CONFUSION strikes and panic begins to reign. The sight of sprawling factory buildings and fleets of container trucks confirms my presence in the middle of an industrial estate. Either I’ve made a wrong turn while heading towards Sungai Petani town from the North-South Expressway or my friend has given me incorrect directions to pick up his latest koi purchase. Surely this can’t possibly be a place to properly raise prize winning fish.
My perception is proven incorrect when my friend successfully guides me to the location over the phone. Tai Nichi Koi comes into view after I retrace my route for a few minutes. A row of shady trees lining the roadside in front of the premise had caused me to drive straight past just a few minutes earlier.
While waiting for the pair of more than two feet-long fish to slowly acclimatise to the conditions in their transportation box, I chat with owner Yeh Jui-Te, a Taiwanese who has been living in Sungai Petani for more than three decades. Casting his gaze towards a single storey building located further away in a compound as large as four football fields, Yeh turns back the clock to the time when he first arrived in Malaysia with his father.
"Back then, my factory produced plastic parts for exercise machines made by several renowned brands in this region. My father, who’d always been interested in rearing koi since his youth, decided to make use of the idle land to raise the colourful carps. He constructed several concrete tanks and two earthen ponds. Other than importing juveniles from Taiwan, he also acquired several mature adults and tried breeding them here," explains Yeh.
ARTIFICIAL BREEDING
Apart from allowing the adult fish to breed naturally, aquaculturists also induce their brood stock to spawn artificially by injecting them with the hormone Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG). The former isn’t popular as the adult fish are extremely voracious feeders and are known to consume large numbers of the freshly laid eggs before the farmer has time to remove them.
Induced breeding is a favoured reproduction technique as farmers can time the spawning process accurately and have complete control over the entire situation. A day or two after hormone inoculation, the female fish is gently transferred to a small container using a soft net. This move is done very carefully to avoid injuries as the fish is large, sometimes up to four feet long, and heavy.
Once it’s calm enough, the fish is covered with a soft towel and lifted out of the water before its eggs are stripped into a clean bowl by massaging its belly. The sperms from the male fish are also harvested in a separate bowl using this technique. After that, the contents of both bowls are mixed together with some saline solution for the fertilisation process to take place.
Despite his many successes, Yeh's father eventually abandoned the artificial insemination technique after discovering that local conditions only produced a miniscule number of potential award winning fish. "It was quite disheartening to cull up to 98 per cent of the baby fish. After some soul searching, we decided it was better to just import quality juveniles from abroad," he elaborates.
When quizzed about his preference in relation to the ones originating from Japan, Yeh explains: “While the Japanese variants have gained fame worldwide, many koi specialists are turning to other countries like Taiwan and China as the breeders there have started winning awards in international competitions."
MUTATED CARP
Patiently, Yeh reveals that the koi is actually a naturally mutated form of the common Chinese carp, which is completely dark green and rather unattractive. More than a thousand years ago, these freaks of nature, with their small patches of colours such as white, red and blue, began attracting the attention of fishermen who caught them together with their plain looking cousins in natural freshwater lakes and rivers of northern Asia.
According to an ancient legend, the well-known Chinese philosopher Confucius was given some koi with red markings on their bodies by friends when his wife gave birth to a baby boy. Mesmerised by their uniqueness, Confucius regarded the fish as auspicious symbols of good luck and named his son Li, which means koi in Chinese.
Even at that time, the colour red was already associated with prosperity. The people began to keep koi in tanks and pools in their homes to attract luck and help promote their children's academic advancement. According to records, rearing koi became fashionable in China when they were raised by palace officials more than a millennia ago during the Tang Dynasty. Since then, koi have been depicted in various art forms like decorative painting, silk embroidery and ceramic sculpture.
Koi eventually reached Japan in the 17th century. Initially reared by rice farmers as a cheap source of protein, the Japanese eventually realised their potential as an object of beauty. By the early 19th century, they began embarking on a series of selective breeding programmes to enhance their vibrant colours and unique patterns, an aspect that the Chinese completely overlooked.
ROYAL APPROVAL
The colourful koi became an overnight sensation when several prized specimens were presented to Emperor Hirohito and, by royal decree, placed in the imperial palace moat in 1914. Photographs of the beautiful carps swimming gracefully in their newly-found Kyoto home graced the local newspapers and soon their fame began to spread beyond the shores of the Land of the Rising Sun and captured the hearts of millions worldwide.
International interest in koi as an ornamental fish eventually led to the creation of over a hundred varieties that are categorised into 13 general classes. Among the more popular are the Kohaku, Taisho Sanke, Showa, Hikari Moyo-mono and Tancho variants.
At this juncture, Yeh is quick to point out that while Hikari Moyo-mono refers to metallic coloured koi, the first part of the name is shared with a popular line of specialty fish food brand manufactured by Kyorin Food Industries in Japan. In an adjacent annex, Yeh shows me the different types of food pellets tailored to the different growth stages of the koi, providing them with exact dietary requirements to ensure optimal growth.
