Mid-Atlantic Koi Magazine October 2014

Mid~Atlantic KoiThe Magazine of the Mid-Atlantic Koi Club October 2014

www.mazuri.com

October 2014 Mid-Atlantic Koi

Mid-Atlantic Koi Deadlinesfor articles, meeting announcements and ads

Nov/Dec Issue Deadline: October 15Available Online: November 15

Jan/Feb Issue Deadline: December 15Available Online: January 15

The Membership Magazine of the Mid-Atlantic Koi Club

Volume 28, Number 4 October 2014

The 49th NiigataNishikigoi Show(2009) SecondGrand Champion, Over 80 Bu Showa Sanshoku

Isa Koi Farm

President’s Message . . . . . . . .4From the Editor’s Desk . . . . .6MAKC Health Hotline Volunteers . . . . . . . .31Sunshine Column . . . . . . . . .33Treasurer’s Report . . . . . . . .33F..A..S..T Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . .34Ad Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

—MAKC News

Mid~Atlantic Koi

—Upcoming Events

Long Island Chapter Meeting . . . . . .31Saugerties Chapter Meeting . . . . . . .31

Beginner’s Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

MAKC Corporate Members . . . . . . . . . .8

Hikarimono . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9Dick Benbow, Washington

History of Ponds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13Lisa Burns, Backyard Getaway

Vacation Nightmare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15Ed Keene (DCAS)

Isa Koi Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16Courtesy of Hikari USA

Koi Pond Water Garden Winter Care Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Mike Gannon

Utsuri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23Pat Daly, Michigan

Mohonk Mountain House Resort . . . . .24Herb & RoseMarie Ehrich, New York

Panda Paws Wen Trim Surgery . . . . . .26Wendy Love

On the Road to a Koi Event . . . . . . . . . .32

Picture to Share . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36Joann Mead, New York

MAKC Membership Application . . . . .37

Mid-Atlantic Koi October 2014

President’s Messageby Joann Mead

[email protected]

Apple season is in full swing in theHudson Valley and everyone isgearing up for our finned friends andwater gardens annual winter slumber.With that in mind if you should have

any questions regarding the preparation of yourpond or water garden for winter please contact us!That’s what is great about being part of MAKC,people sharing knowledge and the camaraderie.

The MAKC trailer title has not been transferred to the State of New York. Under the NYS DMV

regulations any trailer over 10,000 pounds has tohave insurance. We are currently looking intovarious insurance companies to see who will giveus a competitive rate. Prior to moving the trailerupstate it will need at least four new tires before it can become road worthy. We will not put anyClub member’s life at risk moving the trailer.Once the trailer is upstate the Club will be havingits first annual “Trailer Inventory Party.” Becauseof time constraints and the changing of theseason, there will be a “Clean the EquipmentParty” in the spring.

The Club is in the process of setting up a PayPalaccount. Once PayPal has confirmed the accountwe will be able to accept online payments. This

account can be used for the payment of Clubmerchandise, dues and advertising.

Club V.P. Herb Enrich and I have bothbeen working with vendors regardingthe non-billing of the advertising inthe magazine. It has been slow goingbut we are slowing making our waythrough the vendor list.

With the holidays fast approaching,the vendors who advertise in ourmagazine are still open for businesseven though many of our ponds and

water gardens might be taking theirwinter nap. This is a good time to

order that item you have been eyeing allyear or give that special someone a gift

certificate for the holidays.

Joann


Production: Cindy Graham, NextUp Creations

MAKC Home Page: http://www.makc.com

MAKC Executive CommitteePresident

Joann Mead (845) 389-5712 [email protected]

Vice-President

Herb Ehrich (845) 247-7105 [email protected]

Secretary

Looking for a Volunteer

Treasurer

Anthony Vitale (516) 420-0740 [email protected]

Central Chapter Vice-President


Long Island Chapter Vice-President

Bruce Levine (516) 735-2644 [email protected]

Saugerties (NY) Chapter Vice-President

Herb Ehrich (845) 247-7105 [email protected]

South Chapter Vice-President

Chuk Nixon (301) 717-7702 [email protected]

S t a n d i n g C o m m i t t e e sMembership

Richard Douglass (845) 723-4373 [email protected]

MAKC Sales


MAKC Notice Group Manager

Michael Snyder (301) 762-2059 [email protected]

WebMasterSarah Johnson (732) 567-6678 [email protected]

E x e c u t i v e B o a r d A d v i s o r y C o m m i t t e e

Joe Zuritsky (215) 575-4001 [email protected]

Eric Wilson (443) 203-6486 [email protected]

Mid-Atlantic Koi is the magazine of theMid-Atlantic Koi Club. Material isselected for its interest to Koi keepers.MAKC accepts no responsibility foraccuracy of content. Reproduction ofuncopyrighted articles is permitted aslong as this magazine is credited as the source.

Mid-Atlantic Koi MagazineEditor, Carolyn Weise (239) 573-6650 x105 [email protected]

Advertising Editor, Joann Mead (845) 389-5712 [email protected]

Meeting/Events Editor, Carolyn Weise (239) 573-6650 x105 [email protected]

FAST Ads Editor, Carolyn Weise (239) 573-6650 x105 [email protected]

Remember toRenew YourMembership

Don’t Wait – Do it Today.

Renewal form you can print out is on page 37.

I was shocked and saddened to hear of thepassing of Ray Jordan. He was a friend tomany and a respected Koi judge. I sat inseveral of his Koi History lectures whichwere enlightening and fascinating. This

was his niche in the hobby. He brightenedup the shows wherever he went and will be missed.

