Walmart fish

[hollyatkinson]

I bought all the fish in my 30 gallon at walmart, 4 tiger barbs, 4 rosy barbs, 4 gouramis, a pleco and 2 upside down catfish and I haven't lost one. I think it depends on who works in that department and how well they care for the tanks and fish. Normally I get my more expensive fish at Petco and I have lost some from there but more than likely it was due to aggression with other fish.

The best thing I can suggest is no matter where you buy your fish, look at them carefully and also the other fish in the tank, look at the water and surroundings. If there are dead fish in the tank or a lot of algae or the fish don't seem colorful or active avoid buying from that tank. Chances are the tanks and fish are'nt being properly taken care of.

[Sumpin'fishy]

I agree, unfortunately both Walmarts in my area have poor upkeep to their fish departments. I see several dead fish in different tanks every time I go there. I'll tell the attendant, and they seem oblibious, and say that they'll get them out later. If they clean them out with any regularity, then why does the fish have fungus all over his rotting corpse??? Disgusting and SAD!

[JamisonBWolsh]

The ONLY reason why people should even CONSIDER buying ANY TYPE of fish at walmart is if there is No LFS or Petco nearby and they dont want to do the drive or order thing. There is a way to have walmart stop selling fish. And that is to not give them the business.

[Arctic_Fishery]

i totally agree with wolsh....

[net_shark512]

The walmart here is terrible. Once I saw at least 10 fish stuck all over the filter intake. I was so mad when I got home I called the store manager and asked him did he need some help with his tanks. He said no, and he would look into what is going on. I told him to call me if ever he needed soemone at night for up keep on the tanks. GUESS WHAT? HE NEVER CALLED
http://www.jamezbrown.com/mysmilies/contrib/ruinkai/FIREdevil.gif

[fishmaniac]

Maybe your walmart store just sucks, but I know at the store in my town, the one that I work at, the fish are taken care of and the tanks are clean. Even though I have lost a few, I blame it on the lack of knowledge of caring for fish.

Your walmart just sucks.

[tyler]

it's fun to argue with the sales folk in aquatics. i'm by no means an expert, but you really can't get much dumber than the people there. they do have good looking flants from time to time, though i once found a dead fish in a plant i bought there...

[JamisonBWolsh]

Originally posted by fishmaniac
Maybe your walmart store just sucks, but I know at the store in my town, the one that I work at, the fish are taken care of and the tanks are clean. Even though I have lost a few, I blame it on the lack of knowledge of caring for fish.

Your walmart just sucks.

Well....your walmart is the needle in the haystack, or if you want, a diamond in the rough. MOst arent given the same good care.

[Twilight]

After several attempts of buying fish at our new walmart I have learned not to. Should have learned that by looking at the way they were being taken care of.

[Cypherman]

Wal-Mart is full of overpriced, diseased fish that aren't even species the average aquarist should have anyways (half of their fish consist of pacus, oscars and irridescent sharks). And they keep bettas in little plastic jars with LIDS on them...

I only buy fish from Wal-Mart if they have something uncommon or interesting (I bought a pair of Asian Upside Down Catfish from there; my local wal-mart seems to be getting a LOT of them, so if any1s looking for a cool uncommon catfish, believe it or not, I recommend Wal-Mart in this case lol. But Wal-Mart still SUCKS... ;) )

[Unome]

We sometimes but from Wally World also. And it's usually for reason above. We see something a little unusual they have no idea what it is and pay next to nothing for it. We got some really nice chocolate mollies from there for about $2 each and saw same type at PetCo for almost $10.

[StevieM]

For me it is more of a "If I knew then what I know now" issue. I bought some of my first fish from there as they are generally cheaper than most and after some research the really good fish stores I go to in the area are up in Buffalo a good 35 mins away. When I am up there I like to check out the Petco's , PetSmarts, and Wal-marts as well just to compare prices and see how things are.....let me just say that I haven't been in PetSmart or Wal-Mart in months since I started keeping fish and I was amazed at what I THOUGHT were attractive and healthy looking fish. I as well as most beginners definitely didn't or don't know what to look for I guess. Some of the fish in these overcrowded tanks just lacked so much color and vigor, its a crying shame.....

steve

[Serj]

The super W-M near me has so-so fish stock. A little better than average but still rather poor. What peeves me the most is how generously they stock baby large fish, oscars especially. I -know- at least 90% of them will either...
1- Die while still in the tank,
2-Die shortly after being purchased by an ignorant/new fishkepper or
3- Live to an adult, but deformed, HITH-ed, and in a undersized tank.

Some Walmarts may have certain fish cheaper, etc, but I generally don't buy from them because I'm supporting their whole fish department. If I find a W-M with an excellent and honest fish department, then I would support it ( someday, maybe, far away....)

I got into fishkeeping by purchasing a cute baby oscar and, of course, I had 10g. I didn't know anything about water quality, etc, and the fish died shortly. A month and hours of research later, I realized the employee that told me 'they get 'yay' big ( he stretched his hands to about 5") and are good fish' was a moron and/or heartless sellout. Eh, sorry about the rant...

