Hi i bought a small ghost koi from the same place i have my others from, and while the others are thriving this one isnt. The water is fine (outdoor pond)and as far as i can see all the fish are getting on with each other well. They have lots of plants a good filter ect, nitrates ect fine. A good variety of food, pellets, bloodworms, and some tubiflex as a treat. He doesnt seem to be eating much either and has lost loads of weight. I have taken him/her? out of the pond and put him into a small spare tank in the hope of building him up but also so i could check him out for anything on his body which there doesnt seem to be. I put an airstone in but i am unsure what else to put in. Please can you help? im new to this and this one is so sweet he comes up onto my hand at feeding time something none of the others do yet. I will attach a picture if i can.
Poorly Koi
- Thread starter fishy16
- Start date
waterdrop
Enthusiastic "Re-Beginner"
What are your ammonia and nitrite(NO2) readings (as determined by liquid-reagent based tests?) WD
It may help if you attached a picture as someone with more knowledge may be able to spot the issue. If there is no visible ailments it might be that the fish has an internal worm that is causing it to lose it's appetite.
While the Koi is in the tank I'd highly recommend putting a zeolite filter media bag into the filter system to soak up ammonia. ONLY do this if the tank you've placed it in hasn't gone through a fishless cycle OR you've placed the fish in a newly set-up aquarium purely for treating the Koi. The zeolite will absorb toxic ammonia produced by the food and fish itself which in turn will help the fish feel better and recover quicker.
If it has a lack of appetite only offer minimal amounts of highly palitable food so that it doesn't end up uneaten in the water column. In order to stop toxic nitrites from building up you should aim to do a 100% water change every day, replacing this water with sufficiently dechlorinated fresh tap water. Koi produce a lot of toxic waste and I've found only 100% water changes are a real option for removing nitrites from the water.
It's good that WD is asking what your ammonia and nitrite level is since if any of these toxins are above the level of 0 ppm it will explain the loss of appetite and loss of weight and you will instead need to resolve this instead of looking for signs of a disease etc.
While the Koi is in the tank I'd highly recommend putting a zeolite filter media bag into the filter system to soak up ammonia. ONLY do this if the tank you've placed it in hasn't gone through a fishless cycle OR you've placed the fish in a newly set-up aquarium purely for treating the Koi. The zeolite will absorb toxic ammonia produced by the food and fish itself which in turn will help the fish feel better and recover quicker.
If it has a lack of appetite only offer minimal amounts of highly palitable food so that it doesn't end up uneaten in the water column. In order to stop toxic nitrites from building up you should aim to do a 100% water change every day, replacing this water with sufficiently dechlorinated fresh tap water. Koi produce a lot of toxic waste and I've found only 100% water changes are a real option for removing nitrites from the water.
It's good that WD is asking what your ammonia and nitrite level is since if any of these toxins are above the level of 0 ppm it will explain the loss of appetite and loss of weight and you will instead need to resolve this instead of looking for signs of a disease etc.
Thanks for all the advise, my koi died after escaping from the tank and swimming round in the pond for the next 4 days! i had chance to have a good look at him but couldnt find anything out of the ordinary so i still asume i was something internal. All the other fish, comets, shubumpkins, and one other koi are all fine. The nitrates and nitrites are perfect so are the ammonia levels
waterdrop
Enthusiastic "Re-Beginner"
Did you know that Koi can live to 200 years. I just read that the other day and had never known it. WD
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