Fish, Local or Order?

[SarahBeth]

I've never even considered ordering fish to be shipped till now. I'd prefer local. There's a few places that have freshwater fish. One of the pet chain places was ok. So what are the ups and downs of ordering online. How do they keep the fish alive? I saw some discus and angel fish that were beautiful but curious about shipping.

 

[Slaphppy7]

Fish usually do very well when being shipped; the downside is the price of shipping, it can be expensive.
Here's one description on how this particular vendor ships fish: https://aquariumfish.net/pages/shipping_details.htm

 

[SarahBeth]

Thanks. Good information. Shipping isn't cheap. I'm gonna look local and then online.

 

[Slaphppy7]

It's sometimes difficult, but try to avoid the box stores, the employees there many times have no clue about proper fishkeeping, and offer ill advice...I'm lucky to have a mom-and-pop near me with a good selection and (mostly) healthy fish.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I would personally get them local. That way you can see exactly what you are buying and what condition they are in.

 

[Wills]

I've found it more compelling to order online at the moment with the lockdowns. I know fish stores are essential businesses as pet shops but I'm choosing not to go as they are super busy right now.

As a flip side I actually think that most online stores are probably more reliable than the average store as they would very quickly get shut down with reviews and comments if they were coming up short. Usually if you are ordering fish online you are reasonably hardcore and would know how to spot bad reviews and patterns in feedback. If you compare this to an average store I'd say you are more likely to spot diseases in the tanks, dirty tanks, problematic attitudes etc where as online if these kind of things happened enough to get commented or reviewed.

I supose its also important to say find reputable companies that have been around and posting for a while and have a good reputation. If I was in the US I'd be looking at stores/breeders like tangled up in cichlids and cichlids of america. There are a couple of others but cant recall their names right now.

Wills

 

[Slaphppy7]

I've found it more compelling to order online at the moment with the lockdowns. I know fish stores are essential businesses as pet shops but I'm choosing not to go as they are super busy right now.

As a flip side I actually think that most online stores are probably more reliable than the average store as they would very quickly get shut down with reviews and comments if they were coming up short. Usually if you are ordering fish online you are reasonably hardcore and would know how to spot bad reviews and patterns in feedback. If you compare this to an average store I'd say you are more likely to spot diseases in the tanks, dirty tanks, problematic attitudes etc where as online if these kind of things happened enough to get commented or reviewed.

I supose its also important to say find reputable companies that have been around and posting for a while and have a good reputation. If I was in the US I'd be looking at stores/breeders like tangled up in cichlids and cichlids of america. There are a couple of others but cant recall their names right now.

Wills

Freshwater Tropical Fish For Sale Online - The Wet Spot Tropical Fish

We specialize in both common and rarely seen freshwater tropical aquarium fish. Come check out the largest variety of fish for sale online!

www.wetspottropicalfish.com

 

[Metalman]

I did consider buying online but I want to go see the fish I will be having in situ & not via a web page with descriptions that sometimes do match what they deliver many times dont lol.
I have a thermal bag I use for my fish and I can prob put 3 sep bags in and keep them secure and warm.
So its a no from the westbury jury on buying fish ? online

 

[SarahBeth]

Fish Store (angelmania.net) I think I've lost it. There are some gorgeous angelfish on this site.

 

[ClownLurch]

I got back into this malarkey during lockdown so ended up ordering as what I really wanted wasn’t available locally. No problems at all shop wise.Some even sent an extra fish for free which obviously helps their reviews.
The only problem was during the pre Xmas covid induced parcel rush which meant couriers were overwhelmed and unable to keep to normal delivery times. The online shop involved then stopped all deliveries in the lead up to Xmas which may have harmed sales but must surely have helped their reputation.

 

[mark4785]

I recently acquired some fish from Sims Tropical Fish via delivery. I think if you want quality fish it is easier to find the best online compared to trying to find the best in a single pet store. I've had so many problems with emaciated, lethargic, deathly looking fish from local fish stores.

The only reasonable downside of taking a fish delivery would be where the supplier has sent out your order when the weather is particularly cold and hazardous which could lead to the delivery being delayed and the fish dying from hypoxia. This has never happened to me so far and a lot of suppliers actively avoid sending out fish when weather conditions deteriorate.

 

[LordHappy]

Happy day...I like ordering online as the options are usually much better than my LFS. I like aquabid.com a lot, and Sachs Aquaculture has some neat local stuff. You could also ask your LFS if they would order you some fish. A benefit of that is that it keeps their doors open, and when you are in a jam and need something fast, they are there to help. I've bought from a lot of the places listed above as well as some betta from Thailand. My only negative experience was with Wetspottropical, where I stupidly did not quarantine the fish and I lost a load of original fish for an unknown reason. That was a disaster. Also, when you order online, ask about the water chemistry to see how closely it matches your own.