Online fish vendors?

[Laughncat]

Hey all!

I was wondering who has dealt with online fish dealers and what your experiances have been. I've seen some beautiful fish at some online sites that most of my LFSs just doesn't seem to be able to aquire right now (or in some cases, I don't trust them to aquire them for me ). An example would be the cobra red guppies at Aquariumfish.com. I have not seen these ANYWHERE in my area and I asked one of my LFSs about it and they just gave me a bit of a blank look.

I'm apprehensive though about ordering online. How are they usually shipped? Are there in vendors that are more recommended then others? I worry about ending up with dead fish in a box and then having to call the company up and try and convince them that they arrived that way. Or worse yet, my new fish prove to be deformed or something

Any info would be invaluable to me. Thank you!

 

[andyt_uk]

i know there is a company in the UK that deliver fish, and guarantees live delivery, i believe they have a small heat pack in the water to keep them warm in transit.
sorry cant remember the name but would be no good for the US anyway.
i'd simply recommend contacting any prospective mail order supplier for what guarantees they offer

HTH

 

[MAM]

keep in mind that most charge around $25 to $30 for shipping costs, that they won't deliver to p.o. boxes and quite often have other special requirements upon delivery to help guarantee your fish arrive alive. it might be cheaper to just ask one of your lfs to order some for you from their supplier. it may tack on to the price some, but probably not as much as the shipping from a web seller would be. i know that at one store, i asked about a fish and next time i went in, they had stocked it. give it a shot, you might just save a little money.

 

[Lithril]

Andy I think the one you're talking about in the UK is TRIMAR they charge 10 quid for delivery but have a massive selection, saying that I've never ordered anything off of them myself buy I know that AA has

 

[guppymonkey]

Online buying is only good if you buy in large numbers. Many places have a minimum buy or they won't send stuff. Its also impossible to get a really good look at the fish if you get it from an online store. AND its pretty expensive. While you can get a hold of fish that are hard to find in some areas its usually more hassle than its worth.

I asked my petstore to special order certain types of fish before and its worked for me. You could try doing that.

 

[Laughncat]

Thanks for all the advice. Although I'm dubious of my local LFSs, I guess I'll give one or two of the better ones a try with my requests. I had wondered about shipping costs, but they weren't at the top of my list. Didn't realize that shipping was so outrageous (although I should have ). It's enough to make one sick

Anyway, thank you for everything. If anyone else has any thing to add, please do!