So I recently inherited a koi pond with the house I bought. Not knowing what I was doing I put too much of a cleansing chemical and killed two out of the six fish I had. I have changed the water several times and the four remaining fish seem healthy except for the fact that they constantly hide. They used to come out only when I fed them but it seems like they are barely even doing that anymore. Where they are hiding is behind a flap of the liner which seems redundant, should I cut the flap so they can't hide there anymore? I don't really want to do that but my wife really used to like watching the fish swim around and thinks I should cut it. Is there anything else I can do that would make them happier and more playful like they used to be without taking away their hiding place? Any advice on this or any tips in general would be great. Thank you so much for any help.
my fish are always hiding :(
- Thread starter drewski255
- Start date
nooooooooo don't cut the flap. Fish need hiding places when they get spooked or feel threatened. They will eventually come out. Keep going there and feeding them. They will get use to you. If they can't hide, they will get stressed. You don't want to stress them.
FredrikAnderson
Koi Herder
the best thing you can do is spend time out there. fish showing themselves or not. If you feed them and they come out for that then do that. Slowly involve yourself with them as they get more and more comfortable with you. as they start to come out more when you feed them and you are there, then start to hold your hand in the water till they start eating with your hand in the water, you just have to be willing to wait them out. then start putting your hand in the middle of the food and before you know it they won't mind you at all.
When I have people get Koi for the first time I make the following suggestion. Try to feed them every day at the same time. Try to stand next to the pond with the sun at your back so your shadow is on the water and feed them. They will slowly get used to seeing your shadow and associate it with the food. Then as they get used to you, ease in to putting your hand in to the water as you feed them.
The next big question is why are they hiding. There has to be a reason. A lot of times it means a predator has been around the pond. So definitely do not take away their hiding spot. As a matter of fact, maybe adding some floating plants to give them more areas to hide.
Just as a hunch, did the previous owners have a dog? it might have kept predators away. Fall is coming up fast. A net is always good for keeping Fall leaves out. It might be good to go ahead and get it now and net the pond. It might deter the predator, if there is one, and get them ready for Fall at the same time.
The next big question is why are they hiding. There has to be a reason. A lot of times it means a predator has been around the pond. So definitely do not take away their hiding spot. As a matter of fact, maybe adding some floating plants to give them more areas to hide.
Just as a hunch, did the previous owners have a dog? it might have kept predators away. Fall is coming up fast. A net is always good for keeping Fall leaves out. It might be good to go ahead and get it now and net the pond. It might deter the predator, if there is one, and get them ready for Fall at the same time.
Thank you so much for your input, I will try out your ideas. My next question is I live in Toronto and my pall pretty small, what is the best way to winterize my pond?
At 180 gallons in Toronto I don't know if you can keep it going throughout the winter without it freezing up. What are the dimensions? I am sure some other Canadian ponders can give you some ideas. My shallow one I close up each year. The 3 foot deep one I have is small and only keeps open water in the the small 2'x2'x3' section. And I have to put a heater there when it gets really cold. You may need to bring your fish in.