For your reading pleasure this month it is allabout ponds and Koi: we have the History ofPonds by Lisa Burns, a look at Isa Koi Farmin Japan, by Hikari, a spotlight onHikarimono by Dick "Coach" Benbow andanother article on Utsuri, two of myfavorites sometimes rolled into one!

If you have a love for the Oranda FancyGoldfish, Wendy Love has shared Wen TrimSurgery which is sometimes needed.

Then, considering fall is upon us, we havesome great fall/winter preparation informa-tion to help get you into the mood. I knowhow hard it is to get motivated sometimesbecause nobody wants the summer to end.

Well, next issue (Nov./Dec.) we will havesome interesting technical articles that willeducate and prepare you for next year! Stickwith us. Big things to come.

Take pictures at the club meetings andshows. Share them with us.

Let me know what you want to see inupcoming issues.

Yours in Koi!Carolyn


From the Editor’s Deskby Carolyn [email protected]


Question - It’s October and I wonder

when I should start to shut down the pond forwinter?

Answer - You should already have some

kind of netting over the pond to keep out theleaves. Feed the fish a wheat-germ based foodwhen the water temperature is between 55 deg.and 45 deg. After that no food till spring and thewater is back to 45 deg.

I don’t clean and shut down the filters tillNovember, usually around thanksgiving week.When you do shutdown clean the bottom of thepond of debris and do 30% to 50% water change.Clean the filter; make it ready for start-up inspring.

If you can cover the pond with plastic, this keepsleaves out and some heat in. Float an air stonefrom a water bottle about 10 inches from thesurface. This keeps the water from freezing solidand lets in oxygen and lets out bad gases.

Remember try to do a 10% water change once amonth all winter when you get a nice day or two.This takes the fish waste out of the pond inwinter. Remove the water from the bottom of thepond. Replace with dechlor and fresh water. Thefish will have less stress in the spring becausethey are not living in their own waste all winter.

Note: This column offers suggestions only; theultimate care of your pond and fish is up to you.

Beginner’s CornerAsk a question and we will get you an answer.

Wanted – Your Questions

Please email your questions [email protected].

Ray Jordan (left) judging at the Koi Club ofSan Diego Show in 2011.

In MemoriamRay Jordan

Raymond Douglas Jordan, age 65, passed awayon Thursday, August 7, 2014. He was born inCorpus Christi, Texas to John and Jessie Jordan.

Ray graduated from the University of CorpusChristi with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sciencewhich led to his long and successful career withJohnson & Johnson.

He loved to travel and was an avid outdoorsman.Ray was a member of the American Koi JudgesAssociation, Texas Koi and Fancy GoldfishSociety, and ZNA.

He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Martha Jordan.


M A K C C o r p o r a t e M e m b e r s

Interested in becomingInterested in becominga Corporate Member?a Corporate Member?

Reasonable one time fee for theReasonable one time fee for theyear year –– includes a Business Cardincludes a Business Card

size ad in all issues in this sectionsize ad in all issues in this sectionand on the MAKC website. and on the MAKC website.

Contact Joann Mead at 845-389-5712 or

[email protected]

www.mazuri.com

Quality Koi Company

Nisei Koi Farm

[email protected]

www.qualitykoi.com

East Coast – Patio Ponds, LTD301-874-8440West Coast – Laguna Koi Ponds949-494-5107

www.MatalaUSA.com

www.beadfilters.com

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www.mazuri.com

www.hikariusa.com

www.kodamakoifarm.com

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Hikarimonoby Dick “Coach” Benbow, Washington

reprinted from Inland Empire Water Garden & Koi Society 7/2014newsletter

Selecting tosai, or Koi that are one-yearold, can be a daunting task. But puttingoff selection for another year can alsobe an expensive delay. I'd like you toconsider buying one-year old Koi as

an educational tool that will help you increaseyour knowledge.

Back in the day when I was first learning, wewere taught to pick a small fish with a big heavypattern. That way the fish would grow into it. Butif you follow photos of what wins in Japan thesedays, many of the bigger Koi have patterns thatbarely touch the lateral line. So like articles ofclothing, styles change from decade to decade.

Rather than have patterns, especially beni (red),that reach well below the lateral line, maybe justbelow it will be deep enough.

Take a look at the Kohaku picture that I haveprovided. You can see that the beni just aboutgets down to the lateral line. As this 8-10 inchfish grows, a small amount of white should showon the edges giving this Koi a kindai or modernlook. I selected this Koi because of the unifor-mity of the beni thickness throughout the steps.Remember, with show fish 10% of their score isbased on pattern and 50% is on body. I think thepattern is well balanced with its biggest stepbehind the head and progressively smaller stepstowards the tail.

The next photo is of a similar-sized Sanke. ItsMom is an ISSA Kohaku and Dad is from Sakai


Hiroshima. I have two older sisters from thesame parents, each a year apart in age so I knowwhat to expect with this look to the beni. Thevalue of purchasing from the same breeder isgetting to know their lines. You can easily markthe sumi (black) under the skin. When finished,this Koi could very easily have a similar volumeof all three colors. Though as a teacher I'd like tohave you looking at other things besides pattern,but let's be honest.

The second I saw this Koi based on following itsolder sisters, I had to have it! It will be a longerfish at finish than the Kohaku. I say that becauseit has a long head and the torso is typicalMatsunosuke bloodline. These are traits that findthe Koi excelling at stretching and, between four-five years of age, more effort is then put intobulking. The Kohaku should carry a good bodythroughout its development. This shows theimportance of knowing what bloodlines breedersbring to the development of their efforts.

