Walmart Shaping Up?

[thelastbetta]

So I went into walmart today and took a look at their bettas for the first time in around two months. Man did they ever have a LOT (I'd say at least 40 or 50 all together) but to my surprise I noticed their cups were bigger, cleaner, had actually air holes and most shocking of all, care tips right on the lid. The size is about 5 inches in length on both sides and around 4 inches in depth (compared to the half an inch in length/width and no more then 3 inch depth cups they were in before).

Has anyone else noticed this in their walmart? Or is this 'normal' and my walmart is incredibly slow?

That's my new boy up there too. My one and only betta since I had to get rid of all my others during my move.

OH! And I forgot to mention there is now a '2 week guarantee on all fish including bettas and that if any die of whatever reason within that time they'll replace the fish free of charge'. That surprised me.

 

[vancouver]

Well the wal mart by me (Canada), doesn't use those containers.. they use actual little tank thingies they sell.. They're probably about 1/4 of a gallon, but that's bigger then those containers.

When I was in the US and looked at bettas at wal mart, they were in those same containers.

It really depends where you go. Of the 2 wal marts around here, 1 is alright, and the other is horrible. So it really depends on where you go.

 

[ScoutCarcer]

Maybe its just your walmart is just slow because every walmart ive went to had those containers

 

[lisie]

Maybe its just your walmart is just slow because every walmart ive went to had those containers

Same. But my WalMart's guarantee is for 3 days, not 2 weeks... and they're often not very clean.

 

[afireinside]

Ya, the walmart I go to has always had those containers. Yes, walmart is remotely shaping up too. I see the tanks clean every time I go now. Except for those gold fish tanks

 

[Betta_luver]

Oh myn uses those cups all right But only fills them up a little way. The tanks are filthy the plants they started selling are ALL dead. Just the cups and they don't even use them right *sighs* Both of my walmarts.

 

[liz2]

so these are the cups you guys go on about! OMG and I get mad at our lfs keeping them in breeding traps.

 

[afireinside]

I use these, but I never keep the betta in it. I really don't like to use nets to transfer, so I use the net, get the fishy, and put him in the cup. Easy transfer. I think it leaves the fish less stressed.

 

[BubblPopElectrc]

Yeah, the walmart here uses those too.

Off topic (kinda), but it is kinda unusual how bettas are priced differently at different Walmarts.. here (VA) they are only $3.47.

 

[Booboo puppy]

The WM cups here aren't as big as the one pictured. =(

 

[Synirr]

B)-->QUOTE(Kyle B @ May 13 2006, 05:08 PM) [snapback]1184240[/snapback]

Off topic (kinda), but it is kinda unusual how bettas are priced differently at different Walmarts.. here (VA) they are only $3.47.
[/quote]
Here too (Texas).

The cups are usually like that at my Walmart, but on rare occasion a shipment will come in in the smaller cups. Just FYI, it's not the individual stores that put the fish in there or that choose the cup size, the fish come shipped that way from the supplier, so what they come in probably has to do with what supplier the store uses. Unless the store saves up cups from dead fish, chances are, like mine, they don't even have extras on hand if needed.

One time someone had dumped two in the same cup and apparently threw the extra cup away, and an employee was back there when I noticed so I asked if he had an extra cup... he said no and didn't even offer to help further, even after I explained the problem and that the fish would die if we didn't split them up! I checked the cabinets myself to make sure, then just dumped one of the bettas into one of the main tanks. The employee didn't protest.

 

[soritan]

During Bettamomma's last days, she was emailing Walmart execs fairly often, and in one of her final letters, the reps responded by saying that they were going to make the cup sizes larger... I think that it might be beginning to see actuation.

Without intending to sound like a jackass (and managing to feel like one): ... but... how could any fish store sell a betta to make you all happy?


A place sells in cups: people complain.
A place sells in breeder traps: people complain.

I suspect that betta sales is a big honking pile of "You can make some of the people happy some of the time, but you can't make all of the people happy all of the time."

 

[Synirr]

I'm with you soritan! Personally, I'm happy with my local Walmart right now. They have the larger cups and they're actually relatively clean most of the time. They've had two fish that are very unusual and thus recognizable for nearly two weeks, a DT female and a male plakat, and both are still in perfect health and appear lively, so that's about the best I could ever ask for

 

[Rynoah]

I can honestly say that our Wal*Mart has shaped up where bettas are concerned. I used to walk through the fish aisle and feel extremely sorry for the beautiful bettas that were kept in those tiny cups. They didn't have room to turn around, nor surface for air because the water levels were so low. They began using the larger cups a couple years ago. The water quality isn't all that wonderful, though, and the water they use is still blue (which I never understood the purpose of). I have yet to see any breed other than veiltail, though. I guess we're the unlucky ones so far.

I've also noticed that they've stopped restocking the shelf until all bettas are sold. I've been in and out of there the past few days, and each day, the shelf has gotten emptier and emptier (only three left tonight, when I checked) in that time with no refills. I think it's their way of getting them all good homes so that they don't get neglected and die off from being kept in the cup too long.

 

[Synirr]

(which I never understood the purpose of).

It's an additive that contains methylene blue, possibly among other things. Methylene blue is an antifungal and antiparasitic med. Jungle Bag Buddies are good to add to the water when shipping fish and they turn the water blue, so I'm pretty sure they contain it. Anyway, it's definitely good for the fish, so be glad it's there . It either means the suppliers care enough to prevent a problem, or there was a problem and they care enough to medicate it.