Stupid Things Fish Store People Say!

[fishoz]

Ok so i went to a fish shop the other day, a small one with one woman working it in. I don't usually go to these sorts of shops cause they usually cram their tanks with millions of fish, but i was after a bristlenose and i couldnt find one anywhere else.
So i ask her if she has any Bristlenoses, and here's how our convo went:
Store lady: you mean the sucker ones?
Me:....yes....
Store Lady: (shows my a "golden sucking catfish")
Me: but they grow to about 10 inches
Store Lady: but these ones are small still
Me: So you expect me to get one and hope it dies before it grows too big?
Store Lady: Well if you get a really small one, it will take ages to grow
Me: Hmm no thanks. Bye!

I went to another store (a big one this time) which had bristlenoses, i told the guy who served me the story, and he said those catfish are really agressive and he hates them! so this woman was trying to sell me aggressive, large catfish instead of a bristlenose lol!

Well I went to another pet shop today, and got talking to a man who worked there. He started telling me how he's got a bristlenose a foot long, and i was like because even I know that bristlenoses grow to around 4 inches, so he blatently didn't know his fish!

It angers me how people can work in a store and know nothing about what they sell.

 

[Amunet]

Yeah, unfortunatly, you're gonna run in to a lot of people like that.

OO I got one, it's not about the employees though...
We were at Petsmart yesterday getting some more Ich treatment and a timer thing when I overhear this from one of the customers.

Woman- OO Hey! These are only 12cents! *pointing at the feeder fish*
Guy- *says something I don't hear*
Woman- Well we're gonna end up killing them anyway, so lets get some! They're only 12 cents!

Me- *facepalm*

 

[rewlyn]

Ok so i went to a fish shop the other day, a small one with one woman working it in. I don't usually go to these sorts of shops cause they usually cram their tanks with millions of fish, but i was after a bristlenose and i couldnt find one anywhere else.
So i ask her if she has any Bristlenoses, and here's how our convo went:
Store lady: you mean the sucker ones?
Me:....yes....
Store Lady: (shows my a "golden sucking catfish")
Me: but they grow to about 10 inches
Store Lady: but these ones are small still
Me: So you expect me to get one and hope it dies before it grows too big?
Store Lady: Well if you get a really small one, it will take ages to grow
Me: Hmm no thanks. Bye!

I went to another store (a big one this time) which had bristlenoses, i told the guy who served me the story, and he said those catfish are really agressive and he hates them! so this woman was trying to sell me aggressive, large catfish instead of a bristlenose lol!

Well I went to another pet shop today, and got talking to a man who worked there. He started telling me how he's got a bristlenose a foot long, and i was like because even I know that bristlenoses grow to around 4 inches, so he blatently didn't know his fish!

It angers me how people can work in a store and know nothing about what they sell.

I FULLY AGREE

the best LFS ive come across is in a little country town
so if you got acces to do so then i would go for a little drive
you could be wasting your time but you never know, i got lucky, you might to

 

[dthoffsett]

I once had an LFS employee (the resident fish expert no less) tell me that the reason my tank got a bacterial infection is that I changed the water too often (she advised to only clean it once a month), thus killing off my benefical bacteria, and that I had too many fish.

At the time I had a 75 gallon tank with around 18 1-inch mbuna juvies (the tank also had 2 filters running) and I changed my water once a week. When I explained to her that most bene bac live in the filter, she disagreed, and said it was just to clean up the gunk. Then she said she knew what she was talking about because she'd worked in a pet store for 5 years, I countered that I had been keeping fish for over 10.

And all I had wanted to know was if they carried the meds in a larger pack since I had to treat the whole tank. I never went back to that store again.

 

[fishoz]

Woman- OO Hey! These are only 12cents! *pointing at the feeder fish*
Guy- *says something I don't hear*
Woman- Well we're gonna end up killing them anyway, so lets get some! They're only 12 cents!

Me- *facepalm*

LOL!! that's horrible!!! poor fishies!

 

[LauraFrog]

dthoffset - reminds me of this time I was in one of my least favourite pet stores. They treat their fish like @#%$. I rescue the odd betta when I have the space and money, and there was a pretty little guy that I thought one of the other betta people would like (we've got sort of a pay it forward thing going on with rescues). So I was getting him and I pointed out that many of the other bettas were not able to sit straight in the water because there was so little of it, and that some were floating on their sides gasping and had dropsy. I was told that they need containers this small to feel secure, and that the fish with dropsy were perfectly fine and that they were always like that. When I argued, she'd been in the industry for six years and apparently knew what she was talking about...

They drive me crazy that lot... they sell these kits with a tank, gravel, plant, a few cheap decorations, filtration, heater, lighting, water treatment, cheap food, about three times the correct number of fish, then a bottle of broad spectrum medication (formalin/meth blue/malachite green) to kill off all the fish dying from the resultant cycle spike. You cannot tell some people... they're also rip off artists, want $40 for a leeri gourami and $850 for some L number plecs. They weren't even that rare, L222 and L091.

