One of my koi is still at the bottom the rest are very active! Please help

Question

I have an 11,000 litre pond and my largest koi, who is about 40cm long is sitting very still at the bottom of the pond. The rest of the koi are very active and eating their food.

I did have some problems about 3 weeks ago with algae but have since cleared this up by replacing uv lights and air bricks in the pond and the water is now crystal clear again. Despite the algae problem a water quality test at the time did show that the water was fine. The end result was that we lost two of the smaller fish.

Since then the fish have all come back to their old active ways after being very listless and not eating. Even the largest koi that is now at the bottom was moving about and eating again. That is up until this morning.

I put some salt in the pond this morning that I bought from the koi shop. I only put a small amount in. What is the best amount?

Is there anything else I can do to help the fish at the bottom?

Answer 1

since koi are bred for their colour and not for strength it is likely you have a fish that is genetically weaker than the rest. stress from having clear water now is definately not the problem here. you can add salt (using a salt test kit) to about 2% (1% if you have plants as plants dont like salt) this will act as a tonic and help to inhabit any bacteria that is present but this fish may need more help. if there is no visable signs of disease there maybe an internal infection. i suggest giving the koi an antibiotic injection, . generally 2 injections about 5 days apart is normally enough. i have done this with some of mine and it works very well. obviously unless you have experience i would recommend a vet to do this for you. the fish should be injected in the muscle near the anal fin and an antibiotic called baytril should be used for bacterial infection. this is also used for other small mammals/birds.

Answer 2

Your koi suffer from stress since from a pond full of algae to clear one a sudden change, the best way to recondition your koi is to quarantine it in another tank it will be faster and easier for you to check.  Salt for conditioning just a small amount will do.

kOi keeper & goldfish keeper

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