Feeding information

This is something I found at another forum that was posted as a recomendation on feeding koi, but it seems to apply as good information for the newbee ponder. It works for me, and my shubunkins.

Koi Pond - Fish Feeding Chart

(over 86F) 30C

Feed no more than 2 times daily (feed no more than 4 times daily for small Koi)
At higher water temperatures koi can lose their appetite. Feed smaller amounts of an easily digested food if your fish are in good condition. Try to reduce the water temperature by providing shelter from direct sunlight. Baby koi are less affected by higher water temperatures and can be fed small amounts more often.

(68-86F) 20-30C

Feed 2 to 4 times daily (or more in smaller amounts)
Koi are most active in this temperature range. You can feed as often as you like any color enhancing, growth or staple diets. Feeding smaller amounts more often can actually increase weight and girth more rapidly. Always monitor your water quality and the activity level when deciding how much to feed. Always avoid feeding within one hour of sunrise or sunset.

(59-68F) 15-20C

Feed 1 to 2 times daily

Carefully monitor your pets activity level in this temperature range. As the water temperature drops so does your koi's digestive capacity. Care should be taken to avoid over-feeding and offering food during periods of inactivity. Always feed during the warmest part of the day if your water temperature is not stable.

(50-59F) 10-15C

Feed no more than 2 times daily
When your water temperature is in this range you should monitor your koi's activity level carefully and avoid feeding if you pets do not readily eat. Use only easily digested diets with a Wheat Germ base. Try to feed between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm if possible.

(41-50F) 5-10C

Feed no more than 2-3 times weekly When the water temperature is in this range, technically you may stop feeding until spring. If your koi are active and you want you can feed an amount they will consume within a minute or so, but never more. Always try to feed between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm.

(Below 41F) Below 5C

Stop Feeding Your koi should be in their hibernation mode now and no feeding is necessary.

Once water temperature is consistently above 41F degrees, but below 60 degrees, feed with a Wheat-Germ based food.

When water temperature is consistently above 59F it is good to change to a Koi Staple Food.

Growth & Color Enhancing Diets is best fed between 59F - 86F.

• Always control the amount fed so there is no leftover food after the feeding period. If you find leftovers, remove them immediately to avoid water quality problems.

• For new environments, please reduce the feeding amount until your filtration system has completely cycled and developed adequate bacteria levels.

• If something unusual happens (a sudden water temperature change, unstable water quality or illness) stop feeding completely or reduce the amount fed until the condition is corrected.

• Special care should be taken during the spring when you restart your feeding routine. Use only easily digested diets with a Wheat-Germ base, increasing the amount feed little by little until you are feeding the amount you feel fits your situation. This helps your pets effectively reactivate their digestive process.

Happy ponding,

Rich

I like Shubunkins because they don't get big like Koi, (my pond is small) and they have a good variety of colors, fins, and shapes like Koi.

The first three I bought was about five years ago at Petsmart. The rest I bought one by one at a variety of local pet stores, and I bought each one because I liked the individual coloring and/or fins. I'm sure I never spent more than a couple bucks each, and they were always about one or two inches when I bought them. I have always brought them home and put the bag they came in into the pond to aclimate for about twenty minutes. I haven't had any problems with bringng in any deseases or any thing else to my pond. One thing I would never do is, buy fish during the winter months. It is too hard for them to adjust to an imediate temp change, and I think it would stress them to much or even kill them.

Happy ponding,

Rich

P.S. I have never had any of Shubunkins jump out of my pond. Maybe because they are happy.

Thanks Rich and I am going to look for some this spring or summer at the pet shops. What temperature do you think the pond should be at before I buy them? Do yours breed in the pond? I have regular goldfish in my pond and I wonder if they breed w/ the Shubunkins which one would be dominant?  [/quote]



Good questions. I wouldn't introduce any new fish until the pond temps are staying in the 50*F's.

