Before you move MONSTER Fish

[tankyou]

Ok well maybe he was not really a MONSTER. But I had a time transporting a very agile and extremely tough roughly 17" Koi today....

Can someone with experience handling large fish shed some light on transporting MONSTER fish 20"+? I am very interested to know the process it takes to do this properly to reduce stress/ injury on the fish as well as the owner. Large nets? Container selections? Preparation before the move, etc.? Air supply during 4+ hours of transport, if needed and how?

 

[ethnics]

Huge container, like maybe a 30gal bin thats over 20gal's full of water with a lid. fill ur container, net ur lil friend, i use a wet t-shirt to grab him and haul him over to the container because if he can't see whats going on he's a lil less stressed out. no kicking at all. only while being netted. should be good for a few hour drive. jus dont feed prior to this move. plan ahead so he doesn't crap his own water out during the drive.

 

[Open Water Predator]

Pretty much what ethnics said: Rubbermaid-type container. Fast the fish for a couple days prior. Couple things though… 20 gallons of H2O will weigh 160lbs! Besides testing the structural integrity of injection-molded plastics, it’ll be a to move. I wouldn’t use more than 5 or 6 gallons. For a longer trip, I recommend a battery powered air pump.
Happy moving!

 

[ethnics]

my 2ft aro would not survive in 5 or 6 gallons of water...

 

[The Fish Warehouse]

I think the battery powered air pump it a great idea. Here's how it is done when we ship large Koi; fast for at least 24-36 hours before hand, get a large bag, preferable 3ml or one designed for fish, fill the bag with enough water just to cover the top of the fish, add a dash of fish calmer (like Jungle Hypno or comparable) and fill the rest of the bag with oxygen and secure the bag air tight with rubber bands. If you were in Chicago, we'd be happy to do it for you. I would find a local wholesaler and any fish biz that does shipping in your area, and see if they would help you out. I personally wouldn't charge you, butmaybe offering a 5 or 10 spot might get them more motivated. A small price to pay to ensure the life of a stellar, costly fish.

 

[Wolf3101]

Igloo coolers work best for transporting large fish. We use a seasoned sponge filter for one of the tanks and drive it with a battery powered air pump. From expierance...a single set of batteries should last 8 hours or so.

With large ACTIVE fish it's best to use a larger than necessary cooler and then line the sides and bottom with a thin sheet of soft foam to protect the fish from damage.

 

[doubledragon]

my 2ft aro would not survive in 5 or 6 gallons of water...

Ha,ha, Just did this with 2 big aro's. 8hr drive. What I did was bought 2 45g sterilite containers from wal-mart(just the brand name they carry,) that were 21.5"width, 20"tall 3ft.long. They only cost 15 bucks apiece and were the sturdiest and most affordable containers I found in the 5or6 stores I checked at.( and they have wheels on the one side at the bottom, and were like the only ones without holes in the handles so no water easily splashed out.) When I got there we started draining water into the containers, till they were just full enough to still pick up, put the fish in, had a hole drilled in each lid with air line running to colonized sponge filters, rolled them out to the truck, lifted them up in there, went back into the house and filled up buckets to top off the containers, I filled them to prob. about 3/4th's the way full.( I also had a huge bag inside each container that the lid fit overtop of it and made a xtra snug fit, no leaks) Then hooked up the airline to a air pump which was powered by a CONVERTER that plugs into a cigarette lighter.(I like this much better than a batt. powered air pump, cause now u can use any size air pump you want, and it only set's you back like 20or30 bucks, money well spent.) Drove home drained alot of water out of the containers, carried them in the house started acclimating the fish,then put them in the tank. Best way I found to do it so far.