[roper930]

I was @ Petsmart yesterday and was TOTALLY Grossed out! Their feeder minnow tank was pretty full, but on the bottom there were these "fuzzy rocks". I went for a closer look and realized they weren't rocks, they were dead fish absolutely covered with fungus!! I've never seen such huge balls of fungus!! I mean, they were big, solid, green balls w/maybe a tail hanging out or something. The fungus had to be at least 3-4 times the size of the fish itself. I can't even imagine how long they'd just been sitting there rotting in that tank!

GROSS! :eek:

Beth

[Darkangel]

The Wal-Mart here no longer has fish. Not that I would ever have bought from them. One thing that keeps being mentioned here though is price. Saving a few bucks is not the most important thing. As we keep reading about the level of education of these big box fish stores, people still keep buying there fish and equipment there to save a few bucks. Spending the extra money at a local fish store with a knowledgable owner/employees is well worth it. You may pay more in the short term but in the long run the knowledge you gain will far outwiegh the slight financial loss. Besides which once you get more knowledgable and want more exotic fish the Big Box is not going to special order them for you. The local guy will if you have been going there and dealing with him/her. Just my two cents here.

[Lila]

I almost bought feeders from my walmart out of deperation, but half of them were dead and dying.

I believe that some of these variety stores do get people with knowledge and care in the fish dept. But, seems most of them don't . I couldn't believe I was seeing dead plecos in their tanks.
I thought they were hard to kill. Maybe I'm wrong?

[Dabbler II]

What I have noticed at least up here in Canada is the quality of people they have working in the stores. The staff all think that it is "play time" and " its someones elses job" to do the clean up and uasly it is the people who care about there job and are nolageable do the work, then they get fed up because they do all the work and get paid the same as the rest that are "chatting" or "talking to friends on the phone". The fish guy i deal with did work at the local Pet....... and I can see why he moved on to a fish only store/ mom and pop operation. This guy knows his stuff and he care about the fish and the store and who he works for and the customers and there needs. He isn't afrade to say "listen your gravel you could get cheaper at .......store but we have a better heater and pump here" he looks after both store and customer. Thats what I like about him.
:D Thats my rant for the day :D

[crenwelge]

I hate Walmart. I took my finance to walart and showed the cute little pacu's they keep there that they say grow to 8". Then took her to the fish store and showed her the pacu they have in a show tank that is 2'. I think that is enough said about that.

[pinballqueen]

Think that's bad? My local WM still sold parakeets until about 3 years ago.....

They did away with their living pets dept entirely about a year or so ago. Thank goodness, too. I did get a great deal on some koi there once, though; they had them in the tank with the regular goldies for a buck apiece.....

[goldfries]

\o/ never walmarts around. hah!!! \o/

[goozy]

Petco has some of the worst conditions I have seen. Every afternoon they line up the little betta cups with dead bettas that they plan on disposing of. Sometimes they aren't even dead yet and they are in the dispose of line. One time I went there and there was and entire tank of dead little plecos, probably 50 or more.
I bought some frozen blood worms, I opened up the package when I got home and I could see that it had been totally thawed out and frozen again. I'm sure they let it sit for who knows how long before putting it in the freezer.
I bought some feeder crickets once and the guy threw in a whole bunch ( and I mean a whole bunch!) of legs and bodies and skins, Yuk.
Now here's the worst. It was in the news one morning. There was a dog being groomed and the groomer forgot the dog under the dryer and cooked him to death.
Fortunatly walmart dosen't have a grooming facility.

[fishfreek]

Goozy,

Oh my that is a horrible story. I sure as heck hope the petco that is going in close to me is not like that.

Anyway I was reading this list and it reminded me of a simular debate that was held on another site. I dug up the link if anyone is interested on what other members at other sites have to say about wal-mart and their fish sales.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=877&highlight=walmart+fish

[mt_marcy]

Hi.
Well I have 2 Wallmarts by me, and one is horrible and the other is not too bad, but that's cuz they have a part time worker in thier fish department that actually knows some thing about fish keeping. I know the big box stores here like Super Pet, PJ's, Petcetra and Petsmart are so-so...some are good and others just have teenage kids who havent bothered to learn there stuff and are basicly hired on as "easy comission getters", cuz they can pay them pennies without having them get upset cuz they have to make a living. If you are in the Toronto area I suggest going to Big Al's(aquarium wharehouse) because there tanks are clean, well kept, with healthy fish . Thier employess are knowledgable and they are treated very well by the company. ....No, I do not work at a Big Al's!!! Thanks,
mt_marcy:))

[firetank]

I agree with darkangel,
many of us are aghast at the though of buying livestock from the bigger conglomerate stores, but happily go there for equipment, as its cheaper(economies of scale...)

maybe its better to pay 10% more and support the knowledgeable, caring lfs round the corner than just buy fish there....

eventually margins will drop so low, the lfs cant stay in business and close,

long term :----

we get left with only the chain stores - petco, walmart etc to buy from.....

prices go up stock "quality" goes down..

what an awful thought.....

