Koi San's Corner Hi Everyone!

For most of the country, spring is in the air. Here, in the great Northeast, we have about a month or so to go. In this entry, I'd like to discuss spring start-up and how to maintain Koi health in the spring emergence.

It's been a long winter and your Koi have been fasting and in a torpid (semi-hibernation) state since the pond water in your area has gone below 50 degrees F. So saying that they're in a weakened state is only stating the obvious. Couple that with the fact that a Koi's immune system is based on water temperature. Their bodies just barely start to take care of themselves at 62 degrees F. Actually, a better and safer number is 68 degrees F. I only point this out to show that Koi are slowly emerging, while the parasites and bacteria that cause them so much harm are flourishing.

It is for this reason that I am a proponent of medicating the fish prior to the winter season and then again in the spring emergence. There are a number of excellent parasite medications and bacterial treatments on the market today for Koi keepers.


Let's begin.

First, as the water temperature rises to 40 degrees F, I recommend dosing the pond with Aqua Medzyme. It comes in both a liquid and dry formation and excels at eliminating gram negative bacteria by using pro-biotics. (Read about it here) Even before your fish have the ability to fight off harmful bacteria, Aqua Medzyme is working to keep them healthy.

As the water warms to over 55 degrees F there are a few more things that you can do. Medicate the water for ciliated parasites by using Terminate. The greenish-blue liquid we call Terminate is a formalin based product used symbiotically with Malachite green to form a safe, yet effective method of parasitic control. Use for 3 consecutive days to eliminate almost all common parasites that your fish may encounter. (Read about it here)

As I said, Terminate works great on most parasites but will not completely eradicate gill or skin flukes. Flukes are microscopic worm-like creatures that are as common to ponds and Koi as fleas are to a dog. Flukes can carry harmful bacteria in them. Left unchecked they can cause ulcers and actually kill the fish through suffocation by infesting the gills.


One of the best and safest ways to kill flukes is with Prazi. (Read about it here) Prazi is a safe powder that is put in the water to kill live flukes. Since nothing kills fluke eggs, the nice part about Prazi is that it lasts long enough to kill the emerging flukes 3 or 4 days later. It makes for a great one-step medication. I mix it together with my 3rd day treatment of Terminate. The Formalin helps to dissolve the Prazi and after you distribute the mixture in the pond, you leave it in the water for 8 days. This procedure will kill the ciliated parasites and flukes, thus putting your fish on a path to a great year.

One more precaution can and should be considered. In water above 55 degrees F it is good to feed your Koi Medikoi food in the spring for a 10 day period. Medikoi food is a great quality food infused with 4 powerful antibiotics to help relieve any latent bacteria infections that can cause problems during the spring and early summer. (Read about it here) The 10 day period insures that the bacteria being treated is completely eradicated in the fish and not allowed to mutate.

I've gone a step further to put together a spring emergence treatment package. This will consist of the medications and water treatments I described above and that I've used for years. I am proud to say that, after 13 years, my first Koi (Hootie) is still alive and well. I owe much of that to yearly spring treatments.


This kit consists of:
Aqua Medzyme
Terminate
Prazi
Medikoi food

I have put together a kit for 3 pond sizes:
2500 gallons
5000 gallons
10,000 gallons

Thanks for taking the time to read up on koi health. In the long run it's time well spent.

Regards,
Koi - San