Blind koi?

[mrsclem]

Sad update- Ph in the other pond tested at 7.5 so I know the test kit is ok. This morning I went to pull another water sample and was happy to see the 2 ill fish swimming around. Then I noticed another fish at the surface and a dead one in the Savio waterfall. I thought I had seen this fish on its side in the ice last week. Now I'm wondering how many may be dead on the bottom or have been snatched up by preditors. I caught our out door cat looking for an easy meal yesterday sitting on the edge of the pond. Going to do another water change and see if I can see any of the others. There were several fish swimming under the ice last week but since the thaw I haven't seen them.

 

[addy1]

Darn so sorry to hear. I have my fingers crossed with the pond breathers I see swimmers not floaters when it finally melts. Has a way to go, last measure was 8 inches of ice, add 12 inches of snow tomorrow.................

I have seen a few swimming around via the cameras, but it is dark and the lens are murky, algae grows all winter

 

[mrsclem]

15 dead so far. Small as well as large. Ph was even higher this morning. We drained the pond down as far as possible to make sure we got all dead fish out. Refilling slowly over the next few days and adding salt. Only 2 fish are still at the surface but none of them look healthy.
guessing that maybe a fish died during the winter and made the water toxic. I still have not seen any sign of life in the other pond. Got the pump running to melt the ice. 36" pure white koi should be easy to spot.

 

[Tula]

Oh, @mrsclem , I'm so sorry to hear of your fish loss!!! We pulled our net back yesterday, in anticipation of up to 9 inches of snow, so I'm hoping to be able to see my fish.

Did you use a pond breather this winter?

 

[bettasngoldfish]

Ugh, I am so sorry......

 

[mrsclem]

Had pond breather and 100W heater in all winter.

 

[bettasngoldfish]

The pond has been frozen over for a while now. I have had a small 100 watt heater in it as well as a pond breather. I did put a 1200watt heater in which was plugged in a few days ago but unplugged 2 days later as it got up against liner.

Just curious as to how long the pond was frozen over?

 

[Tula]

So perplexing and sad. I looked today and see my fish, but I can' see them clearly, as they're huddled at the bottom.

I think you mentioned you had fry, are they in the top pond, so you have some to restart your spring season with?

 

[mrsclem]

Pond froze over some time in November. It has partially thawed several times. I saw several fish going after the algae around the edges over the last couple of weeks. This pond was pure Gin-rin koi. Pond has been filled half way and salt added. Heavy duty aerator running and I added filter media to help clear the water. So far no more deaths and the other pond is now thawed and seems to be ok.

 

[Dave 54]

mrschem I've a feeling that your fish have come down with bad case of costia , you wouldnt happen to have a microscope and be able to take scrapes would you ?
Costi likes conditions from 2c up to 29c
Often the head gets a white film the likes of what you are describing , if weve got this early enough which I dont think we have from your losses then its pretty easy to erradicate but on your younger fish it will develope quickly and your going to see losses just as you are ..
In severe cases fish will look emaciated, have dificultes breathing showing erratic gill movements near the surface of the pond..
Its causes are many , poor water quality poor system maintenance and changes to the temperature which you've just been through are often the cause.
Salt can be used to fight costia but Formalin and malachite is far more effective however the salt would fiest need to be removed from your pond .


Dave

 

[mrsclem]

Dave- thanks for your reply. I do have the formalin and malachite treatment on hand but I have had problems with Ick before and this seems different. Other than cloudy eyes and being on the surface the fish seem normal. Most of the ones we pulled out had been dead for a while (maybe a week?). My ph is extremely high- 9 the 1st day I tested and then even higher. I can't find anything that would explain it. I'm using the salt until I get my shipment of Melafix. It's supposed to be a good treatment for bacterial infections. As of this morning with an almost complete water change and the salt, I only have one fish at the surface. She isn't gasping but just seems panicked because she can't see. All the others seem to be better. I know I will need to watch for secondary problems and will do water changes as needed. 2 pumps running and 2 large air stones.
Do you have any idea what could cause a ph jump?

 

[Meyer Jordan]

pH levels rise as a direct result of an increased Carbonate level. This is the ONLY cause for increased pH levels. Carbon Dioxide, as Carbonic acid, when balanced with Carbonate (Buffering) normally will maintain a fairly stable pH. (There is some daily fluctuation which is normal.)
If, for some reason, off-gassing of the CO2 occurs, carbonate is released into the water column resulting in a rise in pH. Once the pH rises above 9.0, the water is unable to sustain any level of CO2. At these levels CO2 does not exist in the pond water.
The usual cause of CO2 off-gassing is a change in pressure, be it water pressure due to depth or atmospheric pressure or a combination of the two.
If the pond did not have a vent hole, the ice covering allowed pressure rises under the ice. Once the ice melted, this pressure decreased allowing the some of the Carbonic acid to disassociate and off-gas releasing carbonate which increased the pH.
pH levels can also rise due to explosive growth of plants and algae, especially filatmentous. In this scenario, this rapid growth uses up the CO2 in the water releasing Carbonates which raises the pH.

 

[mrsclem]

Ok- that explains it. There has been an opening in the ice at all times but a huge algae bloom. I have never seen the water this green and even with the massive water change it is still green. Sides and pumps all covered with string algae.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Ok- that explains it. There has been an opening in the ice at all times but a huge algae bloom. I have never seen the water this green and even with the massive water change it is still green. Sides and pumps all covered with string algae.

Once this algae begins to die off, it may affect the Oxygen level. If you have an aerator, I would recommend using it until the pond clears.

 

[mrsclem]

Had a small one running but when we cleaned out the pond I put the big one in with 2 large air stones plus pond is only half filled so 2ft drop from both filters. I'm guessing the salt level may kill off some algae. At .1 so far.