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How to raise carp at home

Carp at home need to use an inflator because carp are prone to lack of oxygen. Try not to put decorations in the fish tank, so that you can keep carp at home.

Carp, also known as carp crooked fish, carp, hairy fish, red fish in Chinese. It is a strong brown fish in the Cyprinidae family. Its scientific name is Cyprinus carpio. It is native to Asia and later introduced to Europe, North America and other regions. It is omnivorous.

Carp has large scales and two whiskers on each side of the upper jaw. They live alone or in small groups in calm ponds, lakes, and rivers with muddy bottoms covered with aquatic plants. They have the habit of migrating in places with small bodies of water.

Although carp is a bottom-dwelling fish, it does not mean that its activity area is fixed. Seasonal changes, water temperature, wind speed and direction, air pressure, the change of the moon and the full moon, water quality, water flow, water level, dissolved oxygen, bait environment, etc., will change the fish's activity area at any time, causing them to move to a large extent. If they are in a larger water area, this is called "migration". Compared with other freshwater fish, carp has common habits and special habits. These habits are mainly determined by the need for reproduction, the need for feeding, and the need to seek oxygen for survival.

1. Water conservation

What is water conditioning? When you buy a carp, don't put it in right away. You need to condition the water first. You can let tap water sit quietly for about three days, or put tap water in the sun for about two days. This will almost cure the water. Wait for the water temperature to drop before you can put the carp in the fish tank.

2. Change the water

Changing the water is the most patience-testing step in the process of raising carp. You must never be lazy when raising fish. Generally speaking, you only need to change about two-tenths of the water in the fish tank every day, and replace the water in the entire fish tank every 20 days. If the water becomes turbid or the water quality deteriorates, you will need to shorten the frequency of water changes and increase the amount of water changed each time.

3. Release the fish

After buying the carp, do not put it into the water immediately. Instead, put it in slowly with the bag. This can prevent the carp from catching a cold due to sudden changes in water temperature. So put it in with the bag, and then slowly open the bag after an hour.

4. Medication

When your carp does not have any symptoms of illness, do not use any medicine, sometimes it will have the opposite effect. When the carp is slightly unwell, it is best to use folk remedies, such as salt, penicillium powder, etc. If the condition is serious, it is best to consult a veterinarian.

5. Filter

It is best to equip the fish tank with a filtration system. You can directly ask the fish store owner to equip you with a professional filtration system, so that the water quality in the fish tank can be ensured to avoid too much pollution.

How to raise carp at home

1. After the fry enter the pond, they grow very fast in the first few days, and there is often a shortage of natural bait, so pay attention to supplementing the feed. Soybeans and cooked egg yolks are often mixed and thrown for feeding. One acre of land needs 2-4kg of soybeans and 3-5 cooked egg yolks per day. Mix them and throw them immediately for feeding, focusing on feeding the waters a few meters near the edge of the pond.

2. Carp is a low-level cold-blooded animal. Its body temperature changes with the water temperature. It does not need to consume energy to maintain a constant body temperature, so the total amount of food it needs to eat is not large. At the same time, carp, like most freshwater fish, is a stomachless fish with a short and thin intestine and a fast metabolism. Therefore, it is necessary to feed it less and more frequently.

3. In winter (especially under the ice), fish are basically in a semi-dormant state and stop eating. The body fat is consumed all over the winter. When spring comes, they should be fed high-protein food to supplement it.

Additional information:

Carp is a bottom-dwelling omnivorous fish that eats both meat and vegetables. It has a wide range of food, a well-developed snout, and often digs mud to feed. Carp is also a low-level cold-blooded animal, whose body temperature changes with the water temperature. It does not need to consume energy to maintain a constant body temperature, so the total amount of food it needs to eat is not large.

At the same time, carp, like most freshwater fish, is a stomachless fish with a short and thin intestine and a fast metabolism, so its feeding habits are to eat less and eat more frequently. The digestive function of carp is closely related to water temperature, and its feeding is highly seasonal.

