Looking for Butterful Koi in Phoenix

[GreatDanesDad]

Hey guys,

I am looking to start stocking my pond with fish. I am only looking for a couple fish and would like to have them between 8-14ish inches long. I am very partial to butterfly koi. Does anyone know a good breeder for butterfly koi in the phoenix area. I am only looking for pond worthy fish, I dont need show quality, just pretty and HEALTHY fish. Any suggestions will help.

Thanks

 

[Waterbug]

There's a some on Craig's List.

Everyone has HEALTHY fish...just ask them. Like parrots are only HEALTHY fish and DEAD fish. I mean yeah, buying a fish with visible sores wouldn't be a good idea, but are you going to do scrapes and test done to confirm health. Heck no.

Best you can do is put new fish into a quarantine tank first. And then make sure your pond has the best possible water.

 

[GreatDanesDad]

Thanks WB. Yes I understand getting healthy fish is a game of chance/faith, and I do have a quarantine tank setup, but I was hoping there was a more formal "store" somewhere here that may possible have the fish I was looking for. I have found the CL stuff and have found a couple fish I really love that I will probably purchase. I was hoping there was a recomendation rather than the "random CL" people.

 

[Waterbug]

Like a retail type store? Pet shops normally have a few small Koi. WalMart, PetCo, etc.

For kind of more serious there's Backyard Koi in Peoria. It is literally a small backyard, just like the "random CL" people. That's about it for the greater Phoenix area.

A good Koi at a good price is just as good from "random CL" people as from a retail store. Maybe better. A Koi that's been in the same pond for several years, with the same other fish is a better bet imo than a tank of 100 fish that's been there for a couple of weeks. A Koi out of a green pond can be less stressed than one in a nice clear retail tank where they're fighting ammonia.

 

[GreatDanesDad]

Craigs list for my Koi.

Here is a vid of my pond and my two big fish.

 

[Shdwdrgn]

Is there any particular reason why you want larger fish to start with, other than not wanting to wait for them to grow? After rebuilding my pond in 2011, I bought several small koi that were only about 3" long, and they are now about 10" in length... Not bad for $5 fish You can control their rate of growth somewhat simply by the frequency that you feed them. I feed mine once a day. Some people only feed every few days, and some people feed several times each day.

I'm a frequent visitor of our local PetSmart (we have a LOT of aquariums), just because this store has the healthiest fish in our area. They get in a decent variety of koi, including butterflies, so I like to watch for any that are unique. I've been trying to find one with a good solid yellow color, but they keep turning orange (this is the biggest problem with buying the smaller fish). I just got a new one this weekend, though... a butterfly with a yellow and white body, and black streaks through the fins. I'm hoping the white base color helps keep the yellow lighter, as my previous fish have had more black in them. Regardless, I have a good feeling about this new fish... I have an older platinum butterfly that also has the black streaks through his fins, and that detail really makes him stand out as one of my favorites.

 

[GreatDanesDad]

The decision to purchase my two larger fish was purely ornamental. The pond really comes to life with the two mature butterflys. I have purchased a small number of 2-4 inch baby butterfies, but as expected, they have found the hiding places and only come out for feedings. I have a wide variety of colors of my young fish, and am very excited to seem them mature. I figured two large fish and a few smaller fish really was the best of both worlds. I get the here and now, and I also have the the joy of raising my own from young babies.

 

[tazcat70]

They look great! Very lovely.