Can outdoor shubunkin REALLY survive all winter without being fed?
Sunday, December 27, 2009 15:51 | Filled in Outdoor Waterfalls
scotgirl60 asked:
It says so on the fish food container but I want to hear from people who have these beautiful fish.
Assuming the evil racoons don’t eat them – they ate 2 this week and I had to cover my pond with screens.
I have a waterfall – do I need to also put a heater in the pond? It is shallow, only 2 feet deep. The water here usually won’t freeze that thick.
Thanks for the helpful info.
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Dr. dope says:
December 29th, 2009 at 11:01 pm
they can only be kept if two conditions are met
1. the pond is at least 4 feet deep going into the ground
2. the fish have an alternative food source like algae and plenty of it
the depth of the water for safe areas is determined by your region if you live in Alaska 10 ft
Washington,Montana and places along that line 5ft
northern Illinois and that line of states 4ft
Kentucky and line of states 3 ft
most states under Kentucky and other states receive a spring like winter and don’t need a specific depth of water
you can ad a heater but this may actually do more harm than good by speeding up the fish’s metabolism causing hunger to occur more frequently.
Venice Girl says:
January 2nd, 2010 at 10:16 am
Yes, it is true and actually, if you choose to not believe this and continue to feed, your over abundance of love and concern could actually result in the fishes’ deaths because the food doesn’t get eaten and then rots in the water causing toxic water conditions which can kill the fish. Yes, I know the evil racoon problem! Just make sure the screens are good and secure so they can’t be pulled off or ripped because those racoons are not cute little animals. They are big and strong and determined and if it can be done, they are the ones to do it. The screen will also assure the pond of not getting too full of leaves and debris, which will also rot and foul the water. But, before securing the screen, make sure that you remove all leaves and debris that may be in the pond. Once the pond is covered with ice, those rotting gases won’t be able to escape and they’ll be trapped. The waterfall is great and will help prevent solid freezing, but only to the point that the water circulates outward. So, check your flow. Yes, a heater is always helpful, and if you believe that the top may freeze solid, a de-icer is a good idea as well. The heater will help prevent the ice from freezing solid and the de-icer will keep a hole in the ice to allow oxygen to come in and gases to escape. I know not feeding sounds so cruel and traumatic, but it really is in the fishes’ best interest. The rules for feeding are as follows: down to 55-50 degrees F, cut the food in half. For temperatures 40 degrees F and below, stop feeding entirely. If you use a heater, yes, you will need to check your water temps to see what they’re at and feed or not feed according to the temperature recommendations.