Shipping Advice Needed.

[rrc94]

Hi, I need some advice as I will be importing some Koi.

How long can koi survive during transport? They will need to change 3 flights and total duration will be about 40 hours. Will they have any chances in surviving and what will be the best way to pack them?

Thanks for any advice!

[Bob Winkler]

3 flights??? Where are you at, what airports would they go through, and where are they coming from? The longest I have heard of a koi (small ones btw) surviving is that long, but less than 24 hours and 1 flight, 2 at most, is what has been more successful.. Too many possible problems with no one there to help you if they miss the flight. Which they do....alot.

I have had a friend or paid import person such as a dealer, hold them at the mid point for a couple to 4 weeks and then send them on when they missed the flight and too much time had passed.

[MikeM]

Bob has answered the question, but it gets me thinking about the whole idea of importing koi directly from Japan. I would not do that. I would arrange for an experienced dealer to take delivery of the fish, and handle the initial acclimation and quarantine, including full KHV quarantine protocol.

[dick benbow]

a typical scenerio from japan is the koi are boxed and aired from Niigata and trucked to the airport. left in a warehouse/tarmack for loading of the plane as cargo.
Time elasped about 6 hrs. The flight can be 10-12 hrs across the pond. This is where we don't know how long they must be warehoused between flights.
is the warehouse heated? I feel extremely uncomfortable about the travel this shipment must make to arrive at their final destination. I have met fish at the airport for over 2 decades. I know of nothing worse than to have to deal with compromised koi. I start getting nervous at 2 stops, not three and that is after the fish have been professionally prepared for the journey as well as packed.Often times for cost savings koi are packed densely to save $,
this could be the death nell if anything along the way goes awry....sorry to be so negative and to add to your anxiety but based on my experience/knowledge, I would NOT be involved in such a shipment. I think Bob's suggestion of a mid way lay over where the koi are refreshed and time elapsed to have them completely over the stress of the last journey before starting off again is very sage....

[rrc94]

Thank you both for the advice. As there is no shorter flight, maybe it's best I stick to my local Koi. It will be sad to see anything happen to the fish.

Thanks again!

[Bob Winkler]

Up to you RR. But in this day and age, what you seem to want....imported koi.... is possible and does not have to cost that much more...

[KoiCop]

why not update your profile to show where you live? We might even be able to advise you about reputable dealers near you who sell the real deal.

[mitten]

Thanks Koi Cop for being the crank who says "fill in the info about yourself." People are scared to death of you internet weirdos.

Dinh even has a line in his profile that says "What does it matter where you live?" which could only be believed by a Californian...because...they already live in California. It matters where you live. Tell us. The world is a very big place. TWIAVBP.

All of the replies so far have made a common, betcha erroneous, assumption. The RRC94's statement was "I will be importing some koi." and you all read "I will be importing some koi *from Japan*" What do you think about Vietnam or Thailand? Taiwan? Israel maybe?

Mickey the windowman

[rrc94]

I actually live in Cyprus. We do have some decent koi here but nothing that compares to Japanese standards. Israel is only an hour away but again did not see anything that compares to Japanese quality.

Thanks!

[bekko]

You never know until you try. Go for it - but do not invest more than you can afford to lose. Just tell the people on the other end to pack them very light. There is a relationship between weight of fish, volume of shipping water, time and arrival water quality. I would think you would want to be about one-third to one-half the normal grams/liter.

-ste v