The one thing I liked about this line, wasnormally when Sanke have stripes in their pecs,called tejima, it usually emerges on the pec thathas the strongest sumi on that side. To find Koithat develop tejima on the opposite side reallyhelps to balance the sumi. For some reason bothof her older sisters did this as they developed. Sowhile no tejima shows immediately on this Koi atthis stage, it will be interesting to see it progress. Imentioned a long head in its description andhere's what I do to look for that. I look at thedistance from the nose to the eye and then takethat distance and apply it to the distance betweenthe eye and the edge of the gill plate. I expect toget one and a half spaces.

I headlined this article the way I did becauselooking at the underside of the Koi is a lost art.The information you find will go a long way withunderstanding how a Koi will finish. Many timesthe only photo we see of a Koi is pattern showingover the back. There are two color varieties andit's imperative that you see photos of the under-neath before purchasing. Take a look at thisKindai or Modern Showa (next page). Thisphoto was taken when it was two-years-old(nisei). It looks pretty much like it did as tosai.Nice colors, nice body potential, but it couldreally use more sumi. Showa sometimes take five-six years minimally to finish. So how does onetell if more sumi may appear? It is underneath!By rolling the fish over and looking at its ventand anal fins, you can also see sumi at the base ofthem. A GREAT indication that the Koi has more


sumi there than meets the eye. Clean fins indicatejust the opposite. Or in other words, what yousee is what you get when viewed from the tradi-tional over-the-back look. One other tip on

Showa, as you look at the pecs for the fan shapedsumi (motoguro) occasionally you find a Koi notshowing motoguro. But if you see blacksurrounding the outer edge of the gill plate fromthe top of the head to what I would call the chinarea, chances are good it will develop motoguroin time.

So what other Koi would you guess that a peekunderneath is even more revealing? Hint: It wasthe first color variety to be stabilized. Asagi!

When selecting Asagi tosai, the importance isfinding candidates with what is needed so whenthey are three-years-old the pattern is there. Wewant to see the equivalent of motoguro on Showaor what the Japanese call moyoaka (red in thepecs). It can be a starburst looking marking, or afull red pec as long as the leading ray on the pecremains white indicating the red will pull backwith age. Interestingly enough, this same signworks for Showa with an all-black pec as long asthe leading ray is white.

Next thing we look for is a touch of red in thetail. Interestingly enough, the Asagi that developwell have clear dorsals until the end of theirsecond year when small red dots appear spacedout along the base of the dorsal. By three yearsthe dots connect and you have that required redcharacteristic. Now look at the underside of anAsagi. That will tell you how strong the red is inthe Koi . This is important because you do notwant to select an Asagi tosai overrun with red.Finding red at the base of the anal and vent fins(again like Showa) lets you know red is there. Butwe honestly DON'T want it showing at this ageas we view the Koi from the sides. A few, maybeone or two, rows of red scales should show alongthe bottom of the belly. As a tosai having redalready up to the lateral line is too soon andusually later the red runs over the lateral line inthe tail area, ruining the pattern. There are differ-ent varieties of Asagi, but acceptable especially inthe Narumi variety is a white space along thelateral line that separates the blue back and the



red belly. By having just a row or two of redshowing at tosai, by three the red should haveslowly filled in to just below the lateral line. It'sbest not to feed Asagi any color food becausecolor food tends to push the red, which we don't want.

I'd like to acknowledge Kurt Kleinholz, breederof these Koi, for allowing us to use these photographs.

Dick Benbow, aka coach, has been with Koi closeto 35 years. He is a Pacific Northwest Koi ClubAssociation (PNKCA) Bronze Koi recipient andfounding father for both Puget Sound Koi Cluband Washington Koi and Water Garden Society.Dick is active on many of the Koi chat lines. He ismarried, has two children and two grandchil-dren. His favorite Koi subjects are filtration andunderstanding tosai development.

www.kodamakoifarm.com

History of Pondsby Lisa Burns, Backyard Getaway

Garden like an Eqyptian or an Italian or …

Most people, when looking for inspiration fortheir water garden, think of Koi & JapaneseGardens. You may be surprised to find that theJapanese were not the first culture to keep waterin their garden. In fact there are many very

diverse cultures that influence today’s watergardens.

The earliest depictions of a planned water gardenactually dates back around 4000 years. Egyptianswould plant their gardens inside the walls thatsurrounded their homes. Ancient records show


Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy. Photo by Cindy Graham

hieroglyphics and paintings of formal watergardens, rectangular in shape, filled with fish,ducks & lotuses & surrounded by fruit trees,ornamental plants, & date palms. The Lotus wasbelieved to be a symbol of the sun; to them, itrepresented creation and rebirth because itwould close at night & re-open in the day.

One of the seven wonders of the ancient world isthe Hanging Gardens of Babylon created byNebuchadnezzar II for his wife. These formalPersian walled gardens with their pools &irrigation canals symbolized paradise in anotherwise hot and arid climate. There wererooftop & terrace gardens and fountains to coolthe area. Water was brought to the top of theartificial mountain from the river below with asystem of buckets, pulleys & pumps & men topower the system.

In the hills of northern Italy is the Villa d’ Estepalace. This 16th Century garden is dedicated towater features of all sizes. The neatest fountain atthe palace is called the Organ fountain. Theorgan’s pipes which are hidden under the wateractually play music. Everything there is turnedinto a water feature from cement statues to stairswith rivulets. Another 16th Century garden is theVilla Medici which is very similar to the Babylongardens. Unlike the Persian gardens, the Italiangarden is on a hillside making it much easier forthe water to flow over the waterfalls.

Many Roman gardens were built in conjunctionwith the public baths giving them a serene spotto meditate.

