HOW TO KEEP KOI
Compiled and edited by Christopher Andrews Copyright Š All Rights Reserved This report may be reproduced and distributed PROVIDED no part of it is changed in any way.
ABOUT THIS REPORT
Welcome to ‘How To Keep Koi’, your no-nonsense, content-packed guide to start you off in your koi keeping hobby the RIGHT way. This report will save you lots of time and money in starting your hobby of keeping koi. You see, there is a RIGHT way and a WRONG way of keeping koi. Unfortunately, many people do not know much about koi aquaculture and so end up doing things the wrong way. By doing so, they actually waste more money and time and never get to enjoy this spectacular fish called koi to the max.
Let me give you a sneak peak on what’s inside this report: •
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What is the ‘bug eye’ syndrome for koi and how you can overcome it. Many people (including pet shop owners) are not even aware of this dangerous condition that severely affects koi. My 6 ‘S’ method in choosing the best koi. Knowing how to spot a winner means you can potentially sell your koi for a heap of profit, should you choose to, thus making your hobby a money-spinner for you. The two filtrations systems that are a MUST for happy, healthy and contented koi. Have you seen koi in a pond with nothing but a small waterfall or fountain? Those koi are headed for an early death. I will show you how to make your koi live for decades. How to avoid overcrowding your koi pond. Too many koi in one pond distresses your koi and affects their health. Many fall sick easily and some die. I will show you how to avoid that. How to breed koi effectively. I show you how to help koi spawn and just as importantly, how to know which baby koi to cull and which to raise. If you make a mistake in this, you might end up killing your most prized koi. The simple way to make your own koi fry food NATURALLY. Buying artificial koi fry food from the pet shop is a no-no (at the beginning of the fry’s life). I will show you why.
and lots more.
Are you ready? Let’s dive in…
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter
Topic
Details
Page
1
Koi – An Introduction
An Introduction to the Koi Keeping Hobby
2
Koi – Buying and Selling
How to Look for the Best Koi to Buy and Sell
10
3
Koi Pond
How to Set Up Your Koi Pond
12
4
Koi Filter
Setting Up your Filter Systems
15
5
Koi Care
How to Care for Your Koi
19
6
Koi Breeding
How to Breed Your Koi and Look After Koi Fry
21
7
Koi Club
Benefits of Joining a Koi Club
25
8
Koi Symbolism
What Koi Symbolizes
26
9
Koi – Conclusion
Closing Comments about Your Koi
27
4
KOI – AN INTRODUCTION This report is a helpful resource on basic koi aquaculture for you to start your own hobby of keeping koi. Here you will find information about this beautiful fish and a simple system that I use to keep my koi healthy, happy and strong. In fact, my system is so simple you can put it to good use straight away even if you have never kept fishes before in your life.
Koi is the colorful ornamental fishes you find in homes of koi enthusiasts (like me) and in certain classy establishments like hotels and holiday resorts. This is simply because the koi fish epitomizes beauty and grace like no other fish. In fact, koi have been bred for over a hundred years for their color, pattern, size and personality. Did you know you can easily get koi fish to eat food from your palm?
The name 'koi' means 'domesticated carp'.
This name was given because the koi is a
freshwater fish descended from the wild carp of the Caspian Sea region. Over the centuries, humans have transported the koi to other parts of the world for food. As these wild carps were kept captive, spontaneous breeding occured. Their human owners also conducted selective breeding among specially chosen koi to produce certain desired colors. Over time, koi began to display unique color patterns on their bodies. They became so beautiful that eventually people started breeding them as pets rather than for food.
Today, koi comes in many varieties depending on their color and patterns. The most beautiful and purebred ones are found in Japan, where they are known as nishikigoi (a term that means 'colored or brocaded carp'). This is why the names of the different varieties of koi (such as Kohaku, Bekko, Asagi etc) are Japanese words. Turn the page to see what they look like.
Here are the beautiful koi in all their varieties:
Benigoi
Chagoi
Goshiki
Hariwake
Gin Matsuba
Karasugoi
Kigoi
Kin Showa
Kikusui
Kohaku
Kin Ki Utsuri
Koromo
Kujaku
Kumonryu
Ochiba Shigure
Ogon
Platinum
Shiro Utsuri
Showa Sanshoku
Shusui
Taisho Sanshoku
http://www.mystickoi.com/K oi_Varieties.php
Tancho
Yamato Nashiki
In the next chapter, I will show you my 6 ‘S’ method of selecting the best koi to buy. This is also the type of koi that will fetch the highest prices if you choose to sell your koi.
