IMHO,'tategoi'is the most overused word in the hobby. I asked for a definition once, from Kazutaka Suda. His English much better than my Japanese, still was a difficult concept for him to get across.

I always thought it meant 'a koi with unrealized potential'. It does. Sort of.

To a fish breeder it means more than that. Ultimately he came up with 'tategoi=keepkoi'. A koi that is kept. Remains unsold. Is studied and analyzed constantly by the breeder. Studied and analyzed for what? Partly to determine the success or failure of the mating that produced the tategoi. Partly to see if the tategoi will make good breeding stock itself. Partly to gain more understanding about its brethren from the same mating. Partly I don't understand.

Keepkoi. A koi that is kept. Not sold. Once sold, it is no longer tategoi. Oh for sure it is still full of unrealized potential, but not for the breeder. The breeder has either finished studying the koi and sees that the koi's potential is close to realization, or finally realizes he is not a koi collector, cannot afford to be, and must let the tategoi go. There are other tategoi demanding his attention. This one will not make a brood fish, will make a bundle of money and is sold. No longer tategoi, at least for the breeder. My comments on tategoi.

Brett

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Last modified on Tuesday February 15, 2000