Before you buy just any cool fish at the store, read this

[Lung Fish]

So, you may have a fish in mind, you may be looking at this thread for fun, but anyways, let's get down to the facts.So, when you see a cool new fish at the store, don't impulse buy it, reasearch, either go home and look it up online, or use a phone at the store, Always reasearch before you buy.


Lung Fish

 

[Andy Sager]

So, you may have a fish in mind, you may be looking at this thread for fun, but anyways, let's get down to the facts.So, when you see a cool new fish at the store, don't impulse buy it, reasearch, either go home and look it up online, or use a phone at the store, Always reasearch before you buy.


Lung Fish

+1, 100%
This also goes goes for buying someone a fish as a present. Better to give them a store gift certificate than a bad choice for their tank.

 

[Mattfinn]

+1, 100%

This also goes goes for buying someone a fish as a present. Better to give them a store gift certificate than a bad choice for their tank.

Agree with the present thing almost ended up with a discus......luckily they did research on discus. I ended up with what I wanted too, a Betta.

 

[bettaowner]

Today I saw what I can only assume was an example of an impulse buy. There was a 55 gallon tank at my lfs and in it was a fahaka puffer maybe 10 inches long or longer. The store takes in any fish which is good but it enforces the idea of impulse purchases. I've spent hours at my lfs choosing fish much to the dismay of my family.

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[Andy Sager]

Agree with the present thing almost ended up with a discus......luckily they did research on discus. I ended up with what I wanted too, a Betta.

I can't tell you how many times while I was working in a retail pet shop that people would get annoyed with me when I wouldn't sell them a fish for someone else's tank. I would explain all the cons vs pros of the "surprise" which lessened the blow but still....... then again, I did get a number of THANK YOUs from people bringing in the gift certificates knowing that I helped avoid an embarrassing or dreadful situation. I guess that's a wash.

 

[brennae]

I would have to agree with this post and all the comments. Giving some one a living thing as a surprise is never a good idea. Gift certificates are the way to go these days.

 

[micaelaarnold]

With the experience I have had at my local pet stores, I agree 100%. always always research thoroughly before you buy a pet, whether it's a gift or not. Even though they have a tag that says "pet smart" on it, it does not always mean what they are telling you is true. Most of the time, their main goal is to sell products, not find good homes for their animals, whether it's fish or reptiles.

 

[Coursair]

When I worked at Petsmart I got reported to my store manager for refusing to sell a Bala Shark to a lady with a 10g. I had explained it needed a larger tank and at least a few friends.

She changed her story and tried to say she had a 50g as well. Manager backed me up.

We'd had so many baby Balas returned Dead from getting spooked in a 10g and ramming the sides and dying. I was sick of it.


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[brennae]

When I worked at Petsmart I got reported to my store manager for refusing to sell a Bala Shark to a lady with a 10g. I had explained it needed a larger tank and at least a few friends.

She changed her story and tried to say she had a 50g as well. Manager backed me up.

We'd had so many baby Balas returned Dead from getting spooked in a 10g and ramming the sides and dying. I was sick of it.


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That's horrible! I'm glad you and the manager stuck up for the fish! Too bad more stores aren't like that.

 

[bettaowner]

It's unbelievable how many stores I still see selling fish unsuitable for captive life due to impulse purchases on a massive scale. Fish like Bala sharks, iridescent sharks, red tail cats, and pacus in my opinion are best left on public aquariums or the wild. I understand that people mat be dedicated to monster fish but really it's wrong to simply sell someone a small fish without a disclaimer or by giving them false information. I hope this thread gets more attention as I feel impulse buys hurt not only the fish but also the ecosystem and the hobby when people release tank busting species into the wild.

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[brennae]

It's unbelievable how many stores I still see selling fish unsuitable for captive life due to impulse purchases on a massive scale. Fish like Bala sharks, iridescent sharks, red tail cats, and pacus in my opinion are best left on public aquariums or the wild. I understand that people mat be dedicated to monster fish but really it's wrong to simply sell someone a small fish without a disclaimer or by giving them false information. I hope this thread gets more attention as I feel impulse buys hurt not only the fish but also the ecosystem and the hobby when people release tank busting species into the wild.

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I agree. It gets cold here by me but the fancy carp types of fish live and its not uncommon to see them in the local pond. I really think from an ethical standpoint these LFS should just stop selling the monster fish. Possibly even the common pleco. I see so many common plecos in small tanks for sale on Craigslist it makes me ill.

 

[bettaowner]

There's a store in my state that sells plecos, Otos, and corydoras but they do something I feel every store should do. Next to each tank there's a note that clearly tells customers that these fish do not feed solely on algae or detritus on the bottom of the tank. The major downside of living in hawaii is all the restrictions. Ignorant fishkeepers have dumped their stock in ponds including tank busters like arrowana, oscars, snakeheads, pacu, and jaguar cichlids along with smaller fish like angelfish, corydoras, and various mbuna. This has led to many commonly kept aquatic organisms including polypterus and freshwater rays being banned in the state. This isn't only a freshwater problem in fact marine fish keepers are just as bad. Stores sell large or pelagic species that need tanks thousands of gallons large or that simply can't survive in captivity. Research isn't difficult. If we could all spend just an hour or two learning more about a species before buying it fish lives would be saved.