KOI – BUYING AND SELLING The growth period for koi is between 15 to 20 years. People usually buy koi when they are about 4 inches long. Once they grow to about 6 inches or more, you can sell them to either wholesalers or retailers. Small koi is relatively cheap, costing only a few dollars. But the larger the koi, the more expensive it gets especially if they are purebreds. A koi is considered large if it is longer than 32 inches. Some can even grow to 50 inches if conditions are right. So buy them when they are young and sell some of your koi to finance the buying of new ones.
Now when it comes to buying koi, size is not the most important consideration. The important thing is to know what the characteristics of beautiful koi are. Here is my 6 'S' system for choosing the ideal koi:
1. Symmetry - Its body should be symmetrical 2. Size - The size of the head and fins should be in proportion to the body - not too large or too small in comparison with the body. 3. Shape - The body should be plump but not fat - if it's too fat, the fish would not swim gracefully. If it's too thin, it is not considered beautiful. Seen from the top, it should look somewhat like a pear from tail to head. 4. Shine - The colors should be pure (especially any white) and intense (when it comes to the other colors on the body). Look also at the edges of the colors. They should be distinct and clear not blurred or diffused. Needless to say, there should be no injuries on any part of the fish. 5. Steadiness - When at rest the tail should be perfectly vertical, not tilted to one side.
6.
Swim - Good koi swim smoothly and gracefully.
They will not jerk or have clumsy
movements while swimming.
These are the basic essential factors to consider when buying koi. Needless to say, it is imperative to choose correctly so that you won’t regret making a bad buy later on. If you want more detailed information about how to buy koi, get my latest ebook entitled, “WHAT YOUR PET SHOP OWNER WON’T TELL YOU ABOUT KEEPING KOI” and read especially chapter 3. It’s available from my website http://www.keepkoi.com. My ebook is jam-packed with more information and content you need about keeping koi.
When you find a suitable koi that you wish to buy, it is called Tategoi which means keepkoi, or a koi worth keeping.
Now that you know how to select good koi, I will show you how to set up your koi pond.
KOI POND How big a pond you need depends on how many koi you have and vice versa. The smallest koi pond is usually 6 X 9 feet (i.e. 54 square feet) while the largest it should be is 9 X 14 feet so as to be reasonably manageable.
The rule of thumb for how large your pond should be is to take the square feet and multiply by 1.5. This gives you the number of inches of koi that the pond can take. So for a 6 X 9 foot or 54 square foot pond, the number of inches of koi that it can hold is 54 X 1.5 or 81 inches. That would amount to eight 10-inch koi fish, to avoid overcrowding.
The depth of koi ponds should be at least 3 feet deep. Generally the pool should be deep enough for the koi to swim down to escape the attacks of other animals (like the family cat).
Besides the actual dimensions of the pond, you need to give an extra 3 to 5 feet of space around the pond for accessibility, placement and maintenance of the filter and water pump and doing other things like catching a sick fish.
Koi ponds are usually constructed in one of three ways. Here are the three types of koi ponds and their pros and cons:
1. A cement pond Pros - durable and largely maintenance-free
Cons - Expensive 2. A preformed rigid plastic or fiberglass pond Pros - They come in interesting shapes and some even have different levels Cons - You have to find one deep enough (usually they are not), most are the wrong color (too light), it may be hard to get just the right sized hole since this type of pond is rigid. 3. A pond using a flexible pond liner Pros - cheapest in terms of purchase and maintenance, easy to maintain Cons - They eventually leak and can get punctured easily so you have to buy a liner patch or repair kit. They are also not a good idea in areas where the land is prone to subsidence because the liner will adjust to the change in contour of the land as it slips. In some cases the liner will tear.
No matter which type of pond you opt for, you will have to apply for the permit and adhere to all the regulations set by your local municipality for setting up a koi pond. For example, koi pond protectors (such as fencing) are mandatory safety precautions for having a koi pond outdoors. Other considerations for your koi pond such as location, shape, aeration, water quality and maintenance are beyond the scope of this report. You can learn about all these important factors from my ebook, “WHAT YOUR PET SHOP OWNER WON’T TELL YOU ABOUT KEEPING KOI”. Grab it now at my website http://www.keepkoi.com.
Having your koi in an indoor pond or an aquarium is only feasible for small koi or if you do not intend to have more than only a few koi fishes. The reason is that koi can grow and multiply quickly and if carefully kept, they can live for decades. For this reason, koi ponds should largely be outdoors.
Your koi pond cannot do without the proper filtrations systems. That is the next part of this report.