Koi Growth & Tank Size?

[Vaporeon]

I like Koi fish and have considered getting some, though I have no pond.
The fish keeper at my local Walmart told me Koi will only grow to fit the size of the tank you keep them in.

Is this true, or is he full of it?

 

[smegforbrains]

Partially true, same as goldfish.


However, stunting a Koi's growth in this way will lead to a short lifespan and one unhappy fish. I wouldn't recommend anything under 5000 UK gallons as an absolute minimum for Koi.

 

[chr15_8]

please dont dont keep koi in a tank.

im sure the same person would say you would be able to keep 5 koi in 20-30 gallons with just an air filter for filtration.

koi should have a min. of 250 gallons per fish (upto about 12 inch i think it is)

depending on the bloodline will determine there true size but a tank will stunt its growth. they will be fine for up to a few months but anything much more will do more damage.

 

[Pleccy]

The fish growing to the size of the tank thing is a myth. For Koi you are looking at a huge tank or a large and deep pond (at least 240 x 240 x 150cm).

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Koi can grow to over 3ft long and so not suited to life as tank fish, unless you are planning on having a colassal aquarium, these fish are best kept to large ponds.

If you put the fish in a standard size tank, as others have said it will not grow to its full potential size, however it will have no quality of life and will die young as the toxins leached from its waste (like ammonia) will overload the filter at some point sooner or later and kill the fish- either that or the fish will die from pure stress or illness brought on by the stress of living in a tank too small for it.

If you are starting out in the fish keeping hobby but don't want to have a massive or high maintenance tank, then there are a great variety of small and attractive fish that can go on tanks of 10gallons or less. Fish like Betta's (also known as Siamese Fighting Fish) are beautiful fish and are easy to keep and only require a tank of 2gallons- there is a section on this fish forum in the index devoted to these fish if you are interested in keeping them .