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[Brookster123]

Hey... at least they're making an effort sometimes you need a little nudge to get it together..my first fish was an apisto cacatoides for a 5 gal hex..

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[Lung Fish]

There's a store in my state that sells plecos, Otos, and corydoras but they do something I feel every store should do. Next to each tank there's a note that clearly tells customers that these fish do not feed solely on algae or detritus on the bottom of the tank. The major downside of living in hawaii is all the restrictions. Ignorant fishkeepers have dumped their stock in ponds including tank busters like arrowana, oscars, snakeheads, pacu, and jaguar cichlids along with smaller fish like angelfish, corydoras, and various mbuna. This has led to many commonly kept aquatic organisms including polypterus and freshwater rays being banned in the state. This isn't only a freshwater problem in fact marine fish keepers are just as bad. Stores sell large or pelagic species that need tanks thousands of gallons large or that simply can't survive in captivity. Research isn't difficult. If we could all spend just an hour or two learning more about a species before buying it fish lives would be saved.


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BTW, i would LOVE to go fishing in hawaii.

 

[Kalamatas]

So, you may have a fish in mind, you may be looking at this thread for fun, but anyways, let's get down to the facts.So, when you see a cool new fish at the store, don't impulse buy it, reasearch, either go home and look it up online, or use a phone at the store, Always reasearch before you buy.


Lung Fish

use a phone at the store +1

 

[Andy Sager]

There's a store in my state that sells plecos, Otos, and corydoras but they do something I feel every store should do. Next to each tank there's a note that clearly tells customers that these fish do not feed solely on algae or detritus on the bottom of the tank. The major downside of living in hawaii is all the restrictions. Ignorant fishkeepers have dumped their stock in ponds including tank busters like arrowana, oscars, snakeheads, pacu, and jaguar cichlids along with smaller fish like angelfish, corydoras, and various mbuna. This has led to many commonly kept aquatic organisms including polypterus and freshwater rays being banned in the state. This isn't only a freshwater problem in fact marine fish keepers are just as bad. Stores sell large or pelagic species that need tanks thousands of gallons large or that simply can't survive in captivity. Research isn't difficult. If we could all spend just an hour or two learning more about a species before buying it fish lives would be saved.


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Florida is just as bad. You throw a line in the water, any water anywhere, and you have no idea what you will hook in to. Bass lures should be renamed to " Cichlid Lures", Crappie jigs to "Oscar Jigs" and don't get me started on the Saltwater side. Beautiful Pacific ocean fishes in my tropical ATLANTIC ocean water.....

 

[bettaowner]

Hawaii and Florida are hot spots for invasive species due to their tropical year round climate for the most part. I went to Florida a couple years ago and I was amazed at the size of some of the water ways. After going on an airboat tour and seeing first hand dozens of apple snail egg masses, I could see how Florida can sustain large populations of invasive aquatic species. Hawaii is such a delicate ecosystem because there are so many endemic invertebrates, birds, and fish species that can be hard to find and are extinct on some islands. I'm hoping to go hiking this week to a local water fall and if I'm lucky I might find a rare population of freshwater gobies. The site is pretty remote so I'm hoping nobody has been dumping their fish here.

 

[Brookster123]

Someone much smarter than me said this once.. "you may have x years of experience but you stock like a noob" I have 1 year of experience and I stock like a pro I listen to people who are smarter than me and have more "practical" experience than me.. hasn't let me down yet..

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[J.Mcpeak]

I wish people would research first because in my time I've noticed the price of large fish go up! Clown loach are now quite a lot more than they used to be!
The head of my shoal was bought as a well intentioned present in a multi bag of several species back in 2006, I had fun integrating that lot!
Don't stop selling large fish, I'm a fan of some big species, hopefully I'll get to keeping them someday. Really it's the ignorant or I'll informed that let us down, be they staff or customers.

Unless I know the species it stays in store, if I'm shopping usually I have a bag of books to confirm any chances I may encounter. Impulse buying can be fun! I mean you cannot prepare for stock you've not seen and it's easy enough to set up a tank on the fly if you've prepared beforehand, ie filters running in another system etc.

At the end of December I found a sucker mouth cat L203, I bought it straight away, I'd already researched it earlier in 2014 but the next day I found another sucker, lda1 panaque. This was an impulse! I checked the book, I took the fish. Both fish are doing well and are in conditions more suited to them regarding water chemistry.

L203 will be a monster! I know what I'm doing with this fish so why should I be penalised for other peoples misgivings? I know it's a big fish and it will take above average care, just like the last pair of monsters I owned.

I am sick of seeing fish like clown loach and larger plec species bent up in the sumps of shop systems. If you know the fish is getting too big why wait until it's too late before re housing?
(You don't keep a poodle in a soup can!)

Not all fish are equal!

 

[absolutangel04]

Please stay on topic. Drop it, and post on topic or refrain from posting, please. Further rudeness or off topic posting will result in thread closure.

Researching a fish before purchase is a vital concept of fish keeping to spread as it is part of the core of responsible fish keeping.