Belonging to a koi club

[Gemma]

When we went to the pond tour recently, several people there tried to convince us to sign up for the "club membership" .
Everyone talked about the " club meetings" like something that's a lot of fun, but no one actually told us details or what those "meetings" are for.
I know that pond tours and koi shows are open to ALL, so we are wondering what kind of benefits belonging to a koi club can bring?

 

[CometKeith]

Hey Gemma. You can look up Midwest Pond and Koi Club and see their activities. https://mpks.org/
They have dinners, speakers and presentations, auctions, and a lot of other activities. I really need to join. It's only $25 and you get the pond tour book for free. I have been going to the annual pond tour for about 10 years and have met a lot of really nice people. They have a tour next weekend going to Kloubec Koi Farm in Iowa. It looks like a lot of fun!

 

[Gemma]

Hey Gemma. You can look up Midwest Pond and Koi Club and see their activities. https://mpks.org/
They have dinners, speakers and presentations, auctions, and a lot of other activities. I really need to join. It's only $25 and you get the pond tour book for free. I have been going to the annual pond tour for about 10 years and have met a lot of really nice people. They have a tour next weekend going to Kloubec Koi Farm in Iowa. It looks like a lot of fun!

Sounds like fun ( other than the "eating out" part) but even this one says you don't have to be a member to attend meetings, so what would make you want to be a member?

I think I would like to physically get together with other pond enthusiasts, but my fear is that most club members might be into show koi (not interested in those, at all) and also that they might push one way to raise koi (salt in water, bottom drain, etc...) this is the true reason I have not made up my mind about joining

 

[CometKeith]

Gemma. I agree. I don't like peer pressure making me do stuff too. That's why I stopped loging into a beer forum I used to go on. I found myself buying lots of expensive bombers (22 oz) just so I could add to my number of reviews of different beers I tried. Well we can always try setting up a local meeting of people on gpf. I have met with gpf members before and it's always fun to meet in person!

 

[carolinaguy]

Depends on the club and the network. AKCA is one. ZNA is another. There might be more. The quality of the club depends on each club’s leadership, longevity and participation like any other club. I’m an AKCA guy and the club Koi Health Advisor, and I’m very active in my KHA role. Our club is very strong with members who have been members for 20 plus years. That said we used to conduct a koi show but stopped in the Great Recession. We conduct pond tours and have a rescue program. Atlanta is incredible with a major show annually and an auction that you would not believe. I have attended ZNA meetings and my impression is that they are more focused on champion ponds. Ours has very powerful presentations with internationally known presenters. The Charleston SC club is my favorite because of their incredible pond tour and membership. Dr Patton, one of the first Americans in the hobby and a show judge has a pond that will drop you to your knees and he and his wife are two of the best people I know in the hobby. You just need to go to a meeting and decide for yourself.

 

[Tula]

I've attended a couple koi club events and meetings. I really like the members, very friendly and knowledgeable . I'm not a member as most of the meetings are over an hour from my house.....wish we had something closer.

 

[carolinaguy]

I've attended a couple koi club events and meetings. I really like the members, very friendly and knowledgeable . I'm not a member as most of the meetings are over an hour from my house.....wish we had something closer.

The ZNA club meetings are telephonic in our area so everyone can call in from home. It’s actually a FaceTime call for video feed and presentations but I just listened on the phone.

 

[carolinaguy]

The ZNA club meetings are telephonic in our area so everyone can call in from home. It’s actually a FaceTime call for video feed and presentations but I just listened on the phone.

Okay, this is not criticism, just an observation. ZNA may not be for you. Then every club is different. I stopped listening to the ZNA site when they gave a presentation on color conformation in koi shows and talked about the 40 different kinds of black. They also bought 15000 dollar koi and called non show fish pond spawn. That’s not why we keep koi, so I stopped. We have a fish that came from a pond spawning that is a huge fat, ugly, butterfly ki matsuba that we named coyote ugly. It’s my wife’s favorite fish. We love our school even if they won’t win prizes.

 

[Gemma]

. Well we can always try setting up a local meeting of people on gpf. I have met with gpf members before and it's always fun to meet in person!

That would be so awesome!!
...but we are so far from one another, it'd have to be a once a year meeting ..,.there are several members on here I would really like to meet, but I'm afraid traveling will have to be something I do years from now when I retire

 

[Gemma]

. We have a fish that came from a pond spawning that is a huge fat, ugly, butterfly ki matsuba that we named coyote ugly. It’s my wife’s favorite fish. We love our school even if they won’t win prizes.

I get that! I love and have colorful koi, yet my very favorite is white and silver (Avatar) with 2 small orange patches on the sides.
Question for you: we purchased 4 koi years ago, from the same tank one turned out to be a Gin Matsuba, one a Orenji Matsuba and 2 of them doitsu, how can I tell if the doitsu are also Matsuba?

 

[carolinaguy]

I get that! I love and have colorful koi, yet my very favorite is white and silver (Avatar) with 2 small orange patches on the sides.
Question for you: we purchased 4 koi years ago, from the same tank one turned out to be a Gin Matsuba, one a Orenji Matsuba and 2 of them doitsu, how can I tell if the doitsu are also Matsuba?

Boy now you are going to get me on this one. im not a expert on all the different breed lines and breeders. okay, a matsuba is destinguished by its reticulation. the scale is one color, usually black, and the surrounding skin tissue, the fukurin, is another. the entire fish has this brocaded pattern without any variation. given that detail i dont think a doitsu would manifest this characteristic accurately, but then this area is hard to figure out.

 

[Gemma]

Sorry @carolinaguy but you come across as so knowledgeable I thought I would through this at youLooking at Matsuba on NextDayKoi the Doitsu do not have the pine cone pattern, so there must be another way to tell say a doitsu Matsuba from a doitsu something else

 

[Somethin' Fishy]

I've never belonged to a koi club. Just clubs for motorcycles, horses, and kayaking... But I figure if it doesn't cost anything to attend a meeting or event, and you find that it truly adds to your enjoyment of the hobby, then go for it. Of course there are always going to some sort of high dollar hobby snobs about, and people who are so overly passionate about things that you can't even understand how they can enjoy themselves - being so uptight all the time, and then there will be the laid back folks. It usually doesn't take long to find the company you enjoy, and that which you ignore!

As far as clubs with membership fees, find out exactly what those fees are funding and whether you agree with it or not. And never let anyone pressure you or suck the enjoyment out of something you love.

 

[carolinaguy]

I've never belonged to a koi club. Just clubs for motorcycles, horses, and kayaking... But I figure if it doesn't cost anything to attend a meeting or event, and you find that it truly adds to your enjoyment of the hobby, then go for it. Of course there are always going to some sort of high dollar hobby snobs about, and people who are so overly passionate about things that you can't even understand how they can enjoy themselves - being so uptight all the time, and then there will be the laid back folks. It usually doesn't take long to find the company you enjoy, and that which you ignore!

As far as clubs with membership fees, find out exactly what those fees are funding and whether you agree with it or not. And never let anyone pressure you or suck the enjoyment out of something you love.

Excellent point of view. Our club is $25 a year. The ZNAclube is $110; but they have some internationally known speakers, so pick the club that expresses who you are.