looking out for the koi herpes virus

Something that you have to look out for in your koi fish pond is a virus called KHV (Koi Herpes Virus). This is a deadly virus which has been seen worldwide; Asia, USA, Israel etc. There is no getting rid of this virus as it sticks with the fish for a lifetime and just like it does with any other herpes virus what has been known to happen is that even when a fish doesn’t show the symptoms but carries the virus it is still considered a carrier and can spread this infection to others. For reasons such as this you want to make sure that any new fish that you buy do not go onto spreading this.

The more that you know about the virus the easier you will be able to spot it and reduce the spreading of it. So what things do you need to know about the virus?

    • Once infected a fish will be a carrier, regardless of whether or not they show any symptoms of the virus. So keeping this in mind you will understand that if you get your hands on an infected koi and put it with other ones then it shall go onto spreading about the infection.
    • At the moment there is no cure that has been discovered that can help rid your fish of this infection.
    • Stress can make it easier for fish to become infected so you will want to make sure that your fish aren’t stressed from not having a clean pond or not having enough food etc.
  • There are plenty of ways to spread the infection, not just coming in contact from other fish but you can make the mistake of using the same water, tools and even handling other fish and the infected without making sure your hands have been thoroughly cleaned afterwards.

When you’re buying new fish it is recommended that you quarantine them from your population for no less than 15 days, in this time you will be able to know whether they are infected or not by the symptoms that they show. If they don’t show any symptoms at this point in time then chances are low that they have the virus.

If you do happen to have an infected koi fish and it spreads to your group then what you might have to do is go through depopulation which would mean getting rid of the entire population as this would mean that the infection can’t be passed on at all.

As mentioned before you will want to make sure that when you put your koi in quarantine that you fully isolate them to make sure that there is minimal chance of spreading this virus. This means using separate water, tools, food and also making sure that your hands have been cleaned when using anything that you are going to be using on your regular fish as this could too end up spreading to them and cause you more problems than you want.

Proper cleaning procedure of tools and your hands should be done if you want to make sure that your koi fish pond doesn’t end up being infected with the koi herpes virus then make sure that you follow these tips.

There are many problems you will face in the future but you must arm yourself with the knowledge for your koi fish pond so that when a problem arises you will know how to deal with it. Knowledge is power and something I recommend is that you check out this blog which will have useful information on your koi pond whether you’re looking into it, just starting or even looking for information that could help you.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Junior_Pswarai/1447454