When I heard RWG announce the generosity and donation of their products and IPPCA scored right in to bring along some of the best Installers in the industry my heart started to pound. I had just got married and was packing to move to Canada but couldn’t miss the opportunity to watch this pond be rehabbed and turned into a Hybrid pond as they were calling it. I couldn’t squeeze the expense however and Russell Water Gardens found it in their heart to fly me, now that is GENEROSITY! Thank You RWG!! I couldn’t resist this as I knew Tom Kincheloe, (and most of you do too now)the guy who got his pond make over (and an avid MB member here) OMG, what a great time we had those 4 days! The great time was watching these guys, Freddie Combas and his crew, Rocke' aka Dragon, Pete, Gil the Man, Waterfallguy/Larry and his guys, Pete from NJ, Dave and Gloria and of course Tom, Bruce and lil ‘ol me. While I observed they worked diligently as if this was a project God was going to grade them on, it was fun teasing them.

Freddie directing the John Deere digger while Tom looked on with evil eyes spewing thought’s of ‘don’t destroy my grass’ LOL…we had to hold Tom down through most of the install as he thought for some strange reason he was the Supervisor, heck, he only lived there and that was my job, to convince him to be quiet.

Through digging it deeper, adding the liner, placing the rocks and filling the pond while laying the bridge these guys had more heart and soul than I ever seen at a rock– n- roll concert or any other competitive sport, this was truly an act of love and dedication to what these guys do, they didn’t even complain about the food, heck, I helped cook it and it was GREAT! (It was some great food that Gloria made and only made me cook bacon and burgers, Thanks Gloria and you know why I say that haha.)

All I can say is I’ve been to several Pond builds and this is one that will forever remain in my heart, the guys did a fantastic job, everyone worked hard and all along you could see the pride in all of their faces, the love that they have for the hobby and the sheer personal satisfaction they all had in their smiles glowed widely as they knew they just did something spectacular for a special guy and in their hearts they knew they did something that made themselves feel even more spectacular….I remember looking at them all the last day and I’ll never forget the expressions on everyone’s face…it will stick with me forever! You ROCK IPPCA and all the GUYS that were in Myrtle Beach, I salute each and every one of you! Oh and Tom, Thanks for your hospitality, I enjoyed staying with you and the time there will always be a special slot in my memory and heart. Thanks to you all for allowing me to be a part of that and I for one will never forget it!

What is “Aeromonas hydrophila”

Have you ever had Koi that had a strange Open ulcer? Fin rot? Tail rot? Mouth rot? Below is some information that may help you understand what is going on and how to address the problem. We will be doing a series of articles on this subject.

It is a heterotrophic, gram-negative bacterium, mainly found in areas where the climate is really warm. This bacterium can also be found in fresh, salt, marine, estuarine, chlorinated, and un-chlorinated water. Aeromonas hydrophila can survive in aerobic and anaerobic environments. This bacterium can digest materials such as gelatin, and hemoglobin. Aeromonas hydrophila was isolated from humans and animals until the 1950s. This bacterium is the most well known of the six species of Aeromonas. It is also very hard to kill, because it is a very resistant bacterium. Aeromonas hydrophila is resistant to chlorine, refrigeration or cold temperatures (in fact Aeromonas hydrophila has been known to survive in temperatures as low as four degrees Celsius).

Aeromonas hydrophila are rod-shaped, meaning they are from the bacterium type Bacillus. They usually grow from .3 to 1 micrometer in width, and 1 to 3 micrometers in length. Aeromonas hydrophila does not start its life as an endospore, and can grow in temperatures as low as four degrees Celsius. These bacteria move around using their polar flagella. Because of its structure and the type of bacteria that it is, Aeromonas hydrophila can only be identified by using a gram stain, which is a technique used to identify bacteria, stating whether they are gram-positive or gram-negative.

Because of Aeromonas hydrophila’s structure, it is very toxic to many organisms. When it enters the body of its victim, it travels through the bloodstream to the first available organ. It produces Aerolysin Cytotoxic Enterotoxin (ACT), a toxin that can cause tissue damage. It is known as a pathogenic bacterium. Aeromonas hydrophila, Aeromonas caviae, and Aeromonas sobria are all considered to be “opportunistic pathogens,” meaning they only infect hosts with weakened immune responses. Though Aeromonas hydrophila is considered a pathogenic bacterium, scientists have not been able to prove that it is the actual cause of some of the diseases it is associated with. It is believed that this bacterium aids in the infection of diseases, but do not cause the diseases themselves.