After spring, as the temperature rises, fish eat more food, and the quality of bait is no longer important, but the quantity becomes the most important. Therefore, during a long period of late spring, the entire summer, and early autumn, carp mainly eat vegetarian food. When fishing at this time, you should use flour bait, fermented food, etc.

This method is very useful, but it is a little long o(∩_∩)o...

Basically, changing one-fifth of the water every day is enough. It is best to use water that has been exposed to the sun, so that chlorine can be removed. Also, when changing the water, the temperature difference in the tank should not exceed 5 degrees.

In spring (March to May in the Gregorian calendar), the temperature gradually rises, generally between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius, and the water temperature environment is more suitable for the growth and reproduction of various pathogens, especially April to May is the peak season for fish diseases - barley yellow. When the fry are hatched in early spring, the fish eggs are susceptible to Saprolegniasis; the fry are mainly susceptible to wheelworms, Ichthyophthirius, Dactylopius, Diplostomum, fish lice and other fish diseases; in spring, adult fish are susceptible to microbial fish diseases, such as viral hemorrhagic disease, enteritis, gill rot, printing disease, and silver carp iodine spore disease.

In summer (June to August in the Gregorian calendar), the temperature is generally between 26 and 28 degrees Celsius, and fish diseases are slightly less common than in spring. At this time, fish species gradually grow up and their disease resistance is enhanced. Therefore, ciliate and flagellate fish diseases gradually decrease. In addition, according to surveys, microbial fish diseases in spring continue to exist in summer, including gill rot, hemorrhage, red skin, enteritis, and printing disease. At this time, anchor fish disease is more common among parasites. In midsummer, high-yield ponds are often prone to flooding.

In autumn (September to October in the Gregorian calendar), the temperature gradually drops, and the temperature is generally between 23 and 15 degrees Celsius. The water temperature environment is basically similar to that in spring, especially August to September is the peak season for fish disease - "Bai Lu Xin". Summer fish species mainly suffer from wheelworms, Ichthyophthirius, Dactylopius, complex trematodes, fish lice and other fish diseases. In autumn, large-sized fish are prone to microbial fish diseases, such as viral hemorrhagic disease, enteritis, gill rot and other diseases.

In winter (December to February in the Gregorian calendar), the temperature is relatively low, generally between 3-6 degrees Celsius, and fish diseases are rare. Winter is the period for stocking fish, and fish bodies are often scratched by netting or transportation, and Saprolegniasis may also occur; when the water temperature is high, it is possible to develop tricholoma and Ichthyophthirius; when the water temperature of overwintering fish is below 10 degrees Celsius, the temperature difference between the air temperature and the water temperature in the wintering room is too large, and the fish will float to the surface due to lack of oxygen, causing frostbite on the top of the head.

There are 12 common fish diseases that can be caused by the change of temperature in spring, summer, autumn and winter. Among them, there are 7 main parasitic diseases: trichodinasis, Ichthyophthirius, Dactylopius, anchorhead mycidiella, fish lice, silver carp iodine spore disease, and Chinese mycidiella; there are 5 main microbial diseases: hemorrhagic disease (red skin disease), enteritis, gill rot, printing disease, and saprolegniasis. As the saying goes, "If you don't raise fish plague, you will be rich." In fish farming, once fish diseases occur, mild cases will affect the growth and development of fish, and severe cases will cause the death of some fish. Therefore, it is necessary to attach importance to the prevention and control of fish diseases and actively implement the policy of "early prevention when there is no disease and early treatment when there is disease."

You can identify the gender of fish based on their size, shape, color, tail whiskers, fins, etc.

There are many types of fish. If you cut open a fish's belly and see a belly full of eggs, it's a female fish; if there's no eggs but a milky white "white" inside, it's a male fish. But if you were given a live fish, how would you tell the sex of the fish?

Or identify it from the appearance.

