Advice with Aquabid

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mr.bigglesworth

mr.bigglesworth

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Feb 19, 2012
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Norcal, East Bay Area
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Ryan
I'm planning on buying some fancy guppies and a male betta (2 different setups for each) on aquabid but before I do ANY of this id like to soak up EVERY strand of information available experience-wise and everybody PLEASE feel free to list their experience with certain sellers both good and bad. I promise not to nag you about it. I am putting the betta in his own 5g setup that I already have setup and cycled for 2 months. The guppies will be going in my community tank(s). I would like to know what type of shipping to use (priority, standard, overnight, 2nd day, etc) and what to look for in a seller. Also whether or not to expect the same quality fish in pictures provided, fry. This is NOT going to be a next-day experience, I am carefully planning this out and will not be placing my order for weeks, maybe even months. This is of course assuming I find something I like, chances are I will though.

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stephybabe88

stephybabe88

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Aug 8, 2010
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They have a place to.read feed back on the seller, next to the name. I have only used it a few times, but everything went very well for me.
 
mjordan29

mjordan29

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Dec 20, 2009
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generally speaking everyone sells a good product. i like lotsoffish a lot. i dislike wetspox (think thats how he spells his name). the thing is, some people sell fish and keep fish as a hobby. the guys that sell them for a living, and post 60 buy it now auctions a week dont have the quality that the hobbiests do. aquabid is a wonderful tool to get your hands on some killer fish! highly recommend, i use to sell on there but since have limited myself to selling mainly on here as i dont sell nearly as much anymore.
 
verbal

verbal

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May 4, 2010
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Jesse
I would start out with a relatively local seller and ship priority for the fish you are talking about. With the betta assuming you are planning on keeping him rather than breeding, get what you like. With the guppies I would start off with a pair and get some high quality specimens. If you are willing to grow them to a decent size, there is usually a decent market for nice guppies.
 
vwill279

vwill279

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Oct 7, 2011
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Be careful buying a betta on aquabid. The vast majority of them are from sellers in Thailand and require you to contact a person (transhipper) in the United states to do the work getting them through customs, etc and shipping them. All of that is your responsibility. Also, the original seller has a shipping price to get it to the US and the "transhipper" also has a fee for shipping so it could very well cost you an extra 60-$100 on top of the price for the betta depending on the shippers. Look for an american flag next to the listing instead of a globe. That generally means they only ship to and from the US.

As for the guppies: Most are breeders in the US but make sure you read the description thoroughly. Some only offer express shipping while some you have to decide between express and priority. Most of them only offer a live arrival guarantee with express. Some offer free shipping as well. Also note that like ebay, once you bid you are committed to buy for that price if you win. You cant decide later you dont want them. Most pictures of the guppies are of the parents and you will get a just mature pair or trio. Usually the seller will note that in the description. Check the feedback also. I dont buy from people who dont have a good description of the fish and of the shipping and I dont buy from people that have negative feedback from 5 or more different buyers in the last 6 months to a year depending on how active they are.
 
mr.bigglesworth

mr.bigglesworth

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Feb 19, 2012
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Norcal, East Bay Area
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Bump, I may have found what I am looking for... Theirs a guy on craigslist that just placed an order on aquabid and now he doesnt want them anymore. So hes giving them away for half the price! :)
 
oo7genie

oo7genie

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Nov 18, 2010
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Eugene, OR
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mjordan29 said:
generally speaking everyone sells a good product. i like lotsoffish a lot. i dislike wetspox (think thats how he spells his name).
Click to expand...
It's wetspot, and they're a very good LFS in the Portland, Oregon area. Best LFS I've ever been to, owned by the guy that runs The Cichlid Exchange, a wholesale (bulk) cichlid business. They have great quality stock for a LFS, including many hard to find species, though I'm sure there are hobbyists/breeders that sell higher quality stock. I love their store, but I've never dealt with them through Aquabid, so I can't speak to their shipping practices, prices, and whatnot.
 
B

Bushkill

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Dec 1, 2011
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Angelo
vwill279 said:
Be careful buying a betta on aquabid. The vast majority of them are from sellers in Thailand and require you to contact a person (transhipper) in the United states to do the work getting them through customs, etc and shipping them. All of that is your responsibility. Also, the original seller has a shipping price to get it to the US and the "transhipper" also has a fee for shipping so it could very well cost you an extra 60-$100 on top of the price for the betta depending on the shippers. Look for an american flag next to the listing instead of a globe. That generally means they only ship to and from the US.

As for the guppies: Most are breeders in the US but make sure you read the description thoroughly. Some only offer express shipping while some you have to decide between express and priority. Most of them only offer a live arrival guarantee with express. Some offer free shipping as well. Also note that like ebay, once you bid you are committed to buy for that price if you win. You cant decide later you dont want them. Most pictures of the guppies are of the parents and you will get a just mature pair or trio. Usually the seller will note that in the description. Check the feedback also. I dont buy from people who dont have a good description of the fish and of the shipping and I dont buy from people that have negative feedback from 5 or more different buyers in the last 6 months to a year depending on how active they are.
Click to expand...
This sums it up for you perfectly, I think especially on the bettas. I tend to rely on the feedback score pretty heavily. If I choose priority, I also consider the time of year. So if it's gonna be hot, have it shipped "hold for pickup" so that the box doesn't get the local delivery truck on a hot day.
 
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