Even More Shocked

[pen306]

hi guys,

i know this probably doesn't concern many of you, as your not from my area,

but over the few months ive been keeping fish i have found the LFS i got alot of my darlings from

have been mis-named and he has also sold me alot of plants that are not even aquatic,

i have only found this out through other members comments on my pictures ( so thank you to all of you who did so)

the same goes for members telling me what my little darlings are as a

few i thought i owned.... i dont .....and others i didnt think i did ......i do ( you follow lol)

today yet again he manged to shock me

he has firemouth cichlids as good community fish .....

and

iridescent sharks under caption of only growning upto 12" ( with no detail stating they can grow much bigger,


blue rams which need soft water but around here water is 7.5p.h

there is no notice up saying they would need to be within soft water ....and he had placed an order in for rams for me awhile back as i wanted some,

instead i brought bolivian rams from the water zoo,

as the man there explained to me in full when questioned the irons within harder water would be harmful to the blue ram and obviously i didnt want to do that...


so faith is now lost in the LFS and can you wonder at it....


20years he has been there, god help the fish bless them...

i think there should be notices / details up on shown FOR ALL SPEICES

i just wanted to share this with you all.

sorry if ive moaned too much
thanks for reading & have a good day ;-)

 

[scoloujo]

I have the total opposite experience from mine as you see in my thread they are based in Kent though so I dont know if its any good for you. When I first started out I had a s**t LFS that sold me 9 fish for a non cycled tank before I found this forum so I know that alot are c**p. thats why we should big up the good guys.

 

[Truck]

blue rams which need soft water but around here water is 7.5p.h

some rams have been breed to live in hard water conditions, and they can use ph buffers also.

 

[Athena]

blue rams which need soft water but around here water is 7.5p.h

some rams have been breed to live in hard water conditions, and they can use ph buffers also.

I was going to say the same thing - I live in a hard water area with Ph on high side - and yet Blue Rams are very popular amongst the fishkeepers in my location. My little male GBR is doing very well since I bought him a few months back. The young and very small female GBR I bought wasn't very healthy from day one - got white spot and a bacterial infection as I think she was just too small and sensitive to the move from the shop to my tank. She didn't survive but I don't believe that was down to the PH. The male has flourished beautifully.

Athena

 

[Corleone]

I can probably outdo everything you've said with an LFS rundown in my area. My particular favorite were the "Salt-and-Pepper Tiger Barbs." These are regular tiger barbs with ich, and cost an extra dollar. We've all seen some horrible stuff, and the more you shop around, the worse it gets.

Ultimately, responsibility has to start at home. A store that gives bad information can still sell good fish (and one that gives good information can sell bad fish), it just puts the load on you to learn everything you can, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

 

[aaronnorth]

I can probably outdo everything you've said with an LFS rundown in my area. My particular favorite were the "Salt-and-Pepper Tiger Barbs." These are regular tiger barbs with ich, and cost an extra dollar.

i wouldnt know wether to laugh, or look gone out at them lol

 

[Honeythorn]

I have a truly ghastly shop in a shopping center near me, I have heard some horrendous advice given. Most fish stores label their tanks, but the labels are small and most people don't bother to read them, or don't even notice they are there.

I think there should be much larger signs stating how big fish can grow, what size tank they need and what numbers they are suitable to be kept in at the bare minimum , such as cories needing to be in groups of at least 4, but preferably more , or that goldfish grow up to 14 inches, or that Red tailed Black sharks are quite territorial ect .

 

[agutt]

while i was in one store near me, the salesperson was trying to sell fish to some customers that had dead fish in the tank with them. When the customers asked about the dead fish she replied "I haven't gotten a chance to clean the tanks yet" I should also mention that the tank was completely murky and the fish did not look so great.

