Sometimes you just can't help yourself

[Shdwdrgn]

We were getting dog food at petsmart today, and I always have to check what new fish they've gotten in. I figure in the middle of Winter most people aren't checking out the koi, so I have a better chance of spotting something unusual. Well, today I did - one with very bright yellow and platinum primary colors, a sprinkle of the black pinecone look across his back, and the large (dragon?)scales down his sides. What makes this one most unusual to me is that fact that he is nearly identical in appearance to the only fish I lost last year (no clue why, just found it floating one day).

So of course I had to get this one. In the middle of Winter. Great planning! :trampolin: Well we had a 115-gal tank spring a leak over the holidays, and had a 40-gal tupperware tub set up with filters to hold the fish. The tank has been back in operation for the last few weeks but we kept the filters running... A partial water change to refresh the water, and I was set to go. Of course, being a koi, the little guy had to explore his boundaries, and jumped out of the tank within the first few hours. Fortunately I was checking on him, and caught him while he was still gasping. Tossed him back in the water, and off he swam without any apparent harm.

It will be at least a couple months before the pond starts warming up enough to move this new guy, and I figured since I was going to be keeping a tank running for him, I might as well get some more rosy-red minnows and let them grow out a bit. I put several dozen in the pond last year, and I don't believe ANY of them survived. I still have the rosies that are a couple years old, they are doing just fine, but I only have around a dozen of them. So maybe if I let some grow larger before introducing them to the pond (and give them a chance to shake off any maladies they may have from the pet store), maybe they will have a better chance of survival. So I picked up another 2 dozen of them today and put them in with the new koi. A couple months of some good food should help them get nice and healthy.

So what does everyone else do when they spot a new fish during Winter that they just gotta have?

 

[koiguy1969]

having a 800 gal wintering pond in the basement... if i spotted one i absolutely had to have i would just get it and introduce him to his new freinds.

 

[addy1]

I stay out of the fish selling stores, because I am sure there would be something I would want, but have plenty of fish in my pond and no inside tank except for a 1.5 gallon tank that has 4 tiny fish that I pulled out of our deck pond before it froze.

 

[DrCase]

We need a pic!!

 

[pondlover]

Can you put small Koi in an aquarium with other fish? We have a 35 gal tank with a few fish in it and there have been several times while at Petsmart that I've seen a Koi that I would love to purchase. What a great idea to find one you love now and go ahead and get it.

 

[CountryEscape]

Ditto to Dr. Case. Pic please!
I bought several koi in December and have them in my basement "pool" (one of those kiddie pools with the built in slide LOL) and they are all doing just fine. I could have put them in the outside pond, I guess, but felt it was too cold. Besides, it's been really lots of fun watching them each day, and hand feeding them (temp in basement pond stays at 58). Not sure they have grown much, but not too worried about that at this point. My goal is to keep them alive and healthy until I can introduce them into the outside pond in spring.

 

[CountryEscape]

Yes, PL, you can, as long as the fish that are already in the aquarium are compatible for the koi. If they are small koi, I would treat them more like goldfish, and put them with other fish that would do well with goldies, or simply ask at the store. I have 2 fantails and 3 Shubunkins that I just "had to have" end of last year, and put them in my aquarium with mollies, plecos, cory cats, and swordtails. They are all doing fine together. Good luck, and happy shopping. I know you're anxious to find some fish, too, with your pond building well underway, PL.

 

[pecan]

Ditto to Dr. Case. Pic please!
I bought several koi in December and have them in my basement "pool" (one of those kiddie pools with the built in slide LOL) and they are all doing just fine. I could have put them in the outside pond, I guess, but felt it was too cold. Besides, it's been really lots of fun watching them each day, and hand feeding them (temp in basement pond stays at 58). Not sure they have grown much, but not too worried about that at this point. My goal is to keep them alive and healthy until I can introduce them into the outside pond in spring.

I think it is nice they have a slide to play on so they don't get bored through the winter months. LOL

Shdwdrgn, please post pics. I don't know much about koi and would love to see it, from your description he sounds beautiful!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

I knew someone was going to ask for pics I will try to get a good one tonight, I just haven't had a chance yet.

As for compatibility with other fish - I don't believe koi are aggressive in any way, and I could have put this guy in the 115-gallon community tank, but koi and goldfish are more of a coldwater fish and probably would not be too comfortable in the heated water. Also since I want to move him outside this Spring, I need to keep him in cooler water to make the transition easier.

 

[CountryEscape]

I agree, koi do not seem to be aggressive, but they might pick on fancy tailed fish, although mine have not bothered my fantail out in the pond that I'm aware of. BUT, the pet shop would have had him in a warmer water tank, too! Usually pet shops have all the same water running through filter system. Very seldom do they separate the colder water type fish from the warmer water. So, that being said, go ahead and put him in your huge tank! You WILL see some growth in that size by springtime, I would guess. And, if he/she is in an aquarium, you can get pics from the side, which you typically never get the chance to get once they are in a pond. Look forward to the pics.
Pecan, it's a kiddie pool that my daughter bought end of season sale for her Golden Retriever, and I inherited it when she decided not to take it with her to UT. Yeah, the first day I got the fish, 2 of them jumped out, and someone said they probably were just looking to try out the slide and jumped too far. LOL

 

[j.w]

Yes shdwdrgn you knew we would want pix! I stay away from the fish section of all stores in winter!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

Somebody requested pics? :razz:

Hmm I didn't realize this type of koi had the row of missing scales right underneath the row of large scales. Funny what details a decent photo will show.
(Oh yeah, and I figured out the macro function on my camera! :glassesy: )

 

[addy1]

Neat looking little one!

 

[j.w]

Very pretty shiny yellow fellow! Makes me take note of how different the scales of koi are compared to goldies. Looks kinda like pecan's alien fish in color but scales are way different and has the whiskers. Learning all the time as I go!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

Well keep in mine that this is not the typical type of scales for a koi. I'm sure someone else can tell us the specific name, but most koi do have scales similar to a goldfish (evenly sized and covering the entire body). The fancy type of scales was one of the reasons why I had picked up the last fish I found like this - so to find a second one with the same type of scale pattern and coloring is pretty amazing.

Of course there's no telling if he will keep the yellow, or darken to more of an orange color as he grows, but I can cross my fingers...