Moorish gardens from the 13th to the 16thcentury in Spain were primarily created withwater, fruit trees & shade. The pools with ornatetiles & spouting fountains would be the centerpiece of the courtyard garden surrounded byshade trees & colorful plantings.

For 2500 years classic Chinese gardens havecontained one or more ponds along with


pavilions, bridges & bright colored flowers. Thesepeaceful gardens are usually surrounded by whitewalls with a fancy gate or doorway. The Chineseuse four elements in their gardens, water, plants,rocks and architecture; they believe that thegarden symbolizes a living organism with therocks being the bones, the water is the blood &the plants are the dressing. Chinese gardens aremeant to bring balance, soothe the spirit & be spiritually uplifting.

Japanese gardens may be famous for theirbeautiful graceful Koi ponds but they drawinspiration from the Chinese gardens. A Japanesegarden is a reflection of a larger naturallandscape. Although water is a very importantelement in Japanese gardens along withmanicured shrubs, stone and moss it doesn’tnecessarily have to be literal, as in a Koi pond,stream and small basin. Water can be simplyrepresented by a dry stream or raked bed ofpebbles surrounding a large boulder.

With varying tastes and styles, modern Americangardens use elements of historic gardens from allover the world, the gardens of Europe being thebiggest influence on North American watergardens. If you ask me a garden isn’t a gardenwithout water.

"Of all the elements, the Sage should take water ashis preceptor. Water is yielding but all-conquering.Water extinguishes Fire or, finding itself likely to bedefeated, escapes as steam and reforms. Waterwashes away soft Earth or, when confronted byrocks, seeks a way around. . . It saturates theatmosphere so that Wind dies. Water gives way toobstacles with deceptive humility, for no power canprevent it following its destined course to the sea.Water conquers by yielding; it never attacks butalways wins the last battle." –John Blofeld's TheWheel of Life

Author:Lisa Burns, Backyard Getaway, our website isbackyardgetaway.net.

Vacation Nightmare, Don’t Let This Happen to Youby Ed Keene (DCAS) adapted for Ponds by Carolyn Weise

Here's a pretty good nightmare, asrelayed to me by a third party.The details are somewhat sketchy,however, there was enoughinformation provided that I could

fill in the gaps. This incident is about anautomatic refill malfunction.

Seems that the particular fellow in this used totop off the pond water only after enough hadevaporated, leaving the water line near thebottom of the refill register. Low water level washis indication that it was time to see aboutchanging the water. It was a fairly large pondand in my opinion it sounds as if water changeswere done approximately every 2 months or so.Whatever the water change interim was itcertainly was not often enough!

Well as it happened, this fellow was leaving for atwo week, late summer vacation. He did every-thing he had to do for his fish with one excep-tion. He did not perform a water change.Although the water level was close to where hewould normally change it, he figured he wouldjust do it as soon as he returned from hisvacation, since he really didn't have the timenow. In fact, he even wrote himself a little noteand stuck it on the refrigerator door just so hewouldn't forget. Think about this. Late summer(August?), temperatures in the upper 90's everyday, the place completely closed up for twoweeks, nobody monitoring, etc. Hmmmmm.

I can only assume he had a very good vacation. I do know, however, that he was horrified uponhis return home. All his fish were laying on thebottom of the pond, dead - dried up dead! Therewas no water left in the pond; he walked across

the yard, didn’t notice the muddiness - at leaston the surface. His immediate concern was withthe pond and his eyes were glued to it as hewalked over to it. Upon closer inspection, he sawthe refill had not functioned at all and there haddeveloped a crack in the corner of the pond, inthe side, extending to the bottom, which drainedall the water from the pond. His pump was fried.His fish were dead.

This is indeed a nightmarish chain of events, butreally did happen.

Just think about it.

In ConclusionNever take a vacation, or invest in a securityguard to baby sit your pond 24 hours a day, sevendays a week. Only kidding!!!

On a serious note, however, at least once a week,make sure that all components are operating atpeak performance and correct any which are not.Additionally, never, ever, give your pond or anyof its components an open invitation to create adisaster like this fellow did.


We continue ourseries of Koifarmer visits tolearn about thecritical focus and

processes each undertakes. Thistime we interviewed Mr. MitsunoriIsa of Isa Koi Farm who is famousfor its big and powerful Isa Showawhose strongest charm is its eye-catching appearance.

I. About Isa Koi FarmHistoryThe farm is located in the city ofOjiya which is close to the cradle ofNishikigoi, Yamakoshi in NiigataPrefecture. With a long history of 41 years, the farm consists of 31field ponds on approximately sevenhectares of land. They focus mainlyon Showa (about 70 % of theirtotal), Kohaku and Sanke.

Until the appearance of Isa Showa, itwas believed that the Koi of ShowaSanshoku variety were stout andmuscular and rarely grew largerthan other Gosanke varieties.However, an Isa Showa typicallygrows to about 80 cm in length,while maintaining its superior figureand qualities. The gigantic Koiparent Isa breeds is a MarutenShowa of 101 cm, which is a siblingof a Koi nicknamed ''Chokansho''which means the Fisheries AgencyAward. They have been using the


Isa Koi FarmCourtesy of Hikari USA

The 49th NiigataNishikigoi Show

(2009) Second Grand

Champion, Over 80 Bu

Showa Sanshoku

jumbo Koi parent for more than 10 years and its descendants havewon the Kokugyo Award severaltimes. The Koi parent is still activelyspawning.

Mr. Mitsunori Isa's unforgettableShowaThis memorable Koi’s strongestcharm is its white skin whichbecame conspicuous when the fishwas three years old. While maintain-ing its beauty, the fish grew to 86 cmat the age of seven and won thegrand championship for the first time.

