Sometimes, through no fault of the owner, a fish dies. This is no comfort to the hobbyist who just lost their “favorite” fish because it jumped out, swam into the filter, or got caught up in the skimmer. It is no comfort to the owner who just had his pond raided by raccoons or a heron for the first time in 10 years, never realizing it could happen to him. Are there failsafes that can be put into place? Sure. But nobody puts them into place until after they happen. Nobody has a need to install additional deterrents. Nobody expects his large fish to be bunched up in the skimmer box unable to get back out because of that little swimming-pool gizmo-door that keeps stuff in once it’s there. Who would have dreamed their koi would be dumb enough to swim up the winter draw pipe and get stuck in there, about 5’ from the entrance, where you have to dig up the plumbing to extract the body? Nobody dreams of returning home from a hard day at work, walking out to the pond to admire their finny friends, only to see torn bodies strewn about. A neighbor tells them about the heron that was around “earlier that day”… but there’s nothing that can be done for the fish.
We all have that gut-wrenching feeling we let our pets down when they needed us. We all feel like failures in the worst way! And we all go through the crossroad of whether to continue in the hobby or get out… depending upon our own personal levels of guilt, I suppose. Is it easier to find a dead fish or two floating in spring when the ice thaws, and wonder what happened? Possibly, after a winter of absence from your life.
To those who have lost fish, and I suppose that means all of you, I have to pause and ask you to reflect upon the pleasure you got from the fish, while they were in your pond. Look at the beautiful shine of their skin, the wonderful colors as they matured, the flow of water over their noses as they barged their way to the front of the food line. To put it all into a better perspective, fish are finite, as are we. They do not live forever, no matter how wonderful the environment we offer. Like other pets, use your time wisely and focus on the enjoyment of the pond (and fish) instead of focusing on the loss. Each loss is a learning experience. You now know it “can (and probably will) happen to you”. The Japanese have a saying that the more fish you “kill” the better a fish keeper you become. Very wise words.
