Over-Wintering Your Koi Indoors: How To Keep Your Fish Healthy And Happy During The Winter Months (And Longer Than It Takes To Get Back To Normal)

Koi fish are hardy animals that can tolerate a wide range of temperatures. In their native waters, koi are able to survive very warm and almost-freezing temperatures. When over-wooling koi outside, make sure their water will not freeze into one solid block of ice. A solid-ice surface cuts fish off from oxygen. You must provide some access to the air at the water's surface. You can do this by installing a pond deicer, aerator or running water feature. Koi fish's metabolism will reach extremely low levels in colder water temperatures. If the temperature is going to drop below 45 degrees Fahrenheit/7 Celsius, it is not recommended to feed your fish. If you cannot provide the right outdoor environment for your koi over winter, you will need to bring them to a temporary indoor tub. There are two critical components to successfully over-ponding your fish indoors. The bigger the tub you can set up, the better. New Pond Syndrome occurs with all new systems that do not have biological filtration. Very large fish in a smaller pond are at very high risk for deadly ammonia spikes. The best thing you can do to ensure your fish will survive is to bring their filter media. Temporary cold water periods are possible for any pond. Bypass all tall water features and hold off feeding. Once the water warms up again, your fish may be a bit sluggish to get back to normal behavior and appetite. How long it takes to get them back to their normal behavior depends entirely on your individual pond. . . .