The heart and soul of the farm One of the farm's female Koi parentsa 13 year old, 90 cm long ShowaSanshoku (“Chokansho”) won thesecond grand championship (theFisheries Agency Award) in the 49thNiigata Nishikigoi Show. Mr. Isaintension was to exhibit a superb Koiwhich would surprise every viewerwho attended the cradle ofNishikigoi event. He also felt it couldbe the last Koi exhibit for this fish asthey had been using the fish as a Koiparent for seven years, and its condi-tion was the best within their collec-tion. The fish's lustrous skin lookedas if it had been untouched for thoseyears. This fish of sturdy build wasproducing strong charms beyondwords. Many of its offspring haveinherited these splendid characteristics.

II. Production Style of Isa Koi Farm

Q: What sort of Koi do you intend to farm?A: Our goal is to produce Koi thatimpress with their natural beauty,


The 50th NiigataNishikigoi Show

(2010), Grand Champion,

Over 80 Bu Showa Sanshoku

power and size. We have established a method tocombine blood-lines of Koiparents and cannow produceexcellent qualityKoi with apowerful appear-ance. Our nextgoal is to makethe Sumimarkings ofthese Koi betteras they mature.One of theunique charmsof these "movingworks of art" istheir transforma-tion as they

grow, unfortunately it is not always favorable butalways creates anticipation of a champion.

We devote ourselves to producing a single Koiwhich meets our ultimate ideal.

Full of challenging spiritThe farm has adopted new breeding techniquesand feed selections over time based on first handuse. This year, 2011, they tried using an artificialimplantation net. The result was a significantincrease in the incubation rate. They owe part oftheir success to their fellow Koi farmers, whoorganized the "Sannichikai" association; HiroiKoi Farm, Hosokai Koi Farm, Isa Koi Farm,Dainichi Koi Farm, Oya Yoshokujo, KawakamiKoi Farm and Izumiya Koi Farm. These Koifarmers exchange information from day to day,working to improve themselves by competingwith each other.


Mr. Mitsunori Isa and his father, Mr. Hajime Isa, work together to select young Koi.

III. Daily feeding and giving finishingtouches to their Koi

Q: What do you demand from Koi food?A: As I previously mentioned, we are trying toproduce Koi with beautiful and powerful appear-ance. We demand superior quality and safe food.We selected a Kyorin-made diet and are using itas our main food. We are also using Saki-Hikari™ Deep Red™ and Pure White™, whichwere recently added to the Saki-Hikari™ series.

Q: Can you give your impression of the newfood, Saki-Hikari™ Deep Red™ and PureWhite™?A: –Saki-Hikari™ Deep Red™We immediately realized the effectiveness ofDeep Red™ as a color enhancer for the Beni andwere quite surprised the skin of the fish didn'tbecome yellow. However, we found when we fedit to our young Showa their Hi wasn't enhanced

as dramatically. We also found that the pondwater became a little brownish after its use, so wecarefully monitor water quality during use.

Saki-Hikari™ Pure White™We keep 10 to 15 Koi of four years old and olderin our 10-ton pond as part of their finishingstage. After feeding Pure White™ we found theiryellowed skin clearly became a beautiful white. Inthe past we used to stop feeding for the finishingstage and fish often lost weight as a trade off forthe development of spectacular white. We’vefound the use of Pure White™ enables the fish tomaintain their body weight and form whileimproving the whiteness of their skin. We usePure White™ when the water temperatureremains low and found the excrement tends toincrease, so we have to pay attention to theamount of food we use and closely control thewater quality.


Seasonal changes can representchallenges for many Koi pond andwater garden owners. Somepondowners may even have to deal withdrastic changes for each season. Sub-

zero brutal winter temperatures thaw into thesoaking rains of spring time. Spring time veryquickly transforms into a summer of heat waves,drought, and soaring temperatures. And beforeOl’ Man Winter starts bellowing again theautumn time dumps massive amounts ofmaterial into our yards, Koi ponds, and watergardens. As pond owners it seems we need tohave a game plan every few months!

Since winter time in many areas can representsome particularly challenging conditions for Koiponds and water gardens, let’s touch on sometips for winter pond care. Winter is a time thatnot enough of us pond owners are enjoying ourpond’s natural beauty. It’s understandable sincesometimes the conditions just won’t permit it.Since contact could be limited with your pondhere are a few things to keep in mind for yourwinter pond care.

Try to start the winter with a clean pond.October is a great time to get your winter pondprep done. Leaf netting placed over your pond isvery helpful this time of year, and can come offin a few weeks. As temperatures dip and drop besure to have your de-icer and aerator installed;sometimes those overnight temperature dips cancatch you off guard. This is typically time to stopfeeding your Koi and goldfish as well.

When winter really blows in, ice and snowbecome considerations in your pond care. When

Koi Pond Water Garden Winter Care Tipsby Mike Gannon

Koi ponds and water gardens ice over it typicallystarts at the edge of the pond and slowly creepsinward over the entire pond. Ice cover is ok inponds 18˝ and deeper in most cases. Properlyfunctioning de-icers and aerators will keep anopening in the ice cover all the way down to the single digit temperatures (F). Single digittemperatures should be considered extreme conditions.

If you have a waterfall try not to allow the waterto flow over any ice that may have formed in thewaterfall or pond; try to keep the water flowingbelow ice cover. Water that flows over ice canbecome much colder than the pond water itself,which can drive down temperatures within thepond, which is NOT desirable. Water flowingover ice into your pond should be stopped whenyou encounter it asap!