Look at the fish's fins. The female loach's pectoral fins are blunt at the end, while the male's are pointed. The male carp's pectoral fins are larger than the female's. The male's dorsal and anal fins are longer, and there are some yellow-green spots on the pelvic fins, while the female's do not.

Look at the size and shape of the fish. For carp and crucian carp, female fish of the same age from the same origin are always larger than male fish. For tilapia (also called African crucian carp), the reproductive pore and urinary pore of female fish are separate, while those of male fish are combined, so female fish have one more pore than male fish, but are smaller in size. Female silverfish are transparent and scaleless, while male silverfish have a row of scales above the base of the anal fin. Female anchovies are large and full-bellied, while male fish are small and thin.

Let's look at the color of the fish. Many fish can change color. The male fish originally has a gray-black back and a silvery-white belly. During the breeding season, the body will turn sky blue with a hint of red and yellow, which is colorful and very beautiful. When the male fighting fish fights, the color of the whole body will suddenly change. During the breeding season, it will also put on a beautiful coat, shining with golden light, which is a "wedding dress"; the female fighting fish is not so gorgeous, with some gray stripes on the brown body. Male goldfish will have some fine sand-like particles on their gill covers and fins - "chasing stars", but female fish do not.

To raise fish, you must first raise water

For fish farmers, there are four types of water: the first is new water, which is freshly dried tap water or newly dug well water. Although this water is very clean, it is very different from the environment in which fish live in nature. Since there is no nitrifying bacteria community in the water, the fish's excrement and scattered food residues will decompose into ammonia after decay and deterioration, and the fish are very likely to be poisoned. The second is old water, which is light green or light amber, rich in humus and beneficial microorganisms and algae, and has established a good ecological circulation system. After nitrogen circulation, it decomposes into nitrates that are harmless to fish. This water is extremely beneficial to the growth of fish. The third is green water, which contains too much organic matter in the water, so blue algae, green algae and brown algae multiply in large numbers, and the content of bacterial microorganisms increases sharply. The water is thick green and sometimes smells bad, which can easily cause the death of the entire tank of fish. The fourth is the return to clear water, also known as biting clear water. It means that there are too many algae and microorganisms in the green water, which consume the oxygen in the aquarium, causing the death of algae and aerobic bacteria, and making the water become extremely clear, dead water without oxygen and with a large number of anaerobic harmful bacteria.

From this we can know that not all water is suitable for goldfish's life. The water most suitable for goldfish's growth is old water. The so-called water cultivation is the process of transforming new water into old water.

Nowadays, most of the water we use to raise fish is tap water, so the first step in raising water is to remove the toxic substance in tap water - chlorine. The method of removing chlorine is relatively simple. After the water is collected, let it stand for 2-3 days, or dry it in the sun for 1 day (if it is urgent, you can add 0.63 grams of baking soda, that is, sodium thiosulfate, per 100 kg of water and use it immediately).

After the new water is dried, it should be put into the tank and the filter should be turned on. Let the pump turn the still water into flowing water, and then put in the fish that break into the tank. "Breaking into the tank" means putting a few cheap, strong and easy-to-raise fish into the new tank. After a few days, the fish feces will decompose ammonia in the water, which is the same as the ammonia in tap water. Too much ammonia will kill the fish. Therefore, the most important thing in raising water is to remove the ammonia in the water. Usually we use nitrifying bacteria to remove ammonia in the water. Nitrifying bacteria can be added to the water, but they need attachments to survive in the water. If there is no suitable attachment, adding more nitrifying bacteria will not work. They will die in the water. Nitrifying bacteria usually attach to the filter cotton or bottom sand. In fact, flowing water will naturally produce nitrifying bacteria after a few days. This is also the most common method we use to cultivate nitrifying bacteria. Cultivating nitrifying bacteria is the second step in water cultivation.

The following is a brief introduction to the subtle chemical changes in the nitrogen cycle and how nitrifying bacteria work.