Aeromonas hydrophila is associated with diseases mainly found in fish and amphibians, because these organisms live in aquatic environments. It is linked to a disease found in frogs called red leg, which causes internal, sometimes fatal hemorrhaging. When infected with Aeromonas hydrophila, fish develop ulcers, tail rot, fin rot, and hemorrhagic septicaemia. Hemorrhagic septicaemia causes lesions that lead to scale shedding, hemorrhages in the gills and anal area, ulcers, exophthalmia, and abdominal swelling.

Though Aeromonas hydrophila is very resistant to the common methods used to kill most bacteria, it can be eliminated. It can be killed using one percent sodium hypochlorite solution and two percent calcium hypochlorite solution.

Chemotherapeutic agents such as chloramphenicol, florenicol, tetracycline, sulphonamide, nitrofuran derivatives, and pyrodinecarboxylic acids are used to eliminate and control the infection of Aeromonas hydrophila. Terramycin is placed in fish food during hatchery operations as another chemotherapeutic agent in preventing Aeromonas hydrophila.

It is ill-advised to transfer fish from hatchery to hatchery without any sanitation. Hatchery workers should clean the fish, and check for bacterial infection between each operation. To avoid contamination oxygen levels in fish should be maintained, and fish should always be handled gently, to avoid injury. Prophylactic treatments can also be used when trying to prevent Aermonas hydrophila. These treatments include disinfectants and Acriflavin.

We will be doing a several follow up articles on treatments and links to vets in the next few newsletters.

References

Fulton, MacDonald. "THE BACTERIUM AEROMONAS HYDROPHILA FROM LIZARDS OF THE GENUS ANOLIS IN PUERTO RICO". Lousiana State University Medical Center, New Orleans, LA. <www.uprm.edu/publications/cjs/VOL05/P099-102.PDF>. September 19, 2006
Hayes, John. "Aeromonas hydrophila." Oregon State University. September 20, 2006. <http://hmsc.oregonstate.edu/classes/MB492/hydrophilahayes/>
"Aeromonas hydrophila." Bad Bug Book Foodborne Pathogenic Microorganisms and Natural Toxins Handbook. September 20, 2006. <http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/chap17.html>
"Aeromonas hydrophila and Related Bacteria." International Specialty Supply. September 20, 2006. <http://www.sproutnet.com/Reports/aeromonas_hydrophila.htm>
"Aeromonas hydrophila." September 20, 2006

Article provide by Mark Lawson, K.D.S.D.

Carbonate hardness

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Carbonate hardness is the measure of the carbonate (CO₃^2-) and bicarbonate (HCO₃^-) ions contained in a solution, usually water. It is usually expressed either as parts per million (ppm or mg/L), or in degrees (KH - from the German "Karbonathärte"). One German degree of carbonate hardness is equivalent to about 17.8575 mg/L. Both measurements (mg/L or KH) are usually expressed "as CaCO₃" – meaning the amount of hardness expressed as if calcium carbonate was the sole source of hardness. Every bicarbonate ion only counts for half as much carbonate hardness as a carbonate ion does. If a solution contained 1 liter of water and 50 mg Na HCO₃ (baking soda), it would have a carbonate hardness of about 18 mg/L as CaCO₃. If you had a liter of water containing 50 mg of Na₂CO₃, it would have a carbonate hardness of about 29 mg/L as CaCO₃.

Carbonate hardness is removed from water through the process of softening. Softening is achieved by adding lime in the form of Ca(OH)₂, which reacts first with CO₂ to form calcium carbonate precipitate, reacts next with multi-valent cations to remove carbonate hardness, then reacts with anions to replace the non-carbonate hardness due to multi-valent cations with non-carbonate hardness due to calcium. The process requires recarbonation through the addition of carbon-dioxide to lower the pH which is raised during the inital softening process.

http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/CO2/khgh.html

Article provide by Mark Lawson, K.D.S.D

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