goldfries, that's all well and good but trust me when I say there is a much wider selection of fish on line. The area I live in has incredibly hard, alkalline water. As a result I can get ANY African Cichlid ever exported for the hobby. My problem? I really like SA cichlids. Since most require soft, acidic water pet stores don't bring them in. I have to find some other source and bring them in myself.
I also have an affinity for very expensive fish. This causes a couple of problems.
1. Most pet stores have a hard time stocking fish that retail for more than $30 or so because they sit on them for too long to justify the cost. Also, the average fish wholesaler does not carry really exotic fish which means the LFS would have to special order the fish from a specialized source. These special orders are typically small and the freight tacks a lot onto the cost of the fish making them even more expensive.
2. If a pet store orders fish from the same source as myself they have to mark it up and a $30 fish is now listed at a minimum of $60 and as high as $120.
Buying fish online has opened up a whole new world of fish keeping to many people. They can now get fish that before now were only availble via pictures in books and magazines.
I also have an affinity for very expensive fish. This causes a couple of problems.
1. Most pet stores have a hard time stocking fish that retail for more than $30 or so because they sit on them for too long to justify the cost. Also, the average fish wholesaler does not carry really exotic fish which means the LFS would have to special order the fish from a specialized source. These special orders are typically small and the freight tacks a lot onto the cost of the fish making them even more expensive.
2. If a pet store orders fish from the same source as myself they have to mark it up and a $30 fish is now listed at a minimum of $60 and as high as $120.
Buying fish online has opened up a whole new world of fish keeping to many people. They can now get fish that before now were only availble via pictures in books and magazines.
