Assess Water Temperature

Keywords: Koi, Goldfish & Pond Health Pond & Water Garden Temperature Affect on Koi Health Immune System and Disease Outcome

This is a relatively simple assessment, beyond just reading a thermometer. Understanding how temperature affects your "Chances of Success Score" is essential. First, warmer fish are healthier because their immune system functions optimally in warmer (> 74^oF) water. Second, medicines and other attempts at recovering fish tend to FAIL in cold (< 65^oF) water. So this assessment tells you two things: Part of the cause of the illness (too cold water) and one of the obstacles in the recovery of the fish (also cold water). Disease is much less common in warm water. 'Fish recoveries' are faster in warmer water because the healing process is accelerated. These statements could cause a person to interpret that slowly moving a very-sick fish from cold water to warmer water would improve its chances of survival and that would be exactly true. Slowly, and gently warming the fish while increasing oxygen levels to compensate the warmer water is the key. But in some cases, warming the fish is impossible because there are too many specimens to warm in limited space. In this unfortunate scenario, "assessment" of the water temperature doesn't lead into the "assurance" of proper temperature. So, you would simply assess a cold pond's temperature and subtract 30% from your "Chances of Success Score" if the water temperatures are under 65^o F. Conversely, you could go ahead and add 30% back to your "Chances of Success Score" with any fish you can slowly and gently warm to at least 74^o F.

Go To Step Twelve

Supplemental Reading:

Heating Koi or Goldfish Up Gently - One Degree Per Hour. Article to help combat Koi Herpes Virus or heat fish for quarantine or hospitalization. By Dr Erik Johnson