petsmart

[dino_eel]

so yesterday i go into petsmart to buy some ghost shrimp, and some frozen mysis shrimp (to use a coupon that expired that day), as I was making my way to the shrimp i notice somthing different, the signs had changed, and a few fishes names had been changed to more accurate ones, for example, the dinosaur eels had been named dinosaur bichir, not only that but the scientific name had been placed under it and the size tank that should be purchaced for that size fish it said 20+. So as i took all of this in I casually glance to my right and my heart almost stopped, African Leaf fish!, then farther on, Red snook cichlids, and most all fish that you only see in the books I saw there, they even had, bumblebee catfish, and albino bichirs, this was too much and unfortonatley I had to leave with some ghost shrimps and some frozen cubes, alas I have not the space for more fish but I will go back and get those leaf fish

p.s
are all the petsmarts changing or is it just the one in Topeka KS?

[Lobo.]

:eek: maybe you need to revamp your name too? :joke:

i sooo hope that you are right! my petsmart has always been decent (only problem is disease...) but lucky you! go buy another tank and buy more fish! this to make shure that you get those fish before some parent buys them for his/her 3 year old, and also to reward the store for doing such a good job, you should send the store a letter that compliments the change!

[Spykce]

The petsmart here has been doing this as well. Leaf fish are almost always in stock now... I don't know how. They have been getting some "rare" fish lately every week. It's really cool!

[dino_eel]

You know lobo thats not a bad idea, I think I will get another tank and right them a letter, oh and i forgot to mention they now also carry gold nugget plecos!

[rosita]

I completely agree with Lobo on writing that PetSmart and commending the aquatic buyers, and also the staff if they do a great job like ours does. It doesn't seem like much, but it's actually a pretty big gesture, and the bobos at the top end up hearing about it as it's positive info.

My sister works for KaiserPermanente HDQTS in SanFran, in public relations, and one of her tasks is to weekly comb the media for mentions about KP--PR is critical for any business today. This could encourage PetSMart as they begin to realize that they have a more sophisticated and educated aquarist market than they thought!!!!!! ~Renee

[Spykce]

the most recent additions to the one here are gold nugget pleco's, ornate bichirs, leaf fish, royal plecs

[dino_eel]

I asked the manager if the new fish were temporary specials, turns out the new fish are here to stay.

[MonoSebaelover]

I work at the Petsmart in FC, and they are completly revamping their system. Our store has had the African Leafs in for years (they are CB that is why we can get them cheaper and easier than anyone else-look at live aquaria they are 39.99!). I don't think our store has Royals or Gold Nuggets, sad day, but we live in an area that people just want cheap fish :(...We used to have discus but they took forever to sell so a lot of the oddities we don't stock :). So aquarium stocking slightly depends on the area, etc. Anyway hope this helps and good luck, I am sure they would love letters on their changes!

[Lauren]

I too have noticed an increase in the quality of petsmart's fish department. The cards that give care and tank size instruction for fish is much better than the old system, where it would simply say: "red wag tail platty, community"

[nursie]

You know lobo thats not a bad idea, I think I will get another tank and right them a letter, oh and i forgot to mention they now also carry gold nugget plecos!
I'm gonna go check mine out!! I'd love one of those!!
The problem I see at ours is the fish are stressed. I think I've seen a leaf fish there too.

I know they are making an effort to hire people with fishkeeping experience. My daughter applied there a couple of summers ago and didn't get the job. They were initially interested when she told them there were fish tanks at home, but lost interest when they found out they are mine, not hers.

[wackydan]

Our local PetSmart's fish dept. is generally well kept, and the selection -by my standards is good. They tend to have more selection and better conditions than some of the mom and pop stores in and around Charlotte, NC.

Leaf fish??? Aren't they brackish?

[snakeskinner]

as has already been stated, it is an across the board change. Some changes are for the better, others I cringe when I read them. I am very pleased as to the different types of fish as well as the "attempt" to be more informative.

