BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Water Gardens predators around the pond

Hi,Sheri. I notice you're in the bulb gardening forum a lot and thought I'd send you a question that maybe you can help me with. I have a small pond and have lost so many fish due to the meandering cats around the neighborhood. After the last episode, the children were so hurt I refused to purchase anymore fish, but now that its warming up, I think I'd like to start again with a couple of fishies. So, question is, what can I do to alleviate the few loose cats around the neighborhood from eating some prized fish? Thanks for keeping the dialogue fresh on the bulb gardening forum. Bye!

Hi Kim,

Hello. Thanks for asking! The best thing to do is create hiding places for the fish. Find rocks, bricks, whatever you can get a hold of to place in the bottom of the pond so the fish have a place to get away from the cats. Don't forget to add some plants. That will give them additional places to hide and add oxygen to the water.
If all else fails put some chicken wire over the top of your pond and be sure to secure it. It won't look pretty but the fish will be safe.

Sheri

Way to go Sheri. Thanks. I knew you'd give me a good tip. I was beginning to think I couldn't have them (the lil' fishies) anymore. Keep up the great work and visit me again on the bulb forum. Good night and sweet dreams. P.S. If you could, send me a tip about an algae fish for the pond. Someone at the fish market told me that they can't stay in the pond once the temps fall below 50 degrees. Is that true? Because if it is, I don't have a holding unit for it until spring comes in again. I'll check back in a few days for a good tip. Thanks again.

Kim,

Hi, the person at the pet shop is right. I always brought mine indoors and put them in an aquarium. Another option is to ask the pet shop if they will buy them back in the fall. If they don't offer cash maybe they would offer you a credit that you could use on something else.

If all else fails you could try to sell them yourself come fall or give them away. Possibly your childrens classroom teacher would want to set up an aquarium for the students to enjoy.

I will be sure to stop by the bulb forum again soon.

Sheri

Kimberly, how deep is your pond? If it is 18-24 inches deep, goldfish should do fine in there during the winter. Make sure to have a de-icer in the pond to keep the pond from freezing completely over. This helps with gas exchange. Also, keep your stream on for as long as possible. This helps circulate gases back into the water. Don't feed the pond fish when the water temperature is below about 50F. The fish can't process food at that point.