After the fish enter the tank, they will excrete ammonia and other wastes into the water. The ammonia concentration in the water will increase, and the nitrifying bacteria in the running water can decompose the ammonia. (Note: it takes a week or more for nitrifying bacteria to form, so during this period, the fish are seriously harmed.) When the nitrifying bacteria community is formed, the ammonia concentration will decrease until it reaches zero.

However, things are not that simple, because nitrifying bacteria can only convert ammonia into nitrite, which is also toxic to fish! So everyone should understand that when the ammonia concentration decreases, the nitrite concentration increases. So don't think that you can sit back and relax after the ecosystem is established. If you want to reduce nitrite, you must change the water regularly and quantitatively to reduce its concentration. This is the only way to maintain a relatively stable ecosystem and keep the water in an old water state.

I should also tell you that old water is what we pursue, and green water also has many benefits for goldfish. For example, green water can make the body color of goldfish darker, but there are too many algae in this water, and the fish cannot be seen, so it is not suitable for viewing. Moreover, when there are too many algae, the fish will lack oxygen, so when raising goldfish with green water, you must pay attention to controlling the content of algae in the water.

1. Observe frequently and treat early

Generally, after fish are infected or invaded by pathogens, there is a period of time and some signs, such as the sick fish are slow to move, often swimming slowly on the surface of the water, not gathering in groups, and if disturbed, they will sink slightly and then float to the surface. Some fish also swim wildly and quickly when they first become ill, or their body color is gray and their scales fall off. For example, after the occurrence of white crucian carp hemorrhagic disease, small wild fish in the fish pond died in the early stage. When signs of fish disease are found in the fish pond, timely measures should be taken to treat them to avoid the spread of the disease.

2. Correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment

First, we will conduct field investigation and analysis based on the climate characteristics, water source conditions, fish species sources, mixed breeding ratio and density management, the epidemic patterns of fish diseases over the years, the appetite, movement, body color of fish, etc. Then, we will conduct naked eye or microscopic examination on the body surface, gill filaments, muscles, internal organs and other parts of the dying fish or the dead but not decayed fish carcasses. We will check whether there are large parasites such as Chinese mullet and anchorhead mullet on the body surface, or bleeding spots, scale shedding, rotten fins, red and swollen anus, etc. The gills and gill covers are congested and corroded, the color and amount of mucus of the gill filaments are parasitic, and the gill filaments are rotten and muddy. After opening the fish abdomen, we will check whether there is ascites, intestinal inflammation, congestion, and congestion of organs such as the liver and spleen. We will peel off the fish skin to check whether the muscles are bleeding, etc. According to the specific symptoms of the examination, we will first diagnose parasitic, bacterial, viral diseases or complications, and then make a comprehensive analysis based on the performance of the sick fish to make a correct diagnosis and prescribe the right medicine.

3. Accurately measure and use the correct dosage

Accurate measurement and accurate dosage are another key to the effectiveness of fish disease treatment. For external medication, the whole pond should be sprayed, and the volume of the pond water should be accurately calculated, and the influence of water quality characteristics and water temperature at that time should be taken into account. For example, when there is a lot of organic matter, the water quality is relatively rich, and the water temperature is low, the dosage should be more. The volume of the pond water should be calculated based on the actual water surface and the average water depth. The average water depth should be calculated based on the average of several depths of different depths in the pond. The dosage of oral medication is expressed as the amount of medication consumed per kilogram of fish body. There are usually two specific calculation methods: calculation by weight and calculation by feeding rate, which should be used flexibly. When most fish in the pond eat vigorously, it is more accurate to calculate by the total weight of the pond fish; when the pond fish are seriously ill or the climate is bad, resulting in loss of appetite, the drug should be mixed into the bait at a higher ratio based on the estimated feeding rate to ensure that the sick fish that can still eat eat enough medication. When preparing the bait, the loss of the drug in the water should also be considered. Pay attention to estimating the total weight of pond fish, taking into account the proportion of growth and weight gain at each stage, and do not calculate the amount of bait fed based on the number of fish species released.

