Fish Pond Care and Water Quality Testing

Fish Pond Care is the most important aspect of keeping your Koi healthy. A few basic rules should be followed to help establish and maintain the most stress-free environment that you can.

Fish Pond Care and Stress

Fish Pond Care is an important part of Koi Keeping. Stress is an unavoidable part of life for any living creature. It's simply a reaction to something uncomfortable and new. Fish out in the wild would simply swim away when conditions became unstable for them, but in our care they are not able to swim away when the ammonia levels are too high, these fish are stuck. And being stuck topples their anxiety into stress.

How to tell if your Koi are stressed

A huge part of detecting stress is observance. Another big part of Fish pond care is knowing what is normal behavior for your Koi. Fins are often the first body part to deteriorate when fish are stressed or unwell so they can give a good general guide to condition. Examine all fins, especially those underneath the fish, for ragged or uneven edges, tears, splits or bloodshot appearance.

The following is 8 typical stress behaviors and indications to watch for:

• Jumping
• Remaining near the bottom of the pond
• Lying partially on its side
• Failing to snorkel near the surface during feeding time
• Trying to hide under ledges or under the waterfall
• Rubbing against items in the pond, as if to scratch
• Swimming lethargically or with a tighter, almost jerky rhythm
• Staying by itself; not joining with others to feed

6 Physical symptoms or changes in appearance that often point to a specific disease:

• Clamped fins
• Fin damage
• Pale gills
• Raised scales
• Swollen areas of the body
• White spots on the body and gills

Fish pond care involves using mechanical ways to find out whether the problem is with your pond water or your fish's health. Test the water for ammonia levels, or net your stressed fish and put in your quarantine tank to try and diagnose the Koi.

Ammonia Levels

Nitrogen Cycle

It is important to appreciate that a pond differs from natural bodies of water in two fundamental ways.

Firstly, ponds do not receive a constant supply of fresh water to replace the 'lived in' water that they contain. Secondly, most artifical ponds have a far higher stocking level and bioload (the sum of all the biological activity going on) than natural ponds and lakes. For these reasons, you as the pond keeper must be aware of the nitrogen cycle and how to maintain it at a healthy equilibrium.

Pond Chemicals Use Guidelines

Another aspect of Fish Pond Care is knowing the proper use of Pond Chemicals. You need to make sure and use the correct dosage. You could kill your whole pond of fish with misreading of instructions, or failure to read instructions.

• Chemicals should only be used in the Koi pond to cure known health problem, never as a matter of routine. Medications can never replace good fish pond care, and there are no miracle cures.
• Calculate your pond gallonage accurately in advance, overdosing can kill; underdosing fails to work.
• Always follow the instructions on the container of any pond remedy. The dose level of a medication is based on its concentration, which does not appear on the bottle, and will vary with the brand. For example, malachite green and formalin are both availble in variable formulations, so using some brands at the generic dose would not be appropriate.
• Test the water to ensure that all parameters are normal before introducing a medication. If ammonia or nitrite is already polluting the water, a chemical will make matters worse. A pond treatment used in a pond in which the pH has fluctuated could kill all the Koi. Re-test the water following treatment to ensure that the filter is still biologically effective.
• Switch off the UV whenever chemicals are used, as it can weaken their effectiveness.
• Ensure oxygen is adequate before using a pond medication. The dissolved oxygen level will become lower as the water temperature rises, and chemicals will lower this even more. It is advisable not to treat the pond on a hot day.
• The argument for switching off the pond filtration system while using a medication is a negative one. The presumption is that it will prevent loss of filtration biology due to the action of the chemicals. However, consequences of a die-back in the filter due to the reduction in oxygen supply could well equal any loss attributable to the chemical. Filter media will all vary in this respect, as some, more than others, will have the structure to best protect the organisms during the presence of a chemical. Bypassing the biological filter during a treatment is yet another possibility, but this too can only work in the short term. If sequential treatments are required, the filter will be bypassed for so long that some die-back will be inevitable. Some stages in the life-cycle of certain parasites may well be in the filtration system anyway, although this depends on the organism and the way the filter is designed.
• Aways measure a pond treatment into a watering-can (kept exclusively for pond use) that has been pre-filled with pond water. Then distribute evenly all around the pond.
• Many of the products used in fish health are toxic to humans. Disposable gloves and protective clothing are recommended; the eyes, too, are vulnerable. Those with asthma or who are concerned about resiratory problems should wear a mask, particularly when dealing with powder products, or when formalin is in use.
• Store all the chemicals used in Koi keeping with lids secured, away from children and pets, and in a location where it is cool, dry, and dark.
• Many chemicals become either toxic or ineffective with age, so check the shelf-life with the namufactures. Test kits, too, can give a false reading if out of date.
• Allow time for chemicals to break down before repeating a treatment, or using an alternative product- with most chemicals this takes from three to seven days. Never mix products without checking safe combinations.

Broad Spectrum Disease Treatment

Malachite green and formalin are two drugs that are more effective and less toxic in combination than when used individually.

What makes Microbe-Lift BSDT the pre-eminent product in this field is the fact that it is formulated with malachite green chloride, instead of the more toxic oxalate salt. As with any malachite green and formalin treatment, DO NOT use with other medications.

Use for diseases caused by Ichthyophthirius (Ich), Chilodonella, Costia, Oodinium, Trichodina and fungal infections.

Microbe-Lift BSDT is the only malachite green and formalin treatment that can be used in water temperatures as low as 50° F, thus allowing you to treat in early spring and late fall.

To keep your Koi Healthy you need to study Fish pond care, and the main aspect of fish pond care is your Water quality.

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