I do not intend to bash petsmart or talk badly about them so don't get me wrong, I shop there myself. Beware that many of the sizes and requirements need some revamping. For instance, they now carry bolivian ram's. maximum size..1.5 inches although the fish they have in the store are already larger than the stated maximum size. Of course the bolivian ram is not going to be a problem when it grows to 3 inches instead of 1.5 inches but many of their larger fish are mis-marked as well. I just ask you read about the fish before taking what's written there as factual.

As for the leaf fish, these are not officially leaf fish. The fish Petsmart is carrying is a ctenopoma. I realize these may carry a common name of leaf fish in some markets but they are not like the actual leaf fish. They are related to the gourami's and generally need live foods to survive.

great to see petsmart getting some new fish but would like to have seen them do a little more research on the tags. Kyle

[naps]

as has already been stated, it is an across the board change. Some changes are for the better, others I cringe when I read them. I am very pleased as to the different types of fish as well as the "attempt" to be more informative.

I do not intend to bash petsmart or talk badly about them so don't get me wrong, I shop there myself. Beware that many of the sizes and requirements need some revamping. For instance, they now carry bolivian ram's. maximum size..1.5 inches although the fish they have in the store are already larger than the stated maximum size. Of course the bolivian ram is not going to be a problem when it grows to 3 inches instead of 1.5 inches but many of their larger fish are mis-marked as well. I just ask you read about the fish before taking what's written there as factual.

As for the leaf fish, these are not officially leaf fish. The fish Petsmart is carrying is a ctenopoma. I realize these may carry a common name of leaf fish in some markets but they are not like the actual leaf fish. They are related to the gourami's and generally need live foods to survive.

great to see petsmart getting some new fish but would like to have seen them do a little more research on the tags. Kyle
EXACTLY!!! I just saw all the new fish at Petsmart by me last week and I was really upset. I mean it's cool to see all these new fish, BUT... Pacus tank size was labled at 30g and clown loaches at 20g!! Those were just a few of the ones that I saw and was like WTF!!!

[YoFishboy]

I have found that Petsmart does a much better job with their fish dept. than the other chain that also starts with the word "Pet". Overall, it seems that they train their employees a little better do a good job maintaining their tanks. The Petsmart by me has just moved to a new location, which is actually closer to me now. The only problem is that they actually reduced the size of their display tanks and crowd the fish a bit more. Still, the tanks are disease free, and, with turnover, the fish appear healthy.

[webcricket]

I was also recently surprised by the improvement at Petsmart. I even ventured to purchase some fish since all of the tanks looked wonderful.

The mixture of 5 danios I got were only 99 cents a fish, even for the blue long-finned variety (really gorgeous fish, by the way, and it's cool how all the different colors will still shoal together). The 3 pepper corydoras were a bit pricier at $3.49 each - but the whole tank of them was so active they caught my attention straight away. All the fish are still looking healthy and happy after a couple of weeks. And I completely forgot how much fun a little group of corys can be!

The gentleman working at the store seemed to know his fish stuff. He casually inquired about tank size when I asked for the fish, and actually seemed to care that the fish would be properly cared for.

Good plant and decoration selection there as well.

I was oogling the dwarf puffers they had in stock. Cute little buggers and they seem to have them all the time now. I feel I may need to get a little tank cycled and snag one of them...

[Perdue]

I used to keep aquariums back when I was in high school, and swore off Petsmart at the time because of their tank conditions and such. I'd never bought anything but cories and bettas there and had them make it very long.

I went back to just look around a few days ago...was trying to figure out what I wanted in my 29 gallon because all I had were cories. I found all kinds of fish that I'd never seen in Petsmart, or even some of the smaller shops in the area. The tanks were clean with no dead fish floating around. The stock was lively and all the fish were full of color. I didn't see any leaf fish, but I had always wanted one. Maybe I'll have to set up a second tank and start cycling it just in case :D

[snakeskinner]

as with all stores, you really can't lump the quality of them all together. Just as each LFS is different, so are the chain stores. I used to shop exclusively at one petsmart near my work but since the specialty manager and several of their experienced employees have left, the aquariums have gone badly downhill. Thankfully a newer petsmart was built closer to my work and they've done fairly well so far. Kyle