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- Sep 20, 2016
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We live in Logan Lake, BC - up in the hills from Kamloops. We can get very cold winters (sometimes as cold as the minus 30's Celcius) but our rainbow trout have always fared well in our pond which is roughly 20 x 15 feet and 5 feet in depth at the deepest spot. Everyone said it couldn't be done, including the Ministry of Environment, and they said that if the fish made it through winter, they would never make it through the hot summers. 9 years later and it's still a success, as a matter of fact, we are told that if they live another year or so, they will break the record for the oldest rainbow trout in captivity.
We have incorporated koi into the pond in recent months and suddenly acquired a stock trough with 4 goldfish. The goldfish will remain in the trough and it will be winterized. Today, we brought in one of the koi and put it with the goldfish and the other 2 stay at the bottom of the pond so we will have to drain it down to get at them soon so that we can put them with the rest. Reason being ... we have learned that, unlike trout, these fish cannot feed when the water approaches 50 F, which it has been the last few days. We stopped feeding the goldfish but I think the koi was still feeding - he hangs out in the rocks at the bottom of the waterfall and gorges on scuds and other aquatic insects. This is the sole diet of the trout and it has become the koi's preferred food too as that is all he has eaten for 3 months. We removed him so that he could not feed anymore.
My question is, both the goldfish and the koi are still very active and appear to be foraging for food. I would have thought that the colder water would start to make them dormant and that is why they wouldn't need food. But i know they cannot eat because they don't have stomachs and are unable to digest their food which can lead to bacterial infections which can cause illness or death. But it just seems that fish that are so active would still need to eat. So, before i starve them to death, could somebody please confirm to me that i am doing the right thing?
We have incorporated koi into the pond in recent months and suddenly acquired a stock trough with 4 goldfish. The goldfish will remain in the trough and it will be winterized. Today, we brought in one of the koi and put it with the goldfish and the other 2 stay at the bottom of the pond so we will have to drain it down to get at them soon so that we can put them with the rest. Reason being ... we have learned that, unlike trout, these fish cannot feed when the water approaches 50 F, which it has been the last few days. We stopped feeding the goldfish but I think the koi was still feeding - he hangs out in the rocks at the bottom of the waterfall and gorges on scuds and other aquatic insects. This is the sole diet of the trout and it has become the koi's preferred food too as that is all he has eaten for 3 months. We removed him so that he could not feed anymore.
My question is, both the goldfish and the koi are still very active and appear to be foraging for food. I would have thought that the colder water would start to make them dormant and that is why they wouldn't need food. But i know they cannot eat because they don't have stomachs and are unable to digest their food which can lead to bacterial infections which can cause illness or death. But it just seems that fish that are so active would still need to eat. So, before i starve them to death, could somebody please confirm to me that i am doing the right thing?