 

[catxx]

The 12 cent feeder fish thing is so ridiculous. They shouldn't sell fish that cheap for that exact reason! If I want a healthy fish I don't mind paying a silly amount for it.

FishOz - was the "golden sucking catfish" actually a Chinese Algae Eater, not a catfish?

 

[fishoz]

catxx, you could be right! ive seen it labelled as a "golden sucking fish" in another pet shop too, and it had details about it growing up to 10 inches.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Sorry, but that isn't very bad at all...

 

[dthoffsett]

dthoffset - reminds me of this time I was in one of my least favourite pet stores. They treat their fish like @#%$. I rescue the odd betta when I have the space and money, and there was a pretty little guy that I thought one of the other betta people would like (we've got sort of a pay it forward thing going on with rescues). So I was getting him and I pointed out that many of the other bettas were not able to sit straight in the water because there was so little of it, and that some were floating on their sides gasping and had dropsy. I was told that they need containers this small to feel secure, and that the fish with dropsy were perfectly fine and that they were always like that. When I argued, she'd been in the industry for six years and apparently knew what she was talking about...

They drive me crazy that lot... they sell these kits with a tank, gravel, plant, a few cheap decorations, filtration, heater, lighting, water treatment, cheap food, about three times the correct number of fish, then a bottle of broad spectrum medication (formalin/meth blue/malachite green) to kill off all the fish dying from the resultant cycle spike. You cannot tell some people... they're also rip off artists, want $40 for a leeri gourami and $850 for some L number plecs. They weren't even that rare, L222 and L091.

Yup, I love people who assume they are experts because they have worked in a store for X number of years. That's like saying if I've working at Ford for 5 years, I'm an expert on designing and building all cars.

 

[mwood2]

Had the a similar experiance at petsmart the other day. I saw a MANAGER trying to sell a couple a fish bowl that was under even a gallon and claimed you can keep 2 small goldfish inside. I said anything that size isnt suitable for any fish and that for the price you pay for everything you might as well go for a 10 gallon which would end up at almost the same caust and give you a better experience. I also mentioned that goldfish need 30 gallons for 1. Manager shruged it off and said i was right but kept on insisting on a bowl. a nice 10 gallon setup can be done for under 100 bucks if you know what to suggest

In terms of cost my way would have racked in more money. I was at petsmart and helped out a couple being helped out by someone who worked there. The people asked what heater was best and while the employee was thinking I simple said 5 watts per gallon is recommended but to keep in mind that while you may have more or less watts to keep in mind that you will need to adjust the heaters temp differently then the tanks temp itself depending on its size and that using dual heaters may be beneficial in case one fails. From there they suggest a air pump and I told them that it isn't something necessary and was more for fun then needed. I then showed them heaters and explained that the most recommended HoB would be Aqua Clear seeing as many people here highly recommend it and i use it myself. I explained the differance between saw a Tetra Brand and Aqua Clear in Detail and helped them then pick up a test kit. In total I helped get 100+ in sales due to explaining whats best and price vs effectiveness. I also noticed that no matter who I talked to that worked there they have no idea as to the hardware. Knowing that makes a bigger sale then fish ever can.

Sad things is I had an interview at that very petsmart and they almost hired me if it wasn't for me needing to work both jobs for 3 months to keep my health benefits. They just dont understand that if they changed there stock and worked on there tanks a bit they didn't need to be shady in there sales to make a profit.

 

[Darkstar]

It angers me how people can work in a store and know nothing about what they sell.

That's the same with almost everything which gets sold...however the more important aspect is that the buyer should know what they're buying, which is far more important than the seller knowing what they're selling.

 

[mwood2]

Well considering its a live animal/pet thats being sold there should be some base understanding. Not only that but most pet stores claim to offer training to all employees even if they dont work that section.

 

[Darkstar]

Well considering its a live animal/pet thats being sold there should be some base understanding. Not only that but most pet stores claim to offer training to all employees even if they dont work that section.

define basic...

They no doubt do have a basic understanding, but everyone who goes into a fish shop expects said lfs employee basic understanding of the fish they intend to buy so in reality your expecting every lfs empolyee to have a full understanding of every fish they sell....which could hardly be considered a 'basic' understanding.
It's a false expectation to expect a shop which like most lfs's have a high tunrover rate of staff and expect them to be fully trained or even have a basic understanding of every fish which could be sold....and then to have a full understanding of filtration, tank requirements, plants, lighting etc etc etc...

frankly with the expectations that are expected here of lfs staff....none of us here would meet that requirement either, unless you're going to tell me that you could walk into a fish shop and know the requirements of every fish that is sold.

 

[arobinson1984]

I understand what darkstar is saying, in these big stores with low staff retention rates it would be hard to ensure all the staff were trained to that high level of knowledge, a level that only really comes with extensive research and experience.

What really annoys me is when lfs will deliberately give misleading info to make a sale. It wouldn't bother me so much if i asked a question and the employee simply said "I'm sorry but I don't no" but rather than that many of the big companies tell their employees exactly what to say and in more cases than not it is the wrong information completely

Andy