 

[pen306]

i totally agree with Honeythorn when she mentioned about what size tank a speice needs and what numbers they are suitable to be kept in at the bare minimum , such as cories needing to be in groups of at least 4, but preferably more , or that goldfish grow up to 14 inches, or that Red tailed Black sharks are quite territorial ect

as i know people who only have one of a speice, and its a shame when they are all alone or have not got enough room to thrive if there are too many of...
[sup]
THIS IS BAD[/sup]

as a friend of mine brought a fish tank a tiny corner one about a 5-6 gallon from a pub auction, he was told fill it and run it without fish for 30days then put fish in it... (DIDNT EVEN CLEAN IT OUT) just filled it with plain tap water then........

once he did that went to our LFS after explaing what size tank he had, he then asked what he needed and what he could put in it.........

he came HOME with

smallest tub fish food ever

a bala shark
a red tailed black shark
6 Rummy-nose Tetra
4 Silver Tip Tetra
and went to another shop this weekend for some more.... of another type he said...!!

NOW i DID explained to him about cycling and he said he does not need to as the LFS had not told him to.... he does not use any testers he just put water in and heater on 26c
i keep trying to explain but it goes of deaf ears...

He has been told if the bala shark grows too big for the tank to take it back to the LFS .... well nice!! not the advice i'd of expected

 

[Tropicoll]

As there are a number of us in the UK, would it be possible for you to either share the name of the LFS or at least let us know which general area its in?

I would be more than tempted to take your findings to an authority - trading standards perhaps?

 

[pen306]

As there are a number of us in the UK, would it be possible for you to either share the name of the LFS or at least let us know which general area its in?

I would be more than tempted to take your findings to an authority - trading standards perhaps?

oh sorry yes it in lincolnshire

i will look into this further thankyou

 

[kniesh]

What you have to understand is that these places are business's primarily. Only the top few percent of shops will give good advice constantly, hence why these are the best. The main thing I see wrong with shops is when they are asked about size and say, "oh, in a 3 foot tank it will stop growing at around 6/7 inches" This remark obviously leaves out the fact that it is an abnormality that the fishes hormones kick in in order to stop the fishes growth, and therefore stunt it, which leads to an early death in most cases.

Now although I understand the frustration from many fishkeepers on here (and this is the most conservation minded forum I have been on) it is not really the shops fault. The fault lies with the laws surrounding the sales of fish. Untill these are tightened this will just continue. Not buying from these shops is also not that great an idea as it will probably not end this shop giving bad advice, nor will it have a big enough effect on the shops takings to help.

I actually work opposite. If I see fish labelled wrong that I know and am capable of housing, I will buy it. This means that this indiviual fish gets the proper care it needs, instead of a probable short painful life. And a shop I know only sells these fish correctly? Well, they will all most likely be going to good homes anyway so thinking of the individual fish it makes sense to me.

I know that is certainly not the solution, but avoiding these shops completely is also not going to be the answer. Not buying fish wont hurt their profits unless EVERYONE does it. This simply wont happen as the general fishkeeper just doesnt research as much as people on here. People who use these forums are a small minority of people who actually keep fish, the ones who want to care for their pet correctly!! The majority get it to look pretty and follow whatever they are told by the shop.

Saying that, not buying the more profitable things, like filters and heaters etc. is a much better way to go. All these are just small steps though, and untill the laws surrounding the sales of these fish are changed, it will continue

 

[pippoodle]

PETS at HOME in exeter is really bad for fish i only ever go there for planted bogwood and the companion care vets practice as they have a bird specialist and a vet who specialises in dogs with epilepsy (my poodle has it)
I will not buy any fish from them as they always have dead ones and ill ones in the tanks - lots of them not just the odd one or two

I wouldnt buy the planted bogwood from them but they have the tropica plants and no where else around here sells it

To get my fish i use maidenhead aquatics in teignmouth - they are a brilliant fish store - i have never seen an ill fish in there which is very rare for a fish store - all the fish look happy and healthy and the tanks always look clean

I buy filter stuff from etc from them or ebay

 

[drobbyb]

It's not just me then. It's everywhere apparently.