If you find yourself caught off guard withextreme weather and icing conditions do not tryto break a hole in your ice. Ice even 1” thick is avery difficult material to break through, imaginetrying to break through 5˝ of ice! For extremeconditions like this a hole saw will come in veryhandy. Instead of stressing your fish and yourselfout with the exhausting chore of hackingthrough the ice with that hand hatchet from yourshed, try using a 4˝ hole saw (found at any bigbox home store) that will cut a very nice hole inthe ice, with minimal effort, which you can dropsome air lines down through.

When aerating a winter pond try to start withfresh new air diffusers. When placing thediffusers into the pond do not go too deep. If youhave shelves in your pond place the diffusers on


the shallowest shelf. Whatever the case, since somany ponds have different configurations, try toavoid placing the diffuser on the bottom of thepond. During colder winter months the water onthe bottom of the pond should not bemoved tothe top of the pond that much, since an effect of“super cooling” the pond can happen; much likewhat happens when water flows over ice intoyour pond.

After heavy snow fall remove some or all of thesnow from your water garden Koi pond to allowfor some sunlight to get into the pond. This isnot a critical task, however, don’t leave your fishand plants in the dark for too long. Snowremoval from your pond also improves safetyaround the pond when it cannot be seen undersnow cover; we don’t want people, pets, orcritters falling into your pond this time of year solet them know the pond is there. An open pondalso provides a nice source of water for small ornot so small birds and animals in your area.

These are just a few tips to keep in mind duringthose winter months. There are many otherthings to observe and enjoy about your pondduring this time of year. Every Koi pond andwater garden will have specific considerations aswell. With these few winter care pond tips youcan look forward to the winter months, andactually take time to enjoy the amazing condi-tions that winter can bring along with it. Enjoythe dynamic and natural beauty of your pondthis winter!


http://www.microbelift.com

www.qualitykoi.com

www.pentairaes.com

Utsuriby Pat Daly, Michigan

Utsuri Koi (oot-sir-ē)The Utsuri variety of Koi are black Koi withwhite, red or yellow markings. Utsuri is anothervery popular Koi fish for Koi ponds and watergardens. Look for Utsuri Koi that have pleasingcheckerboard patterns and clearly defined colors.Utsurimono have black skin, and are divided byinterlacing markings of one other color. It hasblack bands of color wrapping around the bodywith one other non-metallic color. A red Utsuriis called Hi Utsuri, white type is called ShiroUtsuri, and the yellow type is called Ki Utsuri. Hi Utsuri and Ki Utsuri have red and yellowmarkings respectively in place of the white areason a Shiro Utsuri. The sumi should be dark and

distinct on the Koi regardless of the contrastingcolor. Like the Showa variety, sumi (black) on anUtsuri should essentially appear as bands of coloron the nose, face side and throughout the body,as well as in the pectoral fin joints. Formerly,Utsurimono were produced mostly as by-products of Showa Sanshoku breeding. Recently,very high quality Utsurimono have been bredwith excellent Shiro Utsuri on one or both sidesof parentage. Hi Utsuri Koi continue to be born as a by-product of Showa Sanshoku Koi breeding.

Koi description from : Kloubec Koi Farm


Anyone who is lucky enough to visitMohonk Mountain House is trulylucky. The Saugerties Chapter wasinvited to make a presentationentitled, “Water Gardening and Koi”

during Mohonk’s Garden Week. This was apresentation for guests and visitors of theMountain House.

Mohonk Mountain House is an historic, lake-front, castle-like resort built 145 years ago byAlfred and Albert Smiley. The twin brothers hada vision of creating a hotel where people from allparts of the world could gather to enjoy nature atits best. To try and describe the beauty andpeaceful surroundings would be a difficult task.You should visit the hotel and see for yourself.The scenic views are breathtaking.

Program Host and Garden Manager of MohonkMountain House, Andrew Koehn, provided theClub with a great platform introducing peopleinto the world of Koi and water gardens.

Mohonk Mountain House Resortby Herb & RoseMarie Ehrich, New York

Andrew was friendly and helpful throughout theentire day at Mohonk.

Herb Ehrich began the presentation with a briefhistory of the Mid-Atlantic Koi Club (MAKC).He encouraged anyone interested in Koi pondsor water features to join MAKC or a club in theirregion. He stressed that knowledge is power! Hewent on to introduce Joanne Mead the newPresident of MAKC. Jo greeted the group andthanked them for attending the presentation.


In the secondpart of the pres-entation clubmember, PaulTomasko lecturedon the pros andcons of a Koipond or waterfeature. Paulspoke about theimportance ofwater quality,testing the waterand using variouschemicals. Hebriefly reviewedthe history ofnishikigoi anddifferent bloodlines. Heexplained that thenational fascina-tion for Koi inJapan hadincreased tremendously when Crown PrinceHirohito was presented Koi for the imperialpalace moat in 1914.

Frank Almquist was the last presenter. He gave acomprehensive PowerPoint on the constructionof ponds and water gardens. Frank stressed thatbefore putting a shovel in the ground, it isimportant to join a club like MAKC. This way aperson can learn the proper way of installing andmaintaining their pond or water garden.

The presentation ended with a Q and A session.Thank you to Joann Mead, Peggy Almquist andRoseMarie Ehrich for their participation at themembership table.

Many thanks to Andrew Koehn and the entirestaff of Mohonk Mountain House for theirgracious hospitality.

It was an amazing day!!


reprint with permission

Ibrought Panda, my Panda Oranda, homein October. At that time, he had only thebeginnings of a wen. He was probablyunder a year old. Here is Panda about amonth after I brought him home.

Here is Panda on January 2nd. You can see thathis wen has started to grow.

Here is Panda on January 18th. His wen is fillingout nicely.