:mad:

[irishspy]

Just to give a little counterpoint, I've been searching for a good fish store, as I plan to get back into the hobby after the new year. To my surprise, the Petco nearest me (west Los Angeles) seems to take good to very good care of their fish. The tanks are clean, few corpses floating around, and the fish look active and healthy. I don't know about the knowledge of the staff, since I didn't talk to any. But the care seemed consistent every time I visited.

By contrast, I was appalled at the quality of my local LFSs, with one or two exceptions. The stores weren't clean, the fish didn't seem well taken care of and, in one case, I thought the store was a genuine fire hazard. :eek: :mad:

The best LFS I found (and it seems very good) is one in West Hollywood. Clean tanks, healthy fish, and knowledgable staff. If fish in a tank are not for sale, they put up a sign telling why (quarantine, &c.). I was impressed. To be frank, it and the Petco are the two places I'll buy fish around here.

--Anthony

[JamisonBWolsh]

Anthony:

I live in the san fernando valley. Im not sure of those areas you listed, but there are MANY GOOD LFS's up here in the Valley. If you want, I suggests a few. If your into cichlids, I know the best place to go. Also try a cichlid club..you can get REALLY good deal on fish that would cost an arm and a leg at the lfs. just ask anytype of fish and see if someone is selling them... the link is..

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiacichlids01/

beats ANY petco.. plus.. from the LFS and that club..you can get ANY fish you want :)

[goldfries]

IMHO Bettas are the most ill-treated hobby-fish. :(

i've seen them being sold in 1 tiny plastic bag and it's almost air-tight. and stacked on a tray somewhere. :(

[Molino]

In my area there is a very good LFS run by a married couple. They are the only staff there and own the place. They are extremly knowledgeable, and suprisingly their prices are equal or better to a lot of the big box places.

Because the owners actually run the store and they don't have any other staff or other costs big box stores have, they are able to offer equal if not better prices on a lot of their fish and products. Unfortunately they do not have tanks for sale due to a lack of space.

[goldfries]

not for my case Molino.

we have Mom & Pop stores here too. their fish stocks are equally bad. haha.........

rarely you get good ones. it's a matter of culture i guess. maybe the shop owners of the west open the shop truly for the hobby itself, while the people here open for profits rather than hobby. :(

[irishspy]

Originally posted by JamisonBWolsh
Anthony:

I live in the san fernando valley. (snip!)

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiacichlids01/

beats ANY petco.. plus.. from the LFS and that club..you can get ANY fish you want :)

I haven't been to the Valley stores, yet, but plan to make a trip some time after New Year's. Which ones do you recommend, and have you ever tried Mark's Tropical Fish? (Haven't been there, but it looks promising from the web site: Mark's Tropical Fish (http://www.markstropicalfish.com/index.html) )

And thanks for the link: I just happen to be planning to keep a few Apistos. :cool:

Merry Christmas!
--Anthony

[Argento13]

I find in Des Moines that Petco is the store to avoid while Walmart has a manager that is more or less a legend in the area and a respected breeder of sailfin mollies. I remember her telling me once that she would not sell Betta's because people mistreat them. The petco, nearly next door to walmart, is terrible in diseased fish and terrible living conditions for all of their animals. I guess it depends on who is managing what store.

[FishHunter8]

I like walmart cause when i go i get about 40 dollars worth of fish but then get 50% or more free because the either screw up at the till or the guy catching the fish is in a good mood. :)

[irishspy]

Originally posted by Argento13
I guess it depends on who is managing what store.

I agree, I've see enough variation that it must be up to individual managers. What disappoints me is how many LFSs in my area can be so bad. :(

--Anthony

[Kitsune]

I work at a walmart. Uhg...
Make sure that you speak to the manager of that department when asking about a certin fish. They should be in mon-friday in the morning. Make sure the person you are talking to knows about the fish and isnt guessing.
You also want to make sure that you do have a sepret tank at home to keep them away from your fish till you know they arent sick. We are always finding our fish to have fungus and ick. Reserch first, then buy the fish. We can have good deals on prices but sometimes you get tricked in to paying waaaaaaay too much. YOU CAN TAKE YOUR FISH BACK IF IT DIES WITHIN 90 DAYS put the fish in a ziplock bag and put in freezer then you can take it in. You have to have proof that it died. If you have your reciept then you 100% get money back but I think that you can trade in for a live one with out recipt. I hope my ramblings are helpfull in some way.....

[Chickieepooh2u]

Its hit or miss with out Super W. I have just recently gotten some fish from them and...shocker...they had the Saprolegnia fungus. Well kudos to me for running a quarantine tank. I fixed it immediately with a salt and a temp raise. A few weeks earlier I got some that ended up with Mouth fugnus, again fixed that with some antibiotic. They are all healthy and happy now. I figure I saved their lives. Went and told the Wally world fish lady (claims to be an expert no less) what was wrong and she argued with me. Idiot! Geesh I was willing to donate the salt even! We don't have any big pet stores around, just a couple Mom and Pop operations. (questionable) I tend to go to Earl May to get the good healthy fish. I have never had a problem there and the people actually listen to what you have to say. You might pay a bit more but its well worth it!