My whole pond project came about because of one common goldfish. Unlike the 3 other goldfish she came with, Wilbur (below) decided not to leap out of the half barrel water feature I put her in. Wilbur not only made it through the year alone but survived another three years "summering" in the barrel. We named her Wilbur when she was 2" long, but because of her plump body shape and the fact that she has since laid eggs, we now know Wilbur is a she!.
Every fall we
would bring Wilbur in the house to spend
the cold months in an aquarium. She got bigger and bigger and at about 7" I decided
she needed a proper pond to live in.
Because common goldfish are a social fish, I added a few friends for Wilbur. First I added three standard koi, 3 butterfly koi and 3 shubunkin - including Pongo, the lovely shubunkin below.
I have to admit I added a few more butterfly and standard koi after that. My family think I am obsessed ...I am happy to admit I am!
My last addition to the pond is Toby, a lovely 10 inch Showa sanke - a black fish with accents of red and white.
I now have a selection of beautiful fish in my pond. I love all the fish and each one has a name. Caring for these fish is a big responsibility which I take very seriously. I will write more about what that responsibility entails in my next post.
Comments