4. Understand the characteristics of drugs and use them scientifically

Commonly used drugs for fish diseases have their own physical and chemical properties. When storing and using them, attention should be paid to rationalization to avoid the failure of drugs due to improper storage and use. For example, which drugs can only be used externally, which drugs have good oral effects, and which drugs cannot be used together. Which drugs will have better effects when used together, and which drugs will be affected by environmental factors. The bait should take into account the living habits of fish, and make different baits such as floating, sinking, and microparticles. Generally, if the disease occurs in black carp, carp, and crucian carp, sinking bait should be fed; it is better to feed floating bait or mix the medicine on water plants when the disease occurs in grass carp; microparticle bait should be fed when the disease occurs in silver carp, and a certain amount of adhesive should be mixed when making it to prevent the drug from being lost in the water. The drug should be fully dissolved and evenly sprayed throughout the pond. The best time for spraying is in the afternoon, because the water temperature is high in the afternoon and the drug efficacy is high. When spraying the drug, spray it from the upwind side to the downwind side step by step. The undissolved drug residues after spraying cannot be poured into the pond. Otherwise, the fish will be poisoned and die if swallowed.

5. Take a full course of treatment according to the type of disease

The course of treatment is the fundamental guarantee for curing fish diseases. Without a sufficient course of treatment, the pathogens cannot be completely eliminated and the medication will not be effective. Therefore, a sufficient course of treatment is an important link to completely eliminate pathogens and consolidate the treatment effect. In practice, the length of the course of treatment should be based on the specific type of disease the fish suffers from. For example, invasive diseases are caused by parasites. Generally, insecticides are used for a course of treatment of 1 to 2 days to achieve the purpose of treatment; for bacterial and viral diseases, a course of treatment is generally 3 to 5 days. As for how many courses of treatment are used, it should be determined according to the severity of the disease and the urgency of the course of the disease. For diseases with severe conditions and long duration, two to three courses of treatment must be used, otherwise the effect will not be thorough and there is a possibility of recurrence of infection.

6. Some points to note

1. Stop feeding for one day before using medicated bait to keep the fish in a hungry state so that they can eat the medicated bait quickly.

2. During the treatment period and immediately after the treatment, it is not advisable to change water or catch fish in large quantities, so as not to irritate the fish, cause a stress response, aggravate the condition or cause a recurrence.

3. To treat fish diseases, a combination of internal and external medications should be used. Simply relying on oral medications cannot achieve the effect of attacking both inside and outside.

4. When treating fish diseases, the same drug cannot be used alone multiple times to avoid the pathogen developing resistance to the drug. The drugs should be used alternately.

5. Once the disease occurs, no matter how effective the treatment is, losses are inevitable. Therefore, it is necessary to adhere to the prevention and treatment principle of prevention first and treatment second.

The glass tank should be placed near a window where it is well ventilated and has sunlight. Pay attention to the stocking density and arrange it reasonably according to the size of the container. It is better to keep fewer fish than more. Because the indoor air is not well circulated, if you keep too many fish, the water will become turbid, which may cause the goldfish to die due to lack of oxygen. If you have an air pump, you can keep more fish. If you find that the goldfish are floating, you need to turn on the air pump to add oxygen, especially at night.

Live fish worms are the most ideal bait for fish farming. The water quality is not easy to deteriorate. Dried fish worms and artificial synthetic pellet feed can also be used. Live fish worms are now available on the market, but it is troublesome to buy them every day. For the dried fish worms sold on the market, choose fresh ones with loose particles to feed the fish. Do not buy old and moldy dried fish worms to feed the fish. It is better to use complete feed with complete nutritional ingredients for artificial pellet feed, which is available on the market.

In order to keep the water pure, the amount of feed should be strictly timed and quantitative. Usually, it is advisable to feed once or twice a day. Each amount of feed should be eaten within half an hour. Do not feed too much. There are two harms of feeding too much: first, the fish will be full, the metabolism level will increase, and the oxygen consumption will increase, which may cause the goldfish to die of suffocation due to lack of oxygen; second, the leftover feed will easily rot and ferment, causing the water quality to deteriorate, which will also cause lack of oxygen. In fact, goldfish are relatively resistant to hunger, and there will be no problem if they are not fed for a week or two.

