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This is the time of year that we consider our Koi as being "dead asleep" and we do not worry too much about them because water temperatures are so cool that parasites and bacteria are almost as dormant as the fish themselves.

Indeed, this is an important time of year because what you do (or do *not* do now) sets the stage for your springtime season in March, April and May, which traditionally marks the "Disease Season".

There are several considerations for this time of year, which I will address individually.

At this time of year, we should examine the 1-water quality, 2-the ponds' cleanliness, the concept of 3-springtime feeding, 4-disease prevention and finally, 5-minimizing fish stress during pond start-up.

Water Quality at this time of year is usually very good. Cold water carries much more oxygen than warmer water does. Even with the filters off, oxygen tensions remain high, and very satisfactory for fish. Partially because their metabolism is so slow!

Ammonia can still be a problem in some ponds if the owner is feeding every warm day they get. I saw another pond that was made with a liner which was installed and seamed in two parts, and was positioned over some Septic tank field lines. The ammonia-rich ground water would well up through the seam in the liner, giving the owner a nice 2ppm Ammonia reading, even in the dead of winter! Ammonia testing is very satisfactory in the winter, if you would only **warm** the water in your hand to at least room temperature before testing it. You see, the reagents give falsely low readings in cold water.

Nitrites should not be a problem because Nitrosomonas is very sensitive and will be inactive in the wintertime. If you *freeze* these bacteria in a block of ice, they will be killed, but if you merely chill them to near freezing they will remain in a state of suspended animation until conditions return to more suitable temperatures.

pH is never a sure bet unless your pond is concrete lined, in which case it's a sure bet that the pH will be high.....Still, for those reasons that apply in the summer, periodic checking of the pH will avoid a "crash" in the pH, which can kill fish.

One other area of water quality for your consideration is the formation of Ice on your pond, which will trap gases and other toxins underneath to the detriment of your fish. It has been said that Ice can be permitted to form for a few days without hazard, and I substantially agree. Folks who have left their traditional backyard ponds covered with ice for weeks have lost entire collections of fish. It's hard to believe that there could be that much gas formation in the dead of winter, but the proof is in the experiences of hundreds of people every winter. They reason that in nature, ponds freeze over. However, they do not realize that natural ponds are usually larger, less crowded, and may have inflow of spring water or stream feeds. I urge you to keep a place in the ice clear for gas exchange and observation of the fish. Cattle water trough heaters (caged heaters) are cheap (about 30-50$) and can keep a patch of ice clear all winter for a small investment in electricity. Air blowers and stones may fail to keep ice from forming, in the harsh Northeastern climes. I have seen a regular stalagmite of ice form over the air-cap there, and the benefit is then lost. Do not break the ice with a concussive blow, in the event that you are caught unprepared and you find your pond frozen. The blow to the ice is supposedly transmitted through the water and will shock and possibly deafen your fish, ruining their appreciation of music. I wouldn't worry too much about deafening the fish, this ice-whack-and-shock-phenomena has not been seen in real life recently. Take your time, you have days, even a week to open a hole in the ice. Use a hot teakettle, set directly on the ice. Some folks use coffee heaters, but I wonder if the heater could melt through and fall in?

Pond cleanliness is an important area of fish health and husbandry all year around, but especially in the early spring, or late wintertime. Many ponds feature a Fall's worth of leaves on the bottom, and the water may be murky and dark from the tannins as they are leached from the leaves. Ponds which are filthy, and laden with mulm and dead leaves are a serious threat to springtime fish because of the organic fuel which the dead leaves and detritus provide to pathogenic bacteria and certain parasites. Specific pathogens, including Pseudomonas, and Aeromonas *depend* upon fouled water to attack fish. There are parasites, as well, which cannot flourish without a significant biological load. Epistylis, Scyphidia, Trichophrya, and even Trichodina are all examples of parasites that seem to do better with a thick mulm layer on the ponds' bottom.

The *best* recommendation would be to clean out the pond just as the frosty weather approaches, and then string a leaf net in the Fall to prevent leaves even getting into the pond. If it's too late for your pond, then my recommendation is that the owner of the pond would clean out the pond sometime before the fish resume feeding. It is not irrational or improper to clean out the pond in mid-January if you get a balmy day. I personally will be cleaning my ponds in late January or early February. I'll scoop the pond bottoms until they are essentially free of particulate debris and leaves, then I will resume limited mechanical filtration to remove micro-fines that would remain suspended in the water. Within two days, the water will be sparkling clear, and the fish will not be any worse for the wear. They will then face a springtime thaw with clean, clear water; and the parasites and pathogenic bacteria will not have any reasonable fuel.

If you are using a submerged media filter full of gravel aggregates, then it is wise to distribute the media on the driveway and clean it thoroughly before the start of the year to be sure the filter is *optimally* cleaned before the demands of fish wastes are put upon it in the spring. One common denominator in years past, when visiting ponds with ulcerating fish, has been an almost universal propensity to face springtime with filthy ponds and filters. This inhibits good filtration which causes high ammonias and nitrites during springtime, and provides fuel for, and a haven for, pathogenic bacteria and parasites.

Regardless of the filter type you have, it should be in a lean, clean fighting condition by the time it's re-started in the spring.

Springtime feeding is another issue of import. It is a temptation on the earliest balmy day to want to feed your fish as they crowd the surface. It would be a wise-soul who knew that there would be no more frost or plunges in temperature after the feeding. It is all too common for a person to load their little bellies (they have no functional stomach it is more accurate to say "proximal small intestine than 'bellies') but they fill their little bellies; and then there's a fatal cold snap which wipes out the fish that ate the most, or *all* of them depending upon how loaded they got. The problem being that the fish are not capable of adequate digestion in cold water and the food will often turn fetid in the bowel, causing bacteria to cross the lining of the intestine and kill the fish through the bloodstream (sepsis).

