Butterfly Koi lying sideways!

Spook · 17th June 2008, 17:01

Hi all, I'm just after some advise re: my new Butterfly Koi.

We bought 3 Butterfly Koi on Saturday and they all seemed to settle into our pond just fine. They have all been eating well, especially the one we have nicknamed Tiger, but we have had our concerns since putting him/her in the pond.

Tiger seems to tilt slightly to one side, but will then swim off in a normal fashion, but today he/she seems to be just floating about an inch or so below the surface of the pond, on it's side. It's not dead, as when one of the other fish brush passed it, it comes back to life and swims off normally, but then it goes off and lies on it's side again. There are no obvious signs of any injury or illness - does anyone have any advise or suggestions?

Thanks

17th June 2008, 18:32

How big is the pond, is it filtered and do you have a set of recent water test results?
Could it possibly be temperature related? If the fish was purchased from an indoor area and is then placed in a small pond out doors just one cold night could cause the lethargy.

Spook · 17th June 2008, 20:20

Hi, thanks for the quick response.

The pond is approx 100 gallons - it is filtered and also has flowing water for airating. It's been established for just over 5 years, although I must admit I haven't carried out a recent water test - will perform one tomorrow to check. Current fish stocks are 1 x orfe, 1 x shubunkin and 2 x ghost koi (all 5 years old), plus the 3 new recruits.

When we purchased the fish, they were in tanks under a canope in an established aquatic centre. We floated the bag on the pond for 30 minutes before releasing them. The other 2 seem fine, it's just this 1 ...

Spook · 18th June 2008, 17:56

Hi,

I've now completed the water test - results are as follows:

ph = between 8.0 and 8.5
Ammonia = 0
Nitrite = 0.1
Nitrate = 0

Tiger is still zooming around the pond when he's in active mode, but floating on his side when dormant ...

18th June 2008, 18:07

That pond is far too small for carp or koi. Ghost koi (or any carp for that matter) need a pond that is no shallower than 4 feet. I am very suprised that the water quality is so good considering that it is overstocked and so small. I would seriously think about trading in the carp and the orfe.

18th June 2008, 18:13

As good as the water quality is, I see there is some nitrite present. The nitrite even at this low level could be the cause of the illness. The other fish being relatively unaffected isn't all that surprising because fish have different tolerances to nitrite even within the same species. You should add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the pond to reduce the effect of the nitrite in the sort term but in the long term you will need to drastically reduce the stock of the pond. 100 gall isn't big enough even for one small Koi unfortunately.

17th June 2008, 17:01	#1
Spook Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 3	Butterfly Koi lying sideways! Hi all, I'm just after some advise re: my new Butterfly Koi. We bought 3 Butterfly Koi on Saturday and they all seemed to settle into our pond just fine. They have all been eating well, especially the one we have nicknamed Tiger, but we have had our concerns since putting him/her in the pond. Tiger seems to tilt slightly to one side, but will then swim off in a normal fashion, but today he/she seems to be just floating about an inch or so below the surface of the pond, on it's side. It's not dead, as when one of the other fish brush passed it, it comes back to life and swims off normally, but then it goes off and lies on it's side again. There are no obvious signs of any injury or illness - does anyone have any advise or suggestions? Thanks

17th June 2008, 18:32	#2
AndyGordon Guest Posts: n/a	How big is the pond, is it filtered and do you have a set of recent water test results? Could it possibly be temperature related? If the fish was purchased from an indoor area and is then placed in a small pond out doors just one cold night could cause the lethargy.

17th June 2008, 20:20	#3
Spook Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 3	Hi, thanks for the quick response. The pond is approx 100 gallons - it is filtered and also has flowing water for airating. It's been established for just over 5 years, although I must admit I haven't carried out a recent water test - will perform one tomorrow to check. Current fish stocks are 1 x orfe, 1 x shubunkin and 2 x ghost koi (all 5 years old), plus the 3 new recruits. When we purchased the fish, they were in tanks under a canope in an established aquatic centre. We floated the bag on the pond for 30 minutes before releasing them. The other 2 seem fine, it's just this 1 ...

18th June 2008, 17:56	#4
Spook Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 3	Hi, I've now completed the water test - results are as follows: ph = between 8.0 and 8.5 Ammonia = 0 Nitrite = 0.1 Nitrate = 0 Tiger is still zooming around the pond when he's in active mode, but floating on his side when dormant ...

18th June 2008, 18:07	#5
Pleccy Guest Posts: n/a	That pond is far too small for carp or koi. Ghost koi (or any carp for that matter) need a pond that is no shallower than 4 feet. I am very suprised that the water quality is so good considering that it is overstocked and so small. I would seriously think about trading in the carp and the orfe.

18th June 2008, 18:13	#6
AndyGordon Guest Posts: n/a	As good as the water quality is, I see there is some nitrite present. The nitrite even at this low level could be the cause of the illness. The other fish being relatively unaffected isn't all that surprising because fish have different tolerances to nitrite even within the same species. You should add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the pond to reduce the effect of the nitrite in the sort term but in the long term you will need to drastically reduce the stock of the pond. 100 gall isn't big enough even for one small Koi unfortunately.