Russell Water Gardens and Kodama Koi Farm Pair Up /Merged Thread

[koiczar]

Quote: Originally Posted by JasPR Nancy, PLEASE don't get me started. My reputation is damaged enough already! By the way, with floating plants, that is a great pond for newts. Has Kodama actually seen these things yet? His grow out pond in Chiba was something like 80,000 gallons??? Maybe he saw the picture and ,with the language barrier, thought it was for medicated dips? JR

The only ones who'll need medicated dips will be the end users. Maybe Kodama thinks they're for hot spring baths!!LOL

[Richard Rombold]

When the $$$$ is more important than the fish then it's time to hang up the waders. It's possible though that Kodama's motives are more virtuous than they seem.

[bekko]

Kodama was not highly regarded by many in the Hawaii koi community - even before they moved here. Some have enbraced the new Kodama Koi Farm, others have not and others just do not care. I am reserving an opinion until things shake out a bit.

For the Hawaii koi community, Russel Water Gardens and its relationship to Kodama seems irrelevant - it's thought of as a mainland thing. There is a vibrant and competitive local pond building industry. If you want a serious koi pond, there are people around to design and build it for you. However, the largest local PVC distributor recently put this on their home page, so things may be changing.
http://www.hiscosales.com/default.shtm

Here's a shot from a seminar on selecting showa at the inaugural koi event put on by Kodama at a Waikiki beach hotel. It was a peculiar combination of self-promotion, massaging the investors and honest-to-goodness koi keeping information. From left to right are Taro Kodama, John Russell, Hajime Isa and Craig Yuu. Russell was sort of out-of-place in his business suit (some participants were in swim suits and barefoot). Nonetheless, you have to assume, or at least hope, that Russell absorbed something from Isa San.



The likes of Aquascapes and Russell are not going away any time soon. As long as there are gullible and ill-informed consumers out there they will survive. Educating the consumer and the installers about what it takes to keep koi is the key to resolving this dilemma. Despite their warts, Kodama can help in the education process.

-ste vehop

[koiczar]

Steve

You're absolutely right. Can Steve pick up and pass on useful knowledge of this sort (from the likes of Isa Hajime)? Does he really give a rat's arse? Does Kodama genuinely care or is it just a way for him to market cheap fish to an unsuspecting crowd? I've noticed the quality steadily declining on JKO over the past couple of years to where I don't even bother to look anymore!!

[bekko]

I assume their goal is to make as much money as possible as quickly as possible. If building ponds that are more suitable for koi will help attract more customers, then they will take advantage of the opportunity. If building koi ponds helps them sell more fish at a higher mark-up, then they will take advantage of the opportunity. Russell's happy, Kodama's happy, Isa's happy.

Is the hobbyist getting ripped-off? Well, yeah, but it's all a matter of degrees. Isn't everyone that pays a large sum of money for a colored carp which is destined to decline in quality and then die getting ripped-off? It's just disposable income being spent on entertainment.

-s teveh op

[JasPR]

Steve, you'll get a kick out of this-- I went to my friend's place yesterday. He brings in tropicals from Asia mostly. He had white/silver mollies ( lyretail) with poka-dots and stripes and wait for it----- INITIALS on them!!! yep, tatooed on in flourscent ink. He also had cory cats with the same bright glowing red tatooed on the peduncles. He then showed me a price list of six other species that are now available in the tatoo. He tells me the casual tropical community tank customers are eating up the new fish and waiting in line and paying premiums for the ones with their initials on them- very similar to the key chains made with random names and intials on them. He also has crosses on parrot fish ( chiclids) and 'balloon mollies ( the deformed fish we all threw away so many years ago.
He also told me something very interesting. When breeding zebra danio now they are getting the longfin gene/phenotype popping up more and more, even when they don't want it- it is well established , as you know, in danio, barbs and angels now. Such a shame.
What's this all have to do with koi and garden pond design coming from the landscaping industry? HE is also joining forces with the local AS guy in order to sell tropical fish industry grade koi and plants. All very sad to the purists in both the tropical fish hobby and the koi hobby.
Just when we thought painting turtle shells and keeping goldfish in those light bulb size bowls from the carnival were a thing of the past , we find ourselves reverting again- only this time the money is much greater so the odds of success are much higher from the dark forces. I think it is time to boycott some koi dealers? PETA application any one?

JR

[bekko]

It's not a sad story to me. I love stuff like that.

I tried my hand at tattooing a common marine grass shrimp with fluorescent latex dies. Under aquarium lighting they looked pretty cool - if I do say so myself. With black light it is just bizarre. Because the tissue is clear, they sort of glow in every direction. The shrimp is a little small and the latex is a little too thick for initials though.

-s tev

[Auntiesue]

Just because its "for sale" at some local pet shop, the buying public thinks it's just fine. How sad some take these glorious creatures and turn them into a freak show. Tatoos? God, what next???

JKO has been selling low quality fish for several years now. Years back you would never see disclosures on their site showing scares, etc. I was once a customer, but also noticed over time that what they offered not only were scared, but also deformed and on occassion actually active with ulcers. I gave up on them some time ago. I still have a few fish from them that never seem to grow much even in a good pond with other quality fish that are growing like weeds. Those fish will be sold next spring as pretty pond grade fish hopefully to someone that will give them a good home.

[JasPR]

well, I've known Kodama for a long time- from Japan days. He has to do what he has to do to survive I guess but this linkage certainly puts his book to the credibility test?

Steve, surprised to here your into that stuff. JR

[bekko]

The guy can be the world's most knowledgeable koi expert, yet still choose to sell substandard stock. The business is all about volume and mark-up.

Buying koi is a daunting task for the beginner. Buying from a renown expert is one way to abate some of the anxiety and insecurity. I can't imagine that writing a koi book would be particularly lucrative - that's more a labor of love. An effective way to leverage that labor of love into something that puts groceries on the table may be to use your reputation to sell mediocre koi at quality koi prices.

As far as the tattooing thing goes... well, I see little difference between intensive selective breeding, cosmetic surgery, tattooing and outright mutilation. They can all be used as a means to the same end. Koi are freaks. Genetic mutations which would make a carp less fit to survive have been selected for and enhanced for our amusement. Glorious to our eye, but still a freak in the carp world.

-stevehopk in