[PapaBear]

Quote: Originally Posted by 111whalen So, do you feel that there is a certain temp this occurs? In So Cal, several hobbyists have had the most problem at 60-65 degrees. Our water rarely goes below 50; in fact this year mine never did. It was a cool winter and the pond stayed 51-53 for well over a month. I started feeding about 3 weeks ago at about 55 degrees. I am now up to once a day and the pond reads 59-61. I do expect it to rise the next several days. Because you folks "in the cold" go colder, does that change the alley? I realize that there are many factors, but is there evidence that certain temps favor the bad bugs over the good? Inquiring minds...

I referred to it as "Dirty Ditch Water Syndrome" only half jokingly. I don't know what the details are on the ponds you mention, but at those temps a healthy pond shouldn't create an infectious environment. The fact that pathogens are almost inevitably present does not make fish sick. An unhealthy environment that degrades overall health allows opportunistic pathogens to gain a foothold, and that is the problem.
It always amazes me to hear people talk about the annual spring cleaning of a pond full of decaying leaves and debris, tannin laden water, and re-living the same health issues on an annual basis. How the hell did they allow a pond filled with fish get so nasty in the first place??? We have some rough winters around here most of the time. I don't have an indoor facility to move my Koi to. We don't have a greenhouse, or a giant heater to keep things warm and toasty either. We also don't have dead fish or mounds of crap in the bottom of the pond to compromise their health, because we don't stop taking care of the little things just because it is cold outside. Cleaning up the obvious will take care of 90% of the problems lurking around the corner. It really isn't any more complicated than that in my book.