have you ever

[pondlady]

:grumble: have any of you ever bought a koi that looked pretty good then watched as it grew thinking , Something is not right about It . Had to drain the pond to remove the shelves, so I netted all the fish. OMG two of them are deformed. Elvis is a black long fin that I though had a white top lip. NOT, He has a hole in it as well as part of it missing. Then I netted diamond she is a white long fin, I new she looked a little odd. OMG she has no top lip at all. Q???????? is do I take them back to the dealer? I paid 20 bucks a peace for them as 4" babies. I feel like if should have recieved non defective fish. :eek2:

 

[DrDave]

I have fish that have gotten crooked bodies and when I researched it on another Forum, 2 things came to light that may have caused it, besides being hatched that way. Shock from a pump starting up when it was next to it (I know, I have a hard time beleiving this) and malathion sprayed too close to the pond.

Most people look at the fish before they buy them. If you are noticing these things now, don't you think you would have seen them before?

I have had Koi with torn mouths and other anominalies. Things happen, especially if you have sharp rocks where they swim. I tell everyone, use only round smoth rocks in your pond, especially if you have a liner.

Sorry to hear about this.

 

[pondlady]

:grumble: NO sharp areas in the pond. they looked normal as 4" babies, I looked them over pretty good. It was as they grew and developed I noticed that things were not right. Elvis began to look like he was wearing pink lipstick The bigger he got the more lipstick he had on. No fungus or open wounds just a hole over his top lip as he grew it has become larger with him. Diamond looked very good, but as she grew her nose did not. Her bottom lip is 1/4 " longer than her nose. Her barbels are inside the corners of her mouth. Both look like birth defects. I am guessing they bought culls and sold them as pond grade Koi. I have already told them that I was bringing them back as I feel they were funky from the start, It just was not seeable as younglings. rofile: Dont like being buped! Was just wondering if anyone else has had this happen.

 

[DrDave]

As a breeder I can tell you that they change as they grow. If you want pefect Koi, wait until they are 7-8" and pay the price. The breeder cannot possibly tell when they are that small what they will become.

My grandaughter was given a Koi with black and gold on it 5 months ago. It out grew her tank. When it came back to me this weekend it was a near perfect platinum.

How many cute kids have you seen grow up to be ugly???

Buying young and cheap has it's risks. That is why the Imported koi are so expensive. Only 28 out of every 1000 are exported to the US. the rest are culled or sold cheap as they take form.

 

[DrCase]

i have a few ugly koi ,,,maybe they will get better looking as they get older,,,i did have one with a crooked back in the past.

 

[pondlady]

I have a few ugley's myself these go way past that. I feel sorry for them.
I just dont want things like that breeding into my fish if they chance to spawn, Mutts are one thing birth defects are a hole nother thing. Things like that breed through, that would be a crime in itself. Better it were prevented than try to deal with the aftermath.

 

[DrDave]

In my last years crop, there were 2 that had very distinct colors, they had platinum bodies with gold crowns. They were gorgeous. I isolated them from the ones that I was going to adopt out because I liked them so much. I even hoped they would be male and female so I could get more like them.

As they grew, one devloped a crooked back and his face is all distorted. It is so bad he can hardly bite the pellets. The other did the same but is only half his size. They are still in my juvenile pond. I don't have the heart to "Cull" them but they will never be adopted out unless someone really wants them.

I have about 12 others I kept who are perfect but who could tell until now?

Very small Koi are not easy to read, that is why Imports are usually 7"-8" and cost $80 and up each.:eek2:

 

[bunnymp]

Do you think that maybe they were injured when your mystery guest visited? Or maybe they have mouth rot?

 

[pondlady]

Dont;t think so. Never may injury, no blood or secondary Infection, no fungus nothing that goes along with being an injury of any kind. Noticed the defect before the cats started coming around.

 

[pondlady]

:12: Ok update here. I did not take elvis back . Just didnt have the heart. So he has a small hair lip. Just decided to keep him till spring and see. dealer will still take him hack if it gets worse.

 

[DrCase]

you just need to treat him like any other family member with a disability:icon_mrgreen:

 

[pondlady]

I relocated Elvis to the big pond he gets to spend the winter with the big girls, Give him a chance. Cant have him getting a complex :icon_:nono:
just because he a little funky, right?