Apart from using imported feed to supplement the diet of his prize winning champions, Yeh admits that a majority of his fish are fed with his homemade pellets that maximise colour enhancement and growth in Malaysia's warm tropical climate. Avoiding my request for his secret formula, he nonetheless reveals that the main ingredients are quality fish and corn meal as well as fibre, vitamins and mineral additives.
OMNIVOROUS FEEDER
"Actually there’s no hard and fast rule to the things the fish can and cannot eat. Koi are omnivorous and will eat all sorts of commercial feed as well as raw vegetables, fruits, live insects, shrimp and even minced meat. Koi enthusiasts train their fish to eat out of their hands to build a personal relationship with their pets," elaborates Yeh.
Continuing, he advises first time koi lovers to start with commercial feed when they bring their fish home from the pet shop or farm. "Food pellets are ideal at the early stages of acclimatisation. Give the fish time to get used to their new home before trying to feed them new things like fresh meat or insects.”
When it comes to feeding koi, Yeh cautions that too much may not be a good thing. "By rule of thumb, fish is fed between one and two per cent of their body weight daily. Give too much and the excess food will go uneaten, sink to the bottom where they decompose and foul the water. Just give small quantities of food over several feeding sessions in a day as it helps digestion and prevents bloated stomach syndrome.”
Gesturing towards several large specimens nearby, Yeh shares that during competitions judges place a lot of emphasis on the shape on top of colour brilliance and pattern. As such, serious enthusiasts exercise discipline and limit the number of fish under their care to prevent overcrowding. They also spend a considerable sum building sizeable ponds that are at least four or five feet in depth for their beloved pets.
"The higher water pressure in deep ponds help to maintain the fish's elegant streamlined shape while at the same time providing sufficient room for it to swim around and tone its muscles," adds Yeh while drawing example of obesity in humans who lead a sedentary lifestyle and lack exercise.
HEALTH TIPS
Apart from sufficient depth, koi ponds are also equipped with a proper water filtration unit that comes complete with powerful pumps to ensure the overall health and prevent diseases caused by harmful pathogens. Yeh says that it’s not necessary to drain the pond once proper equipment to recirculate the water is in place. Pointing towards his dozen or more large concrete tanks, he shares that he only needs to top up the water level every once in a while.
Other than proper water management, Yeh constantly monitors the water parameters to ensure that his fish are always in their best condition. He explains that koi has endured more than two centuries of rigorous inbreeding programmes to bring their spectacular colours and patterns to the fore. The price to pay for this pursuit of beauty is the lack of strong genetic variation, and that translates to a weaker immune system.
Yeh keeps a watchful eye out for lethargy in his fish during feeding time. Subtle signs like lack of appetite, seclusion from the rest of the school and imbalanced body movements may be indicators of potential health problems. Koi can also be infected by ectoparasites that feed off blood from their gills and spaces between the scales.
The moment he suspects something has gone awry, Yeh will immediately isolate the affected fish. Regardless if the disease is infectious or otherwise, he prefers to take precautions and will quarantine the fish before patiently nursing them back to health with the help of an arsenal of potent medication that include powerful antibiotics.
"Your fish are fully acclimatised and we can load the box into your car now," one of the workers interjects just after my tour of the quarantine area ends. This area also serves as a temporary holding area for new arrivals. They’re released only after Yeh gets the greenlight from the veterinary health authorities who visit him on a regular basis to ensure that everything is in order.
GOLDFISH GETTING POPULAR
While on the way out, I come across two fibreglass tanks filled with goldfish. They remind me of the ones I used to rear in the past. Noticing my interest, Yeh explains that there’s a growing interest in goldfish among Malaysian aquarists. So he decided to jump on the bandwagon. Instead of Taiwan, Yeh imports most of his goldfish stock from China and Thailand.
He makes regular trips to Bangkok to keep track of the latest goldfish trends. One of his favourite places in the Thai capital is the popular Chatuchak Weekend Market which has a specially designated section solely for ornamental fish. While there’s a huge variety of freshwater and marine fish to see there, Yeh admits that he primarily focuses his attention on the koi and goldfish.
Walking me to the car, Yeh reveals that the close genetic relationship between the two species in terms of biology and dietary requirements makes it easier to expand his business. He shares that goldfish enthusiasts are usually those who face space constraints at home but still want pets that come with many varieties.
"Compared to koi, goldfish are much smaller, consume less food and can thrive even in small containers or jars. Furthermore, they possess greater variety in terms of body shape as well as fin and tail configurations. Koi varieties tend to have a common body shape but they have a greater colouration and colour pattern variety compared to the goldfish," says Yeh, in conclusion.
Driving carefully home with the precious cargo on my back seat, I reflect upon the long and illustrious history of the koi. Through innovation and scientific advancement, I’m sure breeders will continue to produce better and more interesting varieties to keep the species in pole position as one of the most desired ornamental fish in the world.
For details, contact Tai Nichi Koi at Plot 301, Jalan PKNK 3, Kawasan Perusahaan Sungai Petani, Sungai Petani, Kedah. Tel: 012-481 7639