Panda Paws Wen Trim Surgeryby Wendy Love

Orandas are born without a wen and usuallystart to develop them by six months of age. The wen can take up to two years or more tofully develop.

A diet rich in proteins and fats contributes towen growth as does genetics and good cleanwater. As the wen grows it can completelyocclude the eyes rendering the Oranda blind. Asyou can see from the pictures below, Panda's eyeswere completely covered by his wen. He wasbumping into the tank walls and was the last tofind the food. Here is a front and side view ofPanda Paws on March 16th, before his wen trim.

I opted for a professional, Dr. Helen Roberts,to do the wen trimming because the wen wastotally covering his eyes. The following articledocuments the wen trim procedure performedby Dr. Roberts.

The wen trim surgery was performed on March,17. Here Panda is being anesthetized. Dr. Robertsused 1/4 teaspoon of Finquel and buffered with


equal parts of baking soda per gallon of water.The Finquel can make the water acidic. If youhave soft water you may want to double the doseof baking soda. It took approximately fiveminutes to sedate him. You can tell he is sedatedwhen he lies on his side and gill movement slows.

Dr. Roberts used a small pair of sharp scissors totrim the wen. To me it looks painful and there issome controversy whether the fish would feel painwhen undergoing this procedure. However PandaPaws did receive an analgesic after it was over.

Here Dr. Roberts is trimming around the uppereye area.

A piece of Panda Paw's wen.

Here, Dr. Roberts is using Brown-Adson tissueforceps to protect the eye while she trims thewen. She flipped them and used the flat handlepart because it was smooth and would cover theeye and prevent accidental injury. When she cutaround the eyes as in the picture below she usedsmall curved scissors.

It is necessary to put him back into the Finquelsolution every few minutes to keep him sedatedas the procedure takes about half an hour.


Next Dr. Roberts trimmed the cheek areas.

The cheek area is a little more fibrous and there-fore a little more difficult to cut. The wen iscomprised of myxomatous connective tissue withan epithelial surface. It is not very vascular henceno bleeding was noted during the procedure.

Back into the Finquel.

Here she’s trimming a little higher up on the wen.

What a cutie pie face he has. Look at those bigeyes now.

Finishing up on the other eye.


A front view of Dr. Roberts trimming the eye area.

Here Dr Roberts is finishing the eyes and she istaking time to ensure that the wen is symmetrical.

What a puss!

Who could not love that face! A beautiful wencut! Dr. Roberts made sure to trim the front ofthe wen, so that Panda could see in front of him too.


Left on the operating table were bits and piecesof his wen.

Here is most of what was removed.

Dr. Roberts weighsPanda Paws afterthe surgery. Heweighed 191 grams.

When the wentrimming wascompleted, it wastime for recovery. Dr. Roberts wakes Panda Paws

up in his bucket filled with fresh oxygenatedwater. It takes about 5 minutes.

The whole procedure took approximately a halfhour and Panda tolerated it well. He was given aninjection of butorphanol for pain and baytril, anantibiotic. Once home in his tank he rested forabout an hour. Now he is the first one to the foodand is navigating the tank much better.

The following pictures show him back home inhis tank directly after the procedure. The roughedges you see around his eyes will smooth out inabout a months time.


Here he is on April 11th. You can see how thetissue that was trimmed has smoothed out. A very handsome wen trim indeed!


MAKC Health Hotline Volunteers

Tom Burton Middletown, NJ 732-671-7045Jan & Bill Fogle Wayne, PA 610-687-3105Terri Janas Ashburn, VA 703-729-2988 Jeff Nicholson Odenton, MD 301-912-1928

All members have microscopes and healthbooks. In the event of a recorded message,please suggest a time when you're home toreceive a return call or when you'd like to call back.

Please remember that advice is given basedon your input–the ultimate responsibilityand treatment must remain with you.

Send your meeting and event information to Carolyn Weise

[email protected] October 5th for the

November/December 2014 issue.

M A K C E v e n t

Saugerties Chapter Meetings

Sunday, October 19Held at Bernie & Kathy CarrollSaugerties, New York

Contact Herb Ehrich for further informationabout upcoming meetings [email protected]

This year’s meetings

November 16December 14

Meeting are held at 3 pm - 5 p.m. All places of meeting will be determined Contact Herb for further [email protected]

Long Island Chapter Meeting

Sunday, October TBD

The Chapter has openings for future Koimeetings. Please contact me.

Please call Bruce at cell 516-477-1823 or [email protected]

October 2-7Quality Koi Company Annual Fall HarvestPenns Grove, NJ – Each day they will be harvest-ing a mud pond of Koi. First pull of the pondwill be around 9am. http://qualitykoi.com

October 4-57th Annual Regional South Carolina Koi & Goldfish ShowSouth Carolina Koi & Water Garden Society’s Simpsonville, SC • http://sckwgs.org

October 18American Goldfish Association VirginiaBreeders Classic Show & AuctionJ Sargeant Reynolds Community CollegeBurnette Hall Room 253 1651 East Parham RdRichmond, VA 23228. Benching starts at 8:00a.m.


On the Road to a Koi EventFor more informationhttp://www.americangoldfish1.org/shows.htm

October 24-2615th Annual Golden Empire Koi ShowThe Bakersfield Koi and Water Garden Society isholding its Koi Show in conjunction with the FallHarvest Home and Garden Show at the KernCounty Fairgrounds http://www.bkwgs.com andwww.ggshows.com

November 8-1035th Annual Southern Arizona Koi Assoc.Show, Vendor Fair and AuctionContact Show Chairperson: Brent VanKoeveringfor more info. 520-780-3980 [email protected] www.sakoia.org

Planning for Next YearMarch 7-8, 2015Koi Club of San Diego 28th Koi ShowSan Diego, held at the Del Mar Fairgroundswww.koiclubofsandiego.org

Central Florida Koi Show is normally held thesecond weekend in March. Please check theirwebiste http://cfks.org/

Have an upcoming Koi event, please send theinformation to [email protected]. We will beglad to include it in future articles.

