That is the question... The word ‘quarantine’ (which, incidentally, comes from the Latin quaranta giorni, meaning ‘forty days’), is a length of time in which a disease can be incubated, and therefore expressed in an organism. That way, it’s possible to see who does, and doesn’t, carry a specific disease. Traditionally, forty days is the time that many major diseases will incubate in humans, but the situation for fish is a little different, and our view of what quarantine means for them is something of a ‘grey area’.

There is a school of thought that says that you can never have too much aeration in a Koi pond but it is not one that I adhere to as once the water is 100% saturated with oxygen there is no point adding more - any further addition of air is a waste of energy and money.

At some point in every koi’s life, it will need to be handled; whether it’s at the breeder’s facilities, at the dealer’s, at home, when undergoing treatment or when being shown. In fact, compared to many other ornamental fish, some koi might be handled very regularly, especially if they’re shown. The question posed by koi keepers is therefore how often koi should be handled, and are there alternatives?

Should you be adding salt to your Koi Pond?  What are the benefits and what are the dangers of doing so?

One of the most controversial and hotly-debated topics in the koi hobby at the moment is that of ‘hard or soft water?’ - but what is water hardness, how does it affect fish, and crucially, what’s best for koi?

An increasing number of koi hobbyists are heating their ponds – why? Is this really necessary?