Saltwater & Reef

Aries · 05-06-2009, 10:40 PM

aww poor kuhlis :[

CrazyPlantLady · 05-07-2009, 05:48 PM

When I first started a tank after 2 years off (job moved me and I traveled extensively), I did a fish-less cycle with just fast growing plants. I went to a chain pet store to buy a water testing kit but had brought a water sample with me in the hopes of starting to stock the aquarium with some fish.

The store did free water tests with the API Master Kit, so I was confident that it was a store with some knowledge of fish. Wrong I was....

After testing, I was told: (she couldn't put a T before the R in either word...)

"Your ammonia is zero, your NIRATES are 15-20 and your NIRITES are zero. Based on that, your tank was not yet cycled and you should do a 100% water change immediately or all of your plants will die!"

When I questioned her about the nitrite level, she said: "NIRITES are the final product of the cycling, you want high NIRITES and zero NIRATES."

Even reading the instructions with her, she was still convinced that the tank was in desperate need of a major water change.

I bought the new test kit, tested my water myself when I got home, and got the same readings. Knowing that it was now cycled, I bought some fish from a fellow hobbyist and had them shipped to me overnight. Even if it cost more, I didn't want to do business with livestock locally after that experience.

I still wonder how many she's misinformed. Imagine if someone who truly was in the middle of a cycle, showing no nitrate and high nitrites. That bimbo would tell them to go ahead and stock up with more fish!

WhiteDevil · 05-07-2009, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HN1

Wow!!! That's horrible. Just for the record, it's not all employees. I know of one or two from when I used to buy more common fish that were decently knowledgeable, but yea the bad are there too.

I once went in and saw kuhlis. Had to have a few so I got an employee over. With net in hand she chased them for about 5 minutes (they were loose in a sand bottom tank). When they all buried themselves, she proceeded to scoop a large net full of sand and kuhlies up. Lifted the net out of the water and then rummaged through the sand with her fingers and caught one between her fingers in a "pinch". I was left stunned and speechless. I just turned around and walked out without a word. Common sense need not apply...

she musta been dumb, anyone who has sand knows that if you leave it in the water the sand sinks out rather quickly and is always lubricated. I would have raised some cane and claimed PETA, LOL.

I catch my own fish at the fish stores.

partypalooza5 · 05-07-2009, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whitedevil

i catch my own fish at the fish stores.

xd nice!

WhiteDevil · 05-07-2009, 07:36 PM

I feel just cause they get PAID to do it doesnt mean they know what they are doing. If they dont let me do it myself I make sure they get the fish I want and that usually ends up in me fishing it out after they get frustrated that they have to take a little more time to catch a mear 1/2" fish.

CrazyPlantLady · 05-07-2009, 08:14 PM

When I lived in Florida, there was a mom/pop LFS that was the 'you net em, we bag em' type. The employees always supervised and if the customer can't or didn't want to catch them, they'd do it. But, since the bred easily 50% of what they sold, they had more knowledge on how to catch them and how to handle them then most.

Always a joy to find a store where they seem to care. I'll go outa my way, drive further, to patronize one (if I could find one) in this area.....*sigh*

WhiteDevil · 05-07-2009, 08:16 PM

catching fish is easy, its the stealth part thats hard, I usually just hold the net horizontally and just lift up when they school over the new structure.

WhiskeyD · 05-12-2009, 06:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HN1

I once went in and saw kuhlis. Had to have a few so I got an employee over. With net in hand she chased them for about 5 minutes (they were loose in a sand bottom tank). When they all buried themselves, she proceeded to scoop a large net full of sand and kuhlies up. Lifted the net out of the water and then rummaged through the sand with her fingers and caught one between her fingers in a "pinch". I was left stunned and speechless. I just turned around and walked out without a word. Common sense need not apply...

Aww poor kuhlis. I really wish people at the chain pet stores knew more about fish. Many fish have horrible lives because they dont know enough to inform the customers about the fish they are buying.

HN1 · 05-12-2009, 07:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhiskeyD

Aww poor kuhlis. I really wish people at the chain pet stores knew more about fish. Many fish have horrible lives because they dont know enough to inform the customers about the fish they are buying.

I agree, but I try to remember that it's company policy that's to blame in most cases and not the individual employee. I hold the belief that very few people would knowingly provide bad information or harm animals. The turnover rate at the large chains and their need to do large volume leads to shortcuts in training and a general environment of treating animals solely as "product". I've met some very knowledgable and caring people in the same stores. It's just important to research first, educate yourself, and as always... buyer beware.

cwt · 05-13-2009, 08:40 PM

pinched kuhlis, lol. Reminds me of when I bought mine; the LFS guy had a heck of a time getting one, and I had to prod him into flailing around a tank to get a second one; there was actually too much decor to easily pull these fish out. One of these days I'll go back and get a couple more, since they supposedly like larger groups.