It is very important to keep the water pure when raising goldfish. You should often use a latex tube to suck out the accumulated residue, the feces, leftover bait and turbid water at the bottom of the glass tank, and then slowly add new water that has been placed for a day. If the water plants float up or the rockery is knocked down during the operation, you should restore it to its original state in time.

The longer you keep fish, the more sediment will accumulate. Even if you clean it every day, you can't remove it all. If the sediment increases and affects the clarity of the glass tank, you must completely change the water and clean the glass tank to keep the water pure, easy to watch, and maintain a good living environment for goldfish.

The rectangular glass tanks generally used are small in size, so you cannot keep too many fish. It is better to keep fewer rather than more. For example, in a container that is 40 cm long, 25 cm wide and 30 cm high, you can keep 6 to 8 goldfish that are 5 cm to 7 cm long. Adult fish that are more than 8 cm long should not be kept in small glass tanks, but in luxurious large glass tanks or ceramic tanks, and equipped with a small oxygenator to prevent hypoxia. The above stocking density is only a reference. It also depends on the water temperature, the size of the fish and the quality of the water. It cannot be determined mechanically. Generally speaking, if the fish is large, you should keep fewer fish; you can keep more fish in winter and less fish in summer; you can keep more fish when the water temperature is low and less fish when the water temperature is high.

Ornamental carp is a variant of carp. It has a gentle character and is not like tropical fish that bully the small and the weak. Ornamental carp of different species and ages can live in harmony. It has strong vitality, high reproduction rate, good adaptability, etc. Its biological characteristics are basically the same as those of ordinary carp.

1. The suitable water temperature for ornamental carp is 5-30℃, and the most suitable temperature is 21-27℃, but they are not very adaptable to rapid changes in water temperature. If the temperature rises or drops by more than 3℃, the fish will get sick; if it exceeds 10℃, the fish will die.

2. Ornamental carp grow slowly under strong sunlight, so it is necessary to create a shaded environment for them, such as building a shade shed in the corner of the pond or at the feeding area.

3. Ornamental carp live in water by absorbing dissolved oxygen through their gills, sending oxygen to the fish body and combining it with the absorbed food nutrients to generate energy to sustain life. Therefore, whether there is sufficient oxygen in the water is the key to raising fish well, and the stocking density should be sparse.

4. Ornamental carp is omnivorous. Generally, mollusks, aquatic plants, benthic animals and tiny algae are all delicacies for ornamental carp. In summer, ornamental carp eat more, but in winter, they eat less or almost nothing. Therefore, the feeding time can be increased or decreased according to the season. In spring, when the water temperature is above 12℃, bait can be put in three times a day; when the water temperature drops below 12℃, it is enough to feed once a day.

5. Ornamental carp is an oviparous animal. Male fish mature at 2 years old, and female fish mature at 3 years old. They lay eggs once a year, and the spawning period is generally from April to June each year. At this time, sexually mature female fish lay eggs between 4 and 10 in the morning. The eggs are sticky, about 2.5 mm in diameter, white or light yellow, and fertilized in vitro. It is best to pick up the fertilized eggs and hatch them separately. Generally, after 4 to 5 days of incubation, the fry will break out of the shell. The newly hatched fry can be fed with rotifers and small cladocerans, and can also be fed with crushed egg yolk.

6. Ornamental carp are suitable for weakly alkaline water with a pH value of 7.2 to 7.3 and low hardness. If the water hardness is high, the body surface will often be slightly congested.

7. The life span of ornamental carp is very long, generally up to 70 years. The age of ornamental carp is determined in the same way as most fish. The number of annual rings on the scales indicates the life span of the ornamental carp.

How to raise carp at home

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