Koi Care - Proper Koi Care Techniques for Owners of Koi Fish

Celebrated the world over, the koi fish is perhaps the most popular fish found in backyard freshwater ponds. Named for the Japanese word for carp, koi fish have been around for thousands of years and are known for their brightly colored and ornate designs. The koi started out as simple one color carp fish, but through the masterful breeding techniques of the Japanese, koi fish gained their beautiful coats of many colors. Families all over the world enjoy visiting koi ponds to feed and enjoy the wonderful species. In addition, many choose to build their own personal ponds to house the koi. While koi are a very robust species and can live for as much as two hundred years, kept in backyard ponds koi fish normally reach an average age of about thirty five. By paying attention to specific koi care tips, you can help to increase their longevity and enjoy the beautiful koi for generations.

The first thing to note is that koi are a cold water fish. They thrive in cooler waters and therefore the water of the pond must be kept at no higher than seventy five degrees Fahrenheit. In fact, koi fish can be kept in ponds all year long and simply hibernate when the cold weather hits. Their metabolisms slow down dramatically, almost stopping. Because of this, any food they ingest can rot in their system causing sickness or death. This is important to remember and proper koi care dictates that the fish should not be fed in the winter when temperatures fall below 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

The freshwater ponds you create must be of proper size and depth to house koi fish as well. Koi fish are a large breed of fish and can often grow to lengths of thirty six inches. Your backyard pond, therefore, should be no less than 3 feet deep with a volume of at least five hundred gallons. Many first time koi owners make the mistake of creating smaller ponds and face the added expense of having to increase the size of the pond, or worse yet, get rid of the koi or face the prospect of their fish dying. The mistake in creating ponds often comes in the thinking that koi fish can survive in the same conditions as goldfish and this is simply not the case. Koi care techniques are specific and you must pay attention to their needs and habits in order to sustain a thriving koi pond.

Koi fish can co-habitat with other fish though and are actually quite social. You must be careful of what kind of fish you pair the koi with as they are likely to gobble up smaller fish that are part of their food chain.

If you take the steps necessary for proper koi care, you will enjoy these wonderful creatures for years to come. Because koi fish are much more expensive than other types of freshwater species, buying and caring for koi can be a costly endeavor; most agree that purchasing and caring for these colorful creatures is a worthwhile investment.