can only surmise.Koi do like plenty of Oxygen so we always in hot weather run an air pump ,fountain or even put the hose on the pond. (no hose ban here)
Attached are pics of orginal pond then last years & I will update you on the new one when built.
Thing to remember is they are quite complex like anything can be.. but just when you are thinking that you are doing OK it can all go horribly wrong....................................
OLD POND - 500 galls
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POND 2006 - 3.000 galls
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FISH
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This post was last modified: 05-08-2007 07:29 PM by tibbar.

I don't know if you've heard of the spa The Sanctuary in London, but the koi carp is their symbol. When I went there the main spa/lounge room featured a giant clear pond with dozens of koi carp swimming around. I think they're meant to be very relaxing and represent tranquility.

Good luck with building the new pond tibbar, I can't see any pictures in your post though. I'm sorry to hear about the koi, your right it is almost impossible to tell exactly what caused it. I have never kept Koi, they are amazing fish but I have never had the confidence to buy them or the size of pond neded. Are you planning on getting some more koi for the new pond, or just see how it goes with the four you have already?

I haven't heard of The Sanctuary sunshine but I've alwats thought it is very relaxing watching koi carp swim around.

This post was last modified: 21-07-2007 10:33 AM by Xeract.

We used to have some Koi in a pond years ago, it is very relaxing watching them. We didn't buy them anywhere near fully grown and it took years for them to become their full size, that made them even more special to us. When we moved we decided to leave them there as we didn't have a pond in our next house which was a shame but the best thing for them.

It's a shame you had to leave them behind, but your right you did the best thing for them! I've never had a pond big enough for koi, it has always been a dream of mine to have them and a tropical fish tank in the house

We are hoping the construction will start soon but depends on whether the man who is doing it has been set back by the recent rain.
We will start with the 4 until the eco-system & bacterial filter has had time to mature. It will be a bit nerve racking for us worrying about the 4 remaining fish.
Two of the surviving fish are in the pic .They are the big yellow 'Ogon' & the fish next to it which is an 'Ai-Goromo' (I believe). Even after all this time in koi keeping I am still considered by myself & others as a beginner.
We are intending to add another 1,000 galls onto the new pond to take it to 4,000 gallons.
We have been busy looking at new fish but are resisting at the moment,as for the cost we have seen them at upto £2,000, but no way would we pay silly money for them. It's much more interesting to watch them grow.
When we drain the pond I will let you know what wildlife we find.

This post was last modified: 01-08-2007 08:10 AM by tibbar.

Good luck with the construction when it does start, I hope the fish get through it and remain healthy.

That is an incredible amount of money for koi, when I agree that it would be much more interesting, satisfying and cheaper(!) to watch them grow. Is there a recommended number of gallons per large fish kept or is it down to each individual case?

It can be balanced out with the conditions of the pond , water quality, oxygen , surface area etc .Like all things keeping animals, conditions count.
How did you get on with your friends pond by the way?
On a seperate note we are just back from Cyprus & hopefully have a bird of the day . (When we download the pics)

This post was last modified: 01-08-2007 08:41 PM by tibbar.

Welcome back! I bet the weather was brilliant over there, a complete contrast to here as you probably know. Looking forward to seeing the new bird of the day.

I can't wait to see all the wildlife when you drain the pond. Are you going to let all the wildlife sort themselves out when you drain the pond or are you going to move everything into the new pond?

Thanks for that Bill 40* C , Hot, hot,hot!! Hope to have brought it back with us .. Bid of our day should appear in 'Off Topic' as it is not British.
I think we will probably let themselves sort themselves out as discussed in a previous thread about it is not desirable to have wildlife & Koi together. I am toying with the idea of having a wild life pond further down the garden as we have plenty of liner left from out last pond.

This post was last modified: 03-08-2007 02:58 PM by tibbar.

A wildlife pond sounds like a nice idea, although it would be difficult to keep the animals completely separate from the koi pond unless you put up some sort of barrier.

We are planning on the Koi pond being a lot higher but you never know how high frogs can jump. Hopefully they will take the easiest option..

This post was last modified: 05-08-2007 07:22 PM by tibbar.