The first steps in buying the koi that are right for you is to know how they are Rated and what it all means. Koi are rated by the body shape, color and patterns/markings. The more perfect they are, the more costly they are.
On your adventures to buying the right koi you will also often see the terms Domestic and Imported. Both Domestic and Imported have ratings as shown below. Domestic Koi means that the koi were raised in the USA while Imported Koi were brought here from over seas. You can also get Domestic Imported koi which means that the koi were brought here and bred therefore the offspring become domestic imported. Generally speaking Imported koi are more expensive and much nicer to look at.
Domestic Koi in America have three Ratings:
A - which means that it is the lowest quality. The color
and patterns do not conform to the standards of what a good koi should
look like, they lack trueness of type, have dull color, less growth
potencial and may be described as non descript, not really fitting any
true Catagory of Koi. They are basically culls and raised in fish farms
for sale to Pet Shops.
AA - is the next step up from A. These koi show more color and nicer patterns but are still non descript in most instances.
AAA - triple A koi are nice in pattern and have richer color but still do not match up to the imported quality of koi. They still do not conform to the standards of what koi are suppose to be as far as true Type.
Imported Koi in America have similar Ratings but have much higher
quality than the domestics.
A - are a nice quality fish
AA - koi are very nice koi, true to type and express alot of
rich color and have the potencial to grow to their fullest size.
AAA - this Rating would be said to have show quality, are beautiful
koi and true to type. There color is brilliant and the patterns and markings
are uniform.
Over seas they only have two Ratings:
A - the equivalent to AA in America
AA - the equivalent to AAA in America
There is also what is known as Tategoi. These are high quality koi with the potencial to become show quality.
Where to Buy Koi
There are many places to buy koi. Pet Stores, Water
Gardens, Some Department Stores in the pet section and local breeders.
Each place carries different quality's of Koi.
Typically speaking you will get the lowest quality from Pet Stores and Department Stores. Depending on the store they can offer Domestic or Imported but are generally of the lowest quality. They are less expensive and much smaller in size. They do not offer many large koi for sale and their imports tend to be pricey for what you are getting.
Water gardens generally carry a wider variety varying from Domestic to Imported. You can get the run of the mill, non descript koi here or more expensive lower grade imports. Some of these fish are very nice but do not match up to a great import.
If you buy from a Local Breeder you are going to get some high quality koi. The breeder has invested alot in there fish