Don’t forget your own MAKC Club has eventscoming up that can be found in our digitalmagazine or at www.makc.com. We always needvolunteers for meetings and shows. It is amazinghow much you can learn by helping. Takeadvantage of being an MAKC member andparticipate in the club events.

See you soon at a Koi event.

www.kloubeckoi.com


We wish to bid farewell to Saugerties Chaptermember, Suzanne Terpening and wish her well as she relocates from Saugerties, NY to Port Richey, Florida.

Suzanne will be missed by all her friends inMAKC. We look forward to welcoming into our chapter the new owner who purchasedSuzanne's home.

Send submissions for our Sunshine Column to -Carolyn Weise, Editor [email protected]

Sunshine Column

Balance as of June 30, 2014 $13,987.84

Income:Memberships 637.54

Total Income $637.54

Expenses:Printing/Publication 800.00Total Expenses $800.00

Balance as of June 30, 2014 $13,825.38

Reserve Account/Prepaid MembershipsSavings Bank Account 6,424.21Balance $6,424.21

Club Total BalanceAs if July 31, 2014 $20,249.59

Submitted by Anthony Vitale, New York

Treasurer’s Report

www.beadfilters.com


Disclaimer: MAKC and its officers assume noresponsibility for claims of advertisers or thequality/serviceability of goods offered.

MAKC Member Needs Your Help

F O R S A L E

Remember any MAKC member can list theirKoi, pond, or related items for sale here in yourmagazine at no charge. Please contact Joanntoday if you have something for sale.

BAMBOO. Winter hardy and tropical forindoors. Thinning collection. Reasonable prices.Call Ron Altman, NY 718-442-1673 (Office) or908-658-3055 (H).

W A N T E D

KOI. Foster Home. Large natural pond. Happy to accept your overgrown or unwanted“children.” Call Rich Menashe in Metuchen, NJ, 732-767-0720.

F..A..S..T.. Ads – October

F..A..S..T.. Ads Policy & DeadlinesF..A..S..T.. Ads are available FREE toMAKC members only; no commercial ads.Ads are limited to 10 items and mustinclude name, phone number, town andstate. Deadline is the 1st of each month. Help do you have an hour or two? We need a volunteer to manage this page.Please contactJoann Mead • [email protected]

KOI. Wanted Healthy Pond Grade KOI over 10˝.Will pay reasonable prices. I have a 750,000gallon pond and will adopt any unwanted KOI.Call Joseph Pollock in Virginia at 540-788-9222.

KOI. Wanted for large deep natural pond next tosoon to be built wine tasting room in winecountry of Northern Virginia. Happy to acceptany and all Koi of any size and color. Stop by andvisit them next year when our tasting roomopens. Call Mark Malick in Purcellville, VA, 540-270-3399 (cell).

KOI BITO MAGAZINES – in good condition.Send list with asking price, or call Roger Klocke701-491-2803, E-mail at [email protected] address: Roger Klocke,4805 Meadow Creek Dr., Fargo, ND 58104.

KOI STORE EMPLOYEE. Looking for a knowledgeable Koi and pond hobbyist. Part-time, competitive pay. Outstandingemployee discounts! Call John at Blue RibbonKoi Products. 703-753-7566.

MAKC CENTRAL CHAPTER VICE-PRESIDENT. Schedule 4 to 12 meetings per year.This includes making sure that the meetingannouncement is submitted to the magazine andthe MAKC website. Plenty of advice and supportare available. Your "compensation" .... knowingthat you have given back to MAKC and yourfellow members. Please don't wait for someoneelse to step forward! MAKC is a membershiporganization. If more than one person is interested, you can share the fun! E-mail Joann Mead at [email protected] or call 845-389-5712.


Aquaculture Bead

Filter Specialists . . . . . . 8, 33

Aquatic Nutrition –

Blackwater Gold–N . . . . . . 35

Hikari . . . . . . . . . 8, Back Cover

Kloubec Koi Farm . . . . . . . . 32

Kodama Koi Farm . . . . . . 8, 12

Long Island Fish Hospital . . 35

Matala USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Mazuri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2, 8

Microbe-Lift . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Nisei Koi Farm . . . . . . . . . 8, 21

Pentair Aquatic

Eco-Systems, Inc. . . . . . 8, 22

Quality Koi Company . . . 8, 21

Mid-Atlantic KoiAd Index

Advertise in Mid-Atlantic Koi!

Ad Rates from $15/issue* for a business card ad to $300/issue*

for a full page color ad.

Reach your target audience of Koikeepers & water gardeners each month

and leave your competition in the dust!!

Contact Joann Mead at 845-389-5712 (leave message) or e-mail:

[email protected] request information on our advertiser

packages and/or a copy of our ad rate sheet.

*With an annual 10 issue contract.

Join or RenewYour Membership

Submit Your MAKCMembership Form by printingout page 37 and mailing it in.

Do it today, it only takes a couple of minutes.

www.makc.com

www.aquaticnutrition.com

www.longislandfishhospital.com

www.makc.com


Taken at Bernie's Koi by Joann Mead, New York.

Have a picture to share? Send your photos to the Editor,Carolyn Weise at [email protected].

Picture to Share –

www.hikariusa.com

Mid-Atlantic Koi Magazine October 2014

Documents

Transcript of Mid-Atlantic Koi Magazine October 2014