My advice is that the fish can survive very well on minimal or no feeding after temperatures drop below fifty-five in the Fall; and until water temperatures are above 50 to 55 degrees in the Spring, and really, until you are absolutely certain that frost is past. In the Southeastern United States, March 16th would be considered a good re-start date although we have been surprised by deep snow in the past.

A good food to re-start on would be Cheerios or Wheat Germ based diets. Even the pulpy and nutritive-transparent green *etra brand floating stick could be considered safe. Feed sparingly and be sure to notice the weather forecast. A good diet for the year would be the Misty Mountain Diet. This precision diet is awesome, one which I helped fine tune and advised on for it's latest formulation.

As I mentioned before, in wintertime, the best time to *stop* feeding is when temperatures in the water drop below fifty five. An excellent diet to end the year with, or even better; to begin the year with, would be the medicated feeds containing either Romet (ormetoprim Sulfa) or Terramycin (Oxytetracycline) or even the proprietary foods from some retailers containing Oxolinic Acid. Starting and ending the season with these feeds has the benefit of ensuring that the fish neither sleep, nor emerge from sleep with bacterial infections. See note at end of article.

A discussion of disease prevention in the Fall and winter would not be complete without a discussion of Costia. This parasite is the NUMBER ONE fish killer in Fall and Winter because it can thrive in *very* cold water. Costia or Ichthyobodo necatrix, is a ciliated protozooan parasite of freshwater fish that also has the capability to kill fish in great numbers, and in no short time-span. The only good fortune in this is that it perishes readily when salted. Costia may be attached, or free swimming. Attached Costia look like little commas stuck into the skin (or gill) by the thin end. Free swimming Costia are graceless wobbly swimmers that look like commas or almost like half open Conch shells. They are extremely small and are hard to photograph for that reason.
Costia clears easily with salt, and this infection should be suspected when allot of fish are dying, fins may be reddened, and it appears that the fish cannot breathe very well. Spiderweb lesions in rapidly dying fish are also characteristic as well as excess mucus. This parasite is the NUMBER ONE fish killer in Fall and Winter because it can thrive in *very* cold water.

4Parasite control in the Spring and fall can be intercepted with routine use of Salt. I recommend that salt be applied as you quit feeding in the Fall; and, if it's removed by winter water changes or additions, then you would also re-apply the salt to 0.3% in the Springtime as you resume feeding.
I do not recommend using salt all year round, as resistance has been shown in Flukes and Trichodina.
To apply the Salt: Remove submerged plants. Perform a fifty percent water change, and clean the pond as well as reasonably possible without causing undue delay in treatment. Apply non iodized table salt for larger systems, dosing one pound per hundred gallons of water every 12 hours for three treatments (3 pounds per hundred gallons). As a side note, you would add the salt all at once in the case of epidemic mortality.
Others who value their live plants, or who prefer a simpler regimen will use several treatments of Potassium permanganate followed by substantial (30-40%) water changes. They get the antibacterial, antifungal and antiparasitic effects, as well as the benefit of oxidation of organic debris which is then removed by both filter, and water changes. Potassium permanganate is very safe in colder water as dissolved oxygen is universally high, but in case of trouble, where the fish may be laboring at the surface, you should always bear in mind that Potassium can be instantly neutralized by Dechlorinator.

5Minimizing stress during the emergence.
Emergence in the spring will be ideal if: The pond is quite clean, the filter is running as soon as the last hard freeze is past you, and if the fish are in gin clear water and can emerge without parasites. By putting the fish to sleep in the Fall with a clean pond, there will be little to do in the spring to ensure cleanliness in the pond.

Starting the filter in a cleaned condition is also safe for the fish and an excellent way to bring the fish up from winter without complication. Starting the filter with all of last Summer's filth still inside is a recipe for Aeromonas Ulcers!

Gin clear water is temporarily achieved by a partial water change. Hardening the water with Calcium carbonate (powdered or crushed Oyster shell) will *also* clarify the water. Use a pound of powdered oyster shell per thousand gallons deposited in the filter media unless the water is already Hard, e.g. 120+ ppm Hardness).

Controlling parasites is as easy as re-salting as the fish are just starting to eat. I will be salting my outdoor stocks of fish in March, probably around the first week in March. Salt instructions are given earlier in this article.

There's one more recommendation about Springtime startup that bears note. I *do* strenuously recommend feeding an antibiotic to valuable fish in the springtime. The first food upon emergence could be Romet�, or similar feed. Your local livestock or agricultural feed store (see yellow pages) should be able to order the antibiotic-enriched catfish chow for you. Feed this for two weeks or more in the Springtime for an Ulcer-free springtime. Do not, however; feed the food all year round. Catfish chows are for short term use, even in Catfish! And they eventually cause fatty liver syndrome in Koi.

If the points of my article are clear, then we will see fish going into Fall in the following manner:
1. Salted to 0.3%
2. No food after 55 degrees F water temperatures are achieved.
3. No leaf litter or mulm in pond.
4. Clean filter.
5. Caged cattle trough heater floating in pond

And we will see fish emerging in Springtime to ponds that feature:
1. Salt to 0.3%
2. Resume feeding after last frost
3. Feed Romet or a mix of Romet and Terramycin feeds.
4. No leaf litter or mulm in filter or pond

This article is reprinted with the permission of Dr. Erik Johnson from the book "Koi Health and Disease" and the web site www.koivet.com.