Irresponsible options at your LFS

got_nailed said:
There is a rack of tanks at my LFS that only the mangers will sell. I think this would work for most LFS so at least part of the odd stuff the manager will ask some questions to see if you should have that fish, and are able to take care of it.
As I mentioned before, like in my store, manager will say anything to make a sale.
 
I doubt they're selling great whites considering they're threatened in all U.S. waters and endangered in South African and Australian waters. No organization or individual to date has kept a great white alive in captivity for more than a few days. It is suspected that once the shark realizes that they are contained they just let themselves die. They only get a documented 24 feet long with what are considered large individuals reaching only 18-19 feet. Like someone said earlier they were probably carribean reef sharks. Those are the best non-bottom deweling shark for a "home aquarium". Best shark for a home tank would be some of the smaller cat sharks.
 
i have seen baby alligators for sale for $150 at one of my lfs. they also had a 500 tank to house a 3 ft alligator, i mean come on now, who wants a pet alligator??
 
on the up side! ( and down side to)

Yesterday, I went "shopping" yes, for fish but more to find some place that would have somebody there to help out and answer any questions I might have.
I'll not name names yet except in the positive.
First place I stopped at . The fish looked good. They went to the trouble to "code" each tank as far as community, aggressive, etc. But while I was standing there, they sold two BIG fantail goldfish to a lady with a goldfish bowl in her hand for purchase.
Second place,
Tanks looked like they hadn't been cleaned in a hundred years but they had a great variety! :rolleyes:
While I was standing there, An obvious dumb college kid(please don't take offence on the college kid reference) comes in with a small piece of paper in his hand. It read CLOWN LOACH. First tank the "salesman" showed him had a bunch of 1-2" CL's in it and he said they weren't big enough. and I quote " I need a big one to fill out my 10 gallon tank"!!!!! Sold him a 14 dollar 6" clown loach! :mad: :mad2 !!!!

Now for the pleasant surprise :dance
After what I had experienced in my travels thru town I figured I couldn't do any worse by stopping at PETSMART!
I wondered in and looked at all the fish. Everything in good condition and healthy looking. I was hunting for 3 or 4 Cory cats and a few clown loaches for my 55 gallon.
Had a nice young lady ask me if I needed any help and I replied yes! First words out of her mouth were "how big of a tank do you have and what do you have in it? “Now I'm impressed! First time that has happened to me!
She went on to ask me if I'd cycled the tank and what my levels were.
She was friendly enough but I definitely got the impression that if I didn't have the right answers, she wasn't going to sell me a guppy. Let alone the 4 Cory cats and 2 clown loaches that I bought.
If you happen to read this Susan, Thanks!
 
I work at petco, and thats how I start out with every one of my customers. It keeps things easy for both them and me.

We have some fish that I cant even belive we get in. in our 150gal we have some 2" Irredescent sharks and some 4" bala sharks. I only sell the balas if the customer answers 55gal or larger, and to this day I have yet to allow any of my customers to buy the Irredescent sharks. They say they want "that silver one" and point it out. I then remind them that with a 10 gallon tank they will never be able to house that fish, and I will refuse sale if they persist. Then of course they want to talk to my manager, so I get him, and he tells them the same thing. I also refuse to sell goldfish for bowls(sp?) and will only let them go to a 10 gal if they prommise me that they either have a bigger tank, or a pond for the fish to go into.

I was shocked this last friday to find a red snapper in our saltwater shipment. Our little tag says that these guys get 36" long!!!! Nobody who I've talked to shopping at petco has a salt setup large enough to house this guy!!!!! I just hate to see what happens if nobody buys him.... We cant keep him thats for sure.
 
xytrix01 said:
I was shocked this last friday to find a red snapper in our saltwater shipment. Our little tag says that these guys get 36" long!!!! Nobody who I've talked to shopping at petco has a salt setup large enough to house this guy!!!!! I just hate to see what happens if nobody buys him.... We cant keep him thats for sure.

Wow! Red Snapper happens to be my favorite SW fish. I prefer them blackened and served with a loaded baked potato. Sorry, I keep fish, but I still eat them.
 
My LFS always has Pangasius cat for sale (cos they look like sharks :roll: ) they never tell anyone how big they grow :( and I've seen full grown ones - who has the room for even a 2ft fish let alone a fish 3ft long?? as far as I can tell they at least don't seem to stock painted fish but there again those mossy tiger barbs look a little too mossy to me :(
 
I would someday love to have a few thousand gallon coldwater tank. I would love to house some 3 ft. bass, catfish, you know local monsters. Unfortunately, I don't have the tank, and don't need to buy them. I think that if a petstore is going to sell a fish, then they should HAVE to take it back, especially if it outgrows a tank(most of the fish labeled as tankbusters). I bet that after they had to house a few monster fish, and the expense involved, they wouldn't sell them anymore, don't you think?
 
Raskolnikov said:
What's the most blatantly obvious "not for the hobby" fish that you've seen in your LFS?
I've seen plenty of pacus, SA red tail cats, and blue cats, but the fish available at the store near me trumps them all. They have true alligator gars for sale now. :rant: Why, oh why?


I dont think there is anything irresponsible about selling any of those fish.

I think its irrresposible for people to go out and buy them without doing their research.




People need to be resposible for their own actions these days ;)
 
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