GC cosmetic surgery?

[joe bauer]

GCs are rare and valuable. Can cosmetic surgery be done on a lesser fish to improve its value?

for example, otherwise excellent kohaku often have a small black spot on them. can this spot be removed to improve the looks and value of the fish? would it leave a scar? could a fish like this win GC?

[KoiCop]

Another troublemaking post Newt/Joe_Bauer?

This time I refuse to bite. Hopefully, others are tired of your games, too, and will ignore this trap!

[joe bauer]

Quote: Originally Posted by KoiCop Another troublemaking post Newt/Joe_Bauer? This time I refuse to bite. Hopefully, others are tired of your games, too, and will ignore this trap!

what games?
is this not a legitimate question?

should be easy to answer, unless you want to hide something from the public.

[jnorth]

I'm sure anything is possible. Can we go back to our regularly scheduled programming now? Thanks.

[joe bauer]

i am certain that there are people on this board who know the answer to this question. i think the public needs to know, it is good for the hobby. i can't understand why there are 45 views and no serious responses.

[Brutuscz]

I once saw a black spot on a beautiful kohaku at a top dealer in the USA. He said," just take a tweezer and remove it". He said this can also be done with an unwanted ginrin scale. I was told it often will not return. I haven't tried it, so I don't know how effective it is. As far a real plastic surgery...if it needs it, don't buy it!!!

[MikeM]

Do stray Hi or Sumi get removed from koi on occasion? ...Yes. Is it "right" to show such a fish? Hmmm, quite a moral dilemma as one approaches the slippery slope to injecting dye, and maybe someday even silicone??? Life is full of compromises. I'll leave it to others to state what rules exist.

About 25 years ago I was into showing bromeliads. It was accepted practice to trim a leaf to eliminate a blemish, and great care was taken to imitate the natural shape of the leaf so the excision was not noticeable. Using diluted milk to heighten the shine of a leaf, however, was verboten. I never heard of anyone injecting dyes to enhance infloresence coloration. ... My point is that certain practices are acceptable, and others are not, in all of life's endeavors. If one searches for moral or logical consistency, there will be much disappointment.

So, Joe (or whoever you are), if you decide to show a koi some day, I suggest you learn the rules applicable, act within them and enjoy yourself. If you take it all too seriously, you will be destined to wander the internet boards in perpetuity, in a contemporary imitation of the ancient Greek in his search for one honest man.

I do hope you find peace in your heart some day. Accepting the weaknesses in others without judging them allows acceptance of the weaknesses within ourselves, which we each know far too well.

[junglegeorge12]

some food dye (erythrin red and white) and a pair of tweezers should take good care of it.

[aquitori]

Depending how deep the shimi is you can remove it. If the shimi is on top of the scale you can lightly scrap it off, but I suggest you do this in early spring when the water temps get warmer.

Back to GC's getting some modification, it can be done. Just choosing the right time to do it and treating it.

[gregbickal]

Take this koi for example, its not one of mine, just one I saw in Japan. If the Sumi came up as much as it ever will, would you try to eliminate this spot or leave it? Say if it was not for show, but just to increase your enjoyment of the fish (call it an OCD quest for perfection)