Very irritated with pet store!

[kades]

I know I should have done a little more research but I was hoping the local pet smart would halfway know what they were talking about...i wanted a SMALL or the smallest type of alge eater for my 40 gallon tank. she acted irritated that she had to help me in the first place the next thing I know the fish is bagged up...she gave me a pleco...i knew these fish got big but I thought maybe their were a smaller version of them or something...nope it says it will get 24" thats crazy! Sometimes I think these people couldn't care less what happens to these animals. Now I have to get it out of the tank and take it back...any suggestions on something I could actually get without out out growing my tank? I have tiger barbs, a pair of gouramis and a precious blood parrot

 

[severum mama]

Bristlenose pleco, rubberlip pleco, clown pleco (doesn't eat much algae), to name a few. There are plenty of smaller plecos, but they aren't "versions", they are separate species in several genera.

PlanetCatfish • home of aquarium catfishes • PlanetCatfish.com has tons of pics and profiles, and some good reading on plecos (and all other things catfish).

 

[kades]

I ment species but resorted to types because of my stupid auto correct lol

 

[severum mama]

While I'm on the subject, I hate to tell you after the trouble you had at the pet store, but your parrot is going to need a larger tank eventually.

For the time being, I think a bristlenose or rubberlip would probably be your cheapest, and easiest to find, options.

Many pet store employees either don't know that much about stocking, or don't care. When in doubt, do a quick Google search from your smart phone to look up a fish's profile, or better yet, find some stuff you like and then ask about it here.

 

[kades]

I know :/ I went into it completely ignorant. I had no clue about anything and just assumed that if you work in a pet store with fish all day surely you know what your doing! I was dead wrong. I got the parrot from their advice went home and researched the breed and realized she should get too big but I had already fallen in love with her. I plan on transferring her over to a 75 gallon

 

[severum mama]

75 gallon is a great choice and would allow you to keep all your fish in that tank throughout their lifespans. You could probably even add a few more.