Fish gave me a scare

[Oldhead]

Well my son calls me at work and says he's standing by the pond and all the koi are gone. I don't have to tell you how i felt. So i get home and go take a look. I found them hiding in the cave in the deep end. The water is kinda chilly but the thermometer i bought says 65. I hope nothing was trying to get at them. I'm gonna bring home my digital thermometer from work this weekend to double check the temp.

 

[oldmarine]

Hi Oldhead,

After pondering that one for awhile, I'm quite sure your fish aren't spooked because of a temp change in the water. That shouldn't do it.

More that likely something gave them a start and they diceded to hide out for awahile.

I think it was this last July, but my shubunkins went into hiding for a week before they would openly come out into the open water to fed. I have no idea what would have startled, but they layed low long enough for me to as much as possible keep an eye open on the sky above.

 

[DrDave]

Fish get traumatised when attacked by an Egret, GBH or Raccoon. There are others but you get the picture. Sometimes it takes a month or more before they regain their confidence and comeout into the open.

 

[Oldhead]

Well to update you they were all out and swimming or almost all. Theonly one missing to date is bluebell the blue koi. All the others seem fine now. I'll have to see if i can see her before work tomorrow. I'm sure the catfish is happy that all the others are out of his cave.

 

[stroppy]

hope you find bluebell safe and well what a lovely name
and pleased your catfish isnt so croweded ...probably thought he had sqwatters

 

[jtw5150]

We had something take a goldfish (possible raccoon) this past July. Our remaining fish layed low for a few days before coming back to the surface, as per normal. No problems for a few months. Yesterday, I went out to feed them, and they were nowhere to be seen. Laying low again. At first count, they seem to be all there, but something must have spooked them again. Anyone have good experience with motion detecting cameras? I'm curious....

 

[oldmarine]

Motion activated camera, that's great idea for monitoring your pond while away at work or whatever.

 

[Oldhead]

i'm gonna have to check into the camera. I think my blue koi is gone. All the others are there. I'll know better this weekend when i get in there to cut back the lillies.

 

[DrDave]

We will keep out fingers crossed for you.

 

[nc0gnet0]

I hope he/she shows up soon and is not MIA. I had a scare myself a few days ago as I began to one at a time transfer some of my koi to an indoor aquarium. I had caught on koi and placed him into a five gallon bucket filled about 1/4 full of pond water. As the pond and indoor aquarium temps differed by about 20 degrees I had to slowly acclimate the koi to the new temp. I did this by using a drip tube from the aquarium into the bucket. I covered the bucket with a sheet of styrofoam and left the basement for a short time. Much to my distress upon checking on him approximately 5 minutes later he had managed to jump out of the bucket knocking of the styrofoam and was flooping on my carpet. I must had just happened because I scooped him up and placed him back into the bucket and added some salt and 4 days later he is still doing fine.

 

[oldmarine]

Thirty years ago living in Cupertino, CA, my new bride and I rented a house that just happened to have a cement pond about 4'x4'x 1.5', the pond edge was level with the cement patio. I was having trouble with a garter snake that would curl up at the edge of the pond and wait for an unsuspecting gold fish to get clse enough to catch. I was having trouble getting close enough to catch the snake.

One day I came home from to only to find ball of dry grass clippings slowly flip flopping across the patio. Upon closer inspection I found that it was a four inch gold fish from the pond. Thinking that it was close to being dead I dorp dried grass ball & all back into the pond just see if it might make it. Hours later, to my surprise the bugger shed it's jacket of grass and revived. Fish still would come missing from time to time form my pond, but that four incher was still in the pond a year later when we moved to Washington state.

 

[Meekaboo]

I've been late for work because of going out to feed the fish and finding one on the lawn. I thought he was dead so I picked him up to toss into the compost pile when I seen his gill moving just a little, I quickly dipped him back into the pond, held on to his tail and gentley swished him back and forth, back and forth. It took a long time til he seemed to recover. My boss thought I was nuts for saving the life of a $0.19 goldfish.

 

[oldmarine]

They just don't understand, do they?

 

[Oldhead]

Well its official poor bluebell is gone. I wouldn't have minded so much if the perpetraitor got a comet. I just noticed yesterday that my big yellow koi Jaws has a wound on his tail. I'll have to keep an eye on it incase i have to pull him out to put him a hospital tank. Itis kinda looking better today, not as red. If I find out its the new nieghbors cat that has been causeing trouble hes gonna have a date with alpine hunter:bye2: That damn cat tore my nieghbors screen down and got into a fight with their cat and almost killed it.

 

[DrDave]

Do you net your pond when you are not there? I made a series of nets that are easy to remove and put back on. No losses in several years.