WhiteDevil · 05-13-2009, 09:06 PM

I got 3 of em, they are alot more active and they even become more active in the daytime with a group of them. I am wanting to get 3 more.

bmg07 · 06-13-2009, 12:58 PM

how big of a tank is it white devil.ive only got 2 but i plan on getting 3 or 4 more

martiniduck · 06-13-2009, 01:44 PM

The Petsmart by my house has mostly good employees, but i had a similar experience. I went to purchase some 4 neons there. The employee was able catch them no problem. I brought the bag up to the counter to pay for them and I noticed that their was only 3 in the bag, but the bag was marked for 4. I went back to her and asked her to catch one morefor me. She lifted up the net and found the missing fish in the net. Now that was not the bad part. What she did next was. The fish had been out of water for at least 5 minutes now and was not moving. She pick the dead fish out of the net with her fingers and dropped him back into the tank. I guess she though he just would come back to life with a little water. I told her I changed my mind and would like only 3 neons. I then paid for them and left. I hope she fished him out soon after that.

WhiteDevil · 06-13-2009, 09:35 PM

55g maybe a 52 its a flat back hex.

I buy my fish religiously from two specific petsmarts, recently I went in for new female gups since my fry are well fry and not breeder age yet, anyways, I get a kuhli to add to the tank and I ended up with 3 female gups, 4 fry gups, 1 kuhli and a ghost shrimp, no charge on the fry or shrimps eh no biggie. I go back in and their variatus female who no one bought for some reason had fry, I said Id take the fry, well NOW just 3 days later I gotta buy the parents with the fry, hmmmm unless its a specific fish you cant tell the parents in a tank full of those fish?( delivery day was the day before I went)

I told her shes friggin nuts. took what I already had and left. I did however make her fish out more shrimp and hand picked specific sized MTS's.

I did say I went to two, that one was my occoasion lunch break one, the next is best, my go to place due to staff knowing me, my set-up over the years, their posistions there and their knowledge of aquatic things, anyways, I was talking to the guy and this pearl white molly leapt out and smacked him dead in his eye. Was one of the funniest things I ever seen but what made it better, He literally put the fish into a specimen container or dip container and took it to the QT tank, I was there yesterday replacing my heater that nearly fried my tank and that same fish was still in qt because it wasnt swimming just right...

I really dont think its the companies, It has alot to do with the interviewers and the people themselves. The corporation is bad yes I was put out of work by petco when they came to town and shut over a dozen LFS's in the area down.

I go for the knowledge, I actually trade fish and plants with a few of their employee's now. I get better customer service there then I do at pretty much the only LFS within 15 miles of me now.

I plan on getting atleast 8 more kuhlis for the tank, I did find true banded kuhlis the other night that I want to get 6 of, get 3 more blacks and call it a day with them for a while. My 3 now ( had 4 one had seizures and finally died, shrimps got ahold of it and made quick work of it) are out constantly, all day all night. There isnt much cover in the tank since I am jsut starting to get fuller plants and taller so soon it will get alot better and I hope to not see them as much.

BMG, kuhlis dont add alot to the bioload, I rarely saw a turd on the bottom of my bare 10g qt tank.

JPKeenan · 08-08-2009, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aries

NO offenese to people who do work for petsmart or local fish stores that ACTUALLY know what their doing. I would say Amen to you, and more people like you NEED to be working there...

I was shocked, I was in a petsmart just checking out stand prices. The woman working there actually kept fish and knew what she was talking about! Too bad it was the one an hour away from my place.

But for the most part anyone working at the box stores (from Wal-mart to Home Depot to Animals R Us) are usually way out of their depth. They might be able to point you to where something is but 75% of the time they were hired off the street with no knowledge of the department they are working in.

When you actually find someone at one of these places that knows their stuff it is a shock.

MichaelsLilGray · 08-08-2009, 10:29 PM

I was about to say... girlfriend works at petsmart... she doesnt know it all, but if she doesnt ... she just calls me ROFLMAO. She wont ever lie to anyone.. if she doesnt know.. she will be like.. i have no f'in clue.. let me give someone a call.. lol but for the most part, she is extremely intelligent in the freshwater world.

NOW if i dont know.. and cant find it on here

ill just google it and give her the answer =P.. out of the entire department.. (6 of them) only 2 dont know what they are doing.. and will be fired soon lol..

JPKeenan · 08-09-2009, 01:12 PM

*lol* yeah I would rather someone say "I don't know." or "hold on let me check" than get handing a load of BS.

Funny thing I have been finding out about fish-heads is the passion level. Start talking about your tank and you get a look of pride. Those are the type of people you look for in the big box stores.

The same woman I spoke about above was telling a guy new to fish tanks about setting things up, and she knew what she was talking about. Naturally I joined in

. Plus saw him looking at fish later on and give him the addy to here and AC so he could get some more advice.

*lol* the lady also said that someone she used to work with totally lucked out. He was driving down the road and saw a bunch of tanks and equipment being thrown out. Bitter divorce and the wife put all the guy's tanks and stuff out on the curb to be thrown out. The husband got spanked but the guy who saw them made out liek a bandit.

**Zer0** · 08-13-2009, 06:40 PM

ROFL!! Thats awesome! I would totally have snagged all of that stuff too. As long as the lady wasnt THROWING the tanks out literally, and none were cracked or anything lol. If they were cracked i definitely would have just left 'em for the birds.