where do most of you get your fish from?

[baljnm]

I am still in complete amazement of this website. I belong to an automitive forum, but it is nothing like this. Incredible.

That said, i have never seen so many types of fish, now that i see sites like www.liveaquaria.com. I thought the only types of fish for freshwater aquariums were what WalMart or PetSmart carried. I had no idea there were so many different types of Barbs!

I am very curious to know where most of you get your fish. Do you have much luck with these online places? How do they get the fish your house? Do they show up in a box of water? (dumb question, i know) Let me know your experiences with these online pet stores, because i would love to get some exotic fish that get along well with the ones i currently have.

thanks
Bal

 

[Menagerie]

Personally, I buy my fish from LFSs plus you cannot get overnight fish deliveries up here (customs!!). I found a LFS I really like and one I can stand. I used to live in Moscow, Idaho, where the fish selection was limited. My husband and I would drive 2 hours to Spokane to pick out fish and look at the larger selections

BTW~I'm going to move this post to the General Forum, so you get more responses

 

[hashbaz]

I buy all my fish from petsmart the only LFS besides walmart. Overnight shipping on a heavy bag of water is expensive. Expect to pay in the neighborhood of $20 for shipping. If you are buying several expensive fish then $20 shipping is not so bad. But if you want two $1 fish shipping really hurts.

Lots of LFS's will take custom orders as long as they are not too exotic. You might try that.

 

[Corty]

I've ordered from them. One of the fish and a couple snails did not seem too happy, but everything else was fine, and everything showed up alive.

When I order fish, inverts, and macro algae, they usually show up in a bag of water (occasionally a breathing bag if you're really lucky - it lets oxygen in and co2 out) or several bags (double bagged "just in case" seems to be the most common), surrounded by styrofoam in a box that usually says either "FRAGILE" or "LIVE FISH". Live rock and freshwater plants usually show up wrapped in damp newspaper, the live rock occasionally has a bag around it. I hate the newspaper type of shipping.

When I started out I had no idea that LFS had more stock than PetCo and the like. Imagine my surprise on my first trip to one. I was staring at things to the extent that I think made the owner a little nervous.

 

[hisc1ay]

I typically buy from my LFS (I'm still looking for the one I like the best, but I don't think that's possible because there are a few good ones here), but I have bought from WalMart or PetSmart. I stopped buying fish from the large chain stores, especially WalMart, except for the occasional Betta that catches my eye. I just like supporting the local stores because they're suffering from the online and chain business, and the ones I go to you really can't beat the knowledge and customer dedication.

That's not to say I won't buy from an online store, I just haven't yet.

-j

 

[enjoyfish]

Iv had my best luck from saltwaterfish.com

 

[oscarbreeder]

I buy most of my fish from a very good LFS but I have rescued a few bettas and an Oscar from the dreaded Wal-Mart..

 

[jaws561]

The wal-mart here has the worst service! when I looked at the fish tanks in wally world, there is always atleast 2 0r more dead fish in each of them, they do not know how to take care of fish, they dont sell alot of them but they still have them. A lot of them die, I would never buy a fish from wally world except a beta. I buy from a LFS it is a nice place with tons of fish and tanks. I would recommend a LFS over wal-mart or petsmart. Just my opinion.

 

[pkremer]

I have rescued several fish from the dreaded Wal-Mart, including 3 oto's, a blue gourami that was grey when I bought him but is now a beautiful blue, and a great betta!

I don't really like to buy fish at Wal-Mart though. They don't have a very large selection and they don't take good care of them. I buy all my fish from 2 local pet stores. And if there is something that catches my eye online, I just ask one of them to add it to their next order. That saves me the shipping cost! This is actually the best route in my opinion. I save the shipping, and adding more fish to their order can actually reduce the LFS shipping costs! Good for both parties.

But on that note, all the fish at Wal-Mart and local pet stores get shipped, so there really isn't any difference if a fish gets shipped right to your door. For me, the shipping costs are too outrageous for me to pay them. LiveAquaria charges $25 and has a minimum order to get that, so you have to order quite a few freshwater fish to get there!

Paul

 

[Pufferpunk]

Petsmart & the like are not considered LFS (local fish stores). A LFS is your neighborhood aquarium store, not a chain of pet shops. Living in the Chicago area, we have many LFS to choose from & lots of them have very exotic fish choices.

 

[cginflorida]

There are no lfs's near me (I'm lazy, I don't like to drive too far ), but the PetsMart I go to has a couple knowledgeable fish people, and I've had very good luck with the fish I've bought there. With the chain stores, it just depends on the staff. Some are good, some bad.

I haven't ordered online yet, all the fish I have are commonly available.

 

[FishLover14]

LFS are the best. I highly reccomend never buying fish from wal-mart.

Dan

 

[wabyrd]

I buy from a LFS here in Houston. I occasionally hit the PetSmart or Petco just to see what they have (usually the same old same old). I have tried liveaquaria.com and won't do that ever again. I got my shipment over night, and 4 arrived dead, the rest were all dead within 3 days. Oh well, it's only money... I learned my lesson though, stick with the reputable LFS. Don't trust FedEx with anything other than packages and letters.