Page 71 - Koi Net - On-Line Koi Magazine - Issue 94
P. 71
looked at they could be pale and anaemic or have the Before introducing quarantined Koi to your pond, make
appearance of being eaten away. In this instance, and sure the water temperature in your quarantine system
assuming that poor water quality is not the cause, it is matches that of your pond. Also, test the water in both
very important to get veterinary assistance to identify systems to make sure that they are the same. Once
whether the cause is bacterial or viral. Bacterial you have introduced new Koi to your pond you should
infections can be treated with antibiotics and are a monitor them on a daily basis as you should do with
symptom of poor water quality and poor husbandry, any Koi as a matter of course.
either in your system or the one that the fish came
After the quarantine period is over, and your new fish
from. Viral infections such as Spring Viraemia of Carp
have been moved to your main pond, there should be
(SVC) and KHV cannot be cured and have to be
no parasites within the quarantine system (White Spot,
confirmed by a laboratory test. Viral diseases are an
Fluke and Trichodina can live in the filter without a host
infection from fish to fish contact and are not caused
for short periods of time) and if no bacterial or viral
by environmental conditions as bacterial infections are.
diseases have presented themselves then any naive
Observation is vital and 5 minutes monitoring at
fish can be left in the system to keep the filter mature
feeding time only is not sufficient. Aeration must also
and running. If you don’t intend to keep any fish in your
be sited in such a way that observation can be easily
quarantine system, it must be completely drained down
carried out – just because a fish comes up for food,
and cleaned. This avoids any build up of ‘bad bacteria’
doesn’t mean it is a healthy fish.
within the system that could infect any new fish once
Diseases are either caused by poor water quality, the system is started up again. There are products on
parasites, bacteria or viruses. Assuming your water the market for disinfecting nets and equipment and
quality is good and your filtration well maintained, the using them should ensure that no bacterial or viral
first thing to look for is a parasite infestation, which you diseases that may be present in your quarantine
can identify by taking a skin scrape and looking at it system are transferred elsewhere.
under a microscope. The most common forms of
parasites that affect Koi are Costia, Trichodina, White What equipment do you need?
Spot, and Skin or Gill Flukes. There are others but they
are less common. A microscope and a good Koi health ■ UV ■ Heater
book, such as Duncan Griffith’s book ‘Step by Step
Advanced Koi Diagnosis and Treatments’, will help you ■ Dechlorinator ■ Waterproof gloves
to diagnose which parasite is causing the problem and
how to treat it. ■ Nets ■ Bowls
■ Treating mat ■ Anaesthetic
■ Parasite treatments ■ Wound healing kit
■ Microscope ■ Good Koi health book
Top 10 tips for starting, running and completing a
successful period of quarantine:
1. Wear waterproof gloves to prevent transfer of any
disease or organism from entering or leaving the
quarantine facility.
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