To cull or not to cull.......

[Lam Nguyen]

It's a sad day because I literally gave away 7 more of my koi today. It's amazing how fast you can accumulate them. I had about 30 koi in my 7,500 gal outdoor pond at one time but am now down to 14 as I try and make room for better quality koi. It's amazing how fast you can get attached to them....very sad to see them get bagged and handled by their new owners. On the other hand, I am happy to see that they will be in good hands with the new owners. How do you guys handle this culling process?

[gspotmc]

Lam,
I shipped out 4 koi last Thurday to Connecticut. They arrived safely. Another one got pickup yesterday. I got worried last Thursday when the new owner called me and told me that he received 1 box that was practically torn in half and water half way out. By night time the new owner called me and informmed me that she was swimming in his big pond.
Felt bad but I have to make a decision on whether to let go 4 of them. I will be down to six koi by the end of the week.
MC

[carrie1964]

I`m giving 6 of mine away in May. It`s hard to let them go because they were some of my first koi.But going into my third year of koi keeping I also know that I won`t be happy with them in the long run, so better to give them to a good home now because it will only get harder down the road. In my 4000 pond I`m going to try to stay under 6 for now.When they get larger I may even go down to 4 or 5, I`ll just have to see how they are doing. And when my mud pond koi come home eventually I`ll have to cull a few more.

[luke frisbee]

usually I dig a few postholes next to the mango trees, then I start pitching koi far enough away from me so I don't have to watch em flip arounfd till they are dead, or pretty near it.
then I pack the post holes fairly tight, and keep about a foot from the top empty so the dogs won't dig em up.

BTW you weren't culling you were practicing sembetsu
I was culling

[HEADACHE6]

I gave away 4 koi today . They went to a New Club member who just had a pond built in her back yard . They didn't make the "Cut" with me & she is thrilled to death !

Win - Win !!

[Kristine]

Originally Posted by gspotmc

I will be down to six koi by the end of the week.
MC

Only six? Really giving that Shiro Utsuri some growing room.

Every year our club has an auction where the owner can donate 100% of the proceeds to the club or a 50-50 split. That money helps with the expenses of an annual show and gives me a chance to make room if needed. But it is hard to part with them.

[smithvillemike]

I've moved out 7 koi this year, making room for the good guys to come home. All of them I have had for a while, but I started to see more of the imperfections than I used to. Fortunately they all went to a much bigger pond and the new owner is really thrilled. I'm down to 5 koi in the pond right now.

It's hard to give them up, but sometime you have to do it. There was one of my orignals that I kept as he was a gift from a friend, but he most likely won't make the cut in December.

[Meg]

I've re-homed 7 this year and two more go very soon.
the last was the most difficult, my boy's favorite, but he got $50 offered for it and everyone is happy....and I am guilt free

[PapaBear]

We're getting ready to have a club auction here too. We've given a bunch of fish away to new ponders and people who've had predator wipe-outs, but the auction helps raise money for the club so away they go.

[JasPR]

This is an interesting and really universal subject for most koi keepers moving through the learning curve.
It is a great idea to start with inexpensive male fish to learn on - especially in the area of husbandry. It is very likely that the newbie will kill a school or two before getting on top of the husbandry learning curve.
After that, culling is really part of the experience as the hobbyist is not killing those inexpensive fish as rapidly, or at all, as accumlation of numbers becomes a common phase.

There is also a 'collector' inside many of us, and it is almost 'text book' that beginners first try and collect 'one of every kind' or pairs of every kind- or just can't resist buying anything that strikes their fancy while at a show or at the local dealers. The result is always huge numbers.

Typically, the trend to start trading up in quality and down in numbers occurs around this point. I think this is a special phase of development and a transition from beginner to advanced hobbyist as the results of less fish per gallon quickly show the hobbyist in real terms, just how well the fish start to grow and look under these conditions. And disease at this point in the hobby experience becomes rare.

But I have to say, this also leads to an obsession for ever better koi- no longer in numbers, but in quality aspects. And although this is very education and one tends to get a real handle on things like understanding quality and the subtle, and all important details of genetics of the higher grades, there is a downside. There are NO perfect koi. Each has gifts and weaknesses. And looking for perfection is fool's gold/goal. I think that at some level of the search for ultimate quality, there is a point of compromise, and ultimately, satisfaction in a collection as a whole. Indeed the judging experience treaches us to appreciate traits in individual fish for what they are. And the long term consumer experience ultimately teaches us that good koi are like street cars, another one will always come along!
It is very erie how established advanced hobbyists from all over the world eventually all seem come to keeping 12- 18 fish as a collection. Not sure why these magical numbers are always repeated in ponds from 5,000 to 50,000 gallons, but it's true!
Peace and satisfaction to all---- JR