How To Start A Fish Tank

Koi is Japanese for carp, and that’s exactly what they are. Their ancestors are the dull grey or brown colored common carp one can often find in the wild, and in China, the people there reared the common carp for food. But when these hardy fish were introduced into the waters in Japan centuries ago, they were bred for a specific purpose: color. Later on, these were called nishikigoi by the natives, or simply koi by the modern man. The koi Japanese fish have since come to be known as the world’s most beautiful ornamental pond fish.

Unlike other species of fish, the koi Japanese fish underwent its own brand of evolution. Their roots can be traced back – unbelievably so – to the common carp. In fact, koi is simply Japanese for “carp”, those fish found in the wild and hunted as food, which is why today, if you visit a Japanese household and ask to see koi, the master of the house will promptly bring you one on a platter – handsomely cooked and decorated with spices.

Indeed, during the early days in Japan, koi were bred in farmers’ ponds to supplement their rice diets. Quite impossible, one might say, that the koi Japanese fish could have come from such a dull colored, unimpressive and humble food fish. But as is often the case in such confined spaces, in-breeding became inevitable, and farmers were suddenly faced with mutations in their food supply. At first, these mutated koi were believed to be an isolated occurrence and were kept separately as pets; however more and more of the same kind appeared, until the farmers thought to make a hobby out of breeding them. Experimentation with color enhancers and enablers, and cross-breeding with other farmers’ koi became a popular hobby, and quickly spread throughout Japan. It wasn’t until the early 1900s that the koi became an international sensation, when the Tokyo Taisho Exhibition displayed the many different varieties already existent at the time.

As their colors can be more appreciated when viewed from above, koi Japanese fish are more suitable placed in a pond. However, there is another, more practical reason for doing so – koi Japanese fish grow to large lengths quickly, and keeping them in a tank or aquarium may limit their growth potential. Besides that – considering their growth rate – if one intends to rear a significant number of koi, housing them in a tank or aquarium may cause overcrowding, and stress the fish. Stress makes koi Japanese fish less immune to sickness, and they may not be as tolerant or as tough as they are supposed to be.

Koi Japanese fish are wonderful creatures and a source of both peace and entertainment for many. In Japan, they are still called nishikigoi, so one must be careful when visiting. A visitor not knowing any better and mentioning that he is fond of koi might be given the common carp on a dish, cooked to perfection and complete with garnishing. However, ask for nishikigoi and with all pride they will most definitely lead you to their garden pond.

For the ten things your HAVE TO KNOW about koi fish, visit The Proper Care And Feeding Of Koi.

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Looking for effective koi treatment that will stop your fish contracting disease? This could be one of the most overlooked forms of disease prevention that you will find… and as you may have gathered, it is preventing bacteria build up, instead of seeking to cure sick koi.

It would be a fairly safe bet to say there are very few koi hobbyists out there who would not take any steps necessary to keep their fish free from any form of disease, because each of us is very aware that just one sick or ailing fish will ultimately spread whatever it has to the remaining koi unless you deal with the disease fast.

So rather than just hoping that fish diseases won’t invade your koi pond, here is a fantastic means to get proactive with a koi treatment that will stop most bacteria and disease before they ever have the chance to take hold… they call this stress prevention!

Koi fish that are stressed are exposed to disease!

Believe it or not koi fish can suffer from stress!

Similar to how excessive stress is a contributing factor to a high number of sicknesses that humans get such as cancer, heart disease, mental illnesses and any number of other sicknesses… stress also seriously effects koi, and they become very open to disease.

Simply because it lowers their immunity and a lower immune system will open them up to any type of harmful bacteria… where as healthy koi fish are a lot more resilient and much less likely to get sick.

So you may be wondering “how do koi get stressed?”

Mainly the fish’s surroundings and their living environment. The smart koi hobbyist learns how to make the best possible environment which has nothing that would cause the koi to become stressed

And here’s how to do just that:

Ensure that your koi have good quality water

Ask yourself this… Would you have a good chance of survival if the air was thickly polluted and full of smog all the time? Probably not, right… it’s the same for your koi – they need clean, well oxygenated and well chemically balanced water – if not, they start stressing!

And this is the consequence…

When koi get stressed their body creates and discharges adrenalin… which is a natural defence system, giving the fish strength, speed and stamina. So in the event of a predator being present the adrenalin produced allows the koi to quickly move to a safer position – which is fine as the adrenalin’s only really produced when they are under threat – which is not all the time.