Will a small koi keep growing in a small pond?

[420benz]

That's the question

 

[mrsclem]

Yes- to some extent and then stunted growth and health issues!

 

[brokensword]

this is what LPS is for...

 

[Mmathis]

Yes. It’s a misconception that they only grow to the size of their environment. I hope you’re not planning to get koi.

 

[brokensword]

Not a misconception because I've done it for decades--just not good practice for fish that can get large; koi are genetically wired to reach a good size, no matter the container size. Most peeps don't or can't understand what it takes to have the fish stay healthy while trying to keep them small and the odds are so much against you, it's only going to hurt the fish.

And no, didn't ever have a fish that wasn't correctly proportioned, healthy, lived a decently long life. No deformations, no weird diseases; just smaller than their optimum size. I can think of only twice where the fish continued to grow and I had to re-home.

 

[420benz]

Ok no Koi.

 

[GBBUDD]

I have some babies that have been born in my pond that grow very quickly and are 6 inches long or better in a year or two while i have two others that are 4 yera old and are the size of the 2 year old. In short a small pond should stick to gold fish minnows or even cichlids and mollies if your in a tropics of florida etc

 

[Lisak1]

@GBBUDD - we had the same experience when we had koi. Some got massive - others stayed in the 12-15 inch range for years. I'm kind of surprised no one has tried to breed koi for the good colors at a smaller size. It must be harder than it sounds.

 

[SarahT]

@GBBUDD - we had the same experience when we had koi. Some got massive - others stayed in the 12-15 inch range for years. I'm kind of surprised no one has tried to breed koi for the good colors at a smaller size. It must be harder than it sounds.

What a fabulous idea - mini-koi. Wonder if there is a koi breeder who has tried, or better yet, who likes a challenge.

 

[420benz]

I agree.Thats a great idea.

 

[poconojoe]

I too have koi that have grown to be huge while others seemed to have stopped growing.

I don't know, maybe it's the different breeds?

I remember someone here wanted to build a pond that was a circle with an island in the middle.
It was a cool idea, but the waterway around the island was too narrow for a full grown koi to even turn around.
So, be aware. Koi can get huge and they need lots of space.

 

[Lisak1]

I don't know, maybe it's the different breeds?

That's always been my guess - different genes. But then wouldn't some smart breeder start breeding them smaller and smaller?

 

[GBBUDD]

I think they're more in lines like any family tree you have the 6 foot plus brother and then there's the 5 foot bro that comes along once in a blue moon. A cross breed with goldfish is a possibility but I have never seen a 24 in koi that looked like a goldfish either. Have to remember these colorful koi we love are mutants they have been selectively breed for centuries. I do not have a greenish brown koi in the pond yet i get many when the koi spawn. BULLDOGS, and pugs in particular are mutants we find attractive but usually those breeds have issues. pugs with the eyes bulldogs with there legs and both with breathing with the short snout or as we would say if a human had it a cleft palate. So maybe in another couple hundred years well get mini koi

 

[poconojoe]

All my koi are bargain koi, no high value elite strains.
So, could some of them have been cross bred with something like a goldfish or shubunkin? If so, maybe that's why they haven't gotten as large as some of my "big ones"?
Basically mutts?

 

[mrsclem]

Food has a lot to do with it. My largest koi were fed growth food and reached 3'.