Is something wrong if my koi has not released eggs?

When your female Koi is old enough (3-5 years old), her body will produce eggs. When the water temperature rises to 65-70 degrees she will start to see signs of spawning. There will be a lot of chasing, the female will be left alone near the bottom and they will eat a lot of food. Mating is said to begin when there is a full moon and the eggs are released early in the morning. The male’s job is to help her get the eggs out and then fertilize them.

In some cases, the female may not release her eggs. Here are some reasons why.

The pond is made up of all female Koi.

The Koi males in the pond are not old enough to mate.

The Koi is sick and does not carry eggs.

A sure sign that the Koi is sick and not carrying eggs is the scales. If the scales stick out or if the eyes bulge out, it could be dropsy. This is when the kidneys are failing. You can use a salt bath to help sick fish. Put 1 level cup of salt in a bucket with 5 gallons of water. Put the fish in the bucket for 1-2 minutes and then return it to the pond. This should be done 2-3 times a week until the swelling goes down. Another possibility is that a tumor is causing the inflammation. This would cause the koi to not swim properly.

Listed below are the possibilities of what can happen if the koi does not reproduce (mate) and carry eggs.

1. If the koi does not spawn, the eggs may remain in the koi for several seasons until it spawns.

2. Eggs can be reabsorbed. This means that he will simply make them disappear back into his own body.

3. Sometimes the eggs can stick together. Egg tethering is when the eggs rot and this will kill the female Koi.

Not feeding the fish in the winter will help the female Koi to reabsorb her eggs if she did not spawn in the spring. You really want her to reabsorb them, as this is safe for your fish. You want to prevent her Koi’s eggs from hatching.

To determine if all your Koi are female, you can feel their heads. A male’s head will feel like sandpaper and a female ready to spawn will be slippery. If you manage to touch each of your fish you will know its sex. If you find out that you have a male Koi, they may not be mature enough to mate. Then again, maybe your Koi is just being picky.

To sum this up, if your Koi is fat and the scales are fine then you probably have all the females or the males just aren’t old enough to mate. Not feeding your fish in the winter will help the koi reabsorb their eggs. Get ready to see the Koi babies next spring.