Last spring was the first time I had witnessed any kind of spawning activity. For sure I have two female shubunkins, and the males just ran them ragged. If they layed eggs and I'm sure they did, I didn't see any signs of eggs or baby fish anywhere in the pond. I think they ate the eggs. I'm not into breeding them anyway, so that's fine with me.

I have one sarasa (fancy looking comet) mixed in with the shubunkins and they all get along just fine. There is no show one more dominant than the other, until they go into their breeding ritual. Then it's a free for all.

Happy ponding,

Rich   :[IMG]/turtle.g

If I were to breed my shubunkins in this size pond I would need to have quite a bit of water hyacinth covering the surface of the pond. The hyacinth roots hang way down and provide ample coverage for the eggs to hatch and hidding places for the young frye to hide until they get bigger and can fend for themselves.

Happy ponding,

Rich <I wished...........

We started with one hyacinth in the top of the waterfall and as soon as it got warm enough,it started to multiply like crazy.
I moved several to a shallow section of the pond where there wasn't much water flow and they formed a mat and started to bloom.
By the end of the summer there were blooms almost everyday.

unfortunately they are annuals here so we will start again next season
Have you guys tried water lettuce?
it did the same thing for us as the hyacinth without the blooms, but I recommend that one too

Our pond's bottom is entirely covered with rocks. After reading many posts on many forums on the subject of rock bottom ponds, we have decided to remove all the rocks this spring after the water warms up enough to get in there.
While cleaning up the dead plants and fallen leaves before winter, I accidentally stirred up the bottom some. By the time I had pulled all the decaying stuff out; the water was horribly cloudy from all the stuff that had settled to the bottom in the gravel.I have a pond-vac but it is not effective enough with the gravel bottom.

I had every plant in pots (except the floaters and anacharis) and next spring I think I'll plant some of the hardy ones in the rocks along the edge. Some of the rushes and reeds got tall and were always toppling over after strong winds.

Depending on what survived this winter I would be happy to share any of them with everybody here at Bullfrogs Pad.
I got most of my plants from the aquatic plant exchange over on AP. Some came from nurseries around here and also freecycle and craigslist

I have used water hyacinth every year, but they never did well until I stopped adding salt to my pond. I alwys followed the recommended dosage for ponds with plants, but everything does do much better now.

I start with 4 water hyacinth in the spring. Once the weather warms up they start multiplying like crazy. I have to throw about half every week in the summer as they cover the whole surface of the pond.

If it is warn enough here in MI, JW, I would think they would do well for you. They like undesturbed waters, like lilies, so maybe try them where there is no water movement from falls, etc.

fishlipsmcgee wrote:I have used water hyacinth every year, but they never did well until I stopped adding salt to my pond.  I alwys followed the recommended dosage for ponds with plants, but everything does do much better now.

I start with 4 water hyacinth in the spring.  Once the weather warms up they start multiplying like crazy.  I have to throw about half every week in the summer as they cover the whole surface of the pond.

If it is warn enough here in MI, I would think they would do well for you.  They like undesturbed waters, like lilies, so maybe try them where there is no water movement from falls, etc.

Our summers aren't hot like yours tho. We did get up past 100 last year but that was a rarity. Usually it's in the 70's and sometimes 80's but still I think they should grow here. I will try them like you said in a calm part of the pond away from the waterfall.  [/quote]

We don't get that hot in the summers.  Usually in the 80's with a hot day in the low 90's here and there.

Last summer was really cool (Loved it!) and the WH did great although it did take a little longer to start multiplying in the beginning of the season.

Interesting that you would bring that up. I grew up here in Tacoma, and I think we have more humidity here during the summer than when we did when I was a kid. I remember it being much dryer.

Happy ponding,

Rich

Your not having hot flashes, you're having 'power surges'. To bad you can't harness that energy to power something.

Happy ponding,

Rich  

You got that right........................

Happy ponding,

Rich