LFS Experience

[Canadian]

Back in the day Pets West (despite their pitiful selection) used to be really good about holding fish. In fact, you could simply show up, say you wanted a certain fish, they'd write on the tank that the fish was on hold for you and you didn't have to pay a dime to do so. Ah, the good ol' days . . . Of course that was back when a Flame Angel was on sale for $199 and you had to wait a couple of months for one to finally make its way into town.

Another good bet is to become buddy-buddy with someone at the store. That way they can keep an eye on the fish for you, and give it a little extra attention (careful feedings etc.) to ensure it's healthy prior to leaving the store, destined for your tank.

Brad, what store used to do that? (If you don't mind posting it online) I don't think I ever saw that scam pulled and I've seen some of the most shady LFS-types to ever exist come and go ;)

[Aquattro]

Andrew, it was Safari Pets while under the last owner. I was witness to this and other horrific business practices with him running the store. I was even the "victim" once. Thankfully his career in the pet industry was short lived.

On a different note, what does the reefing future hold for you? Finished school yet?

[fishnut]

I have both a 20g quarantine/hospital tank, and a 55g holding tank, which I use before adding any new fish to the display tank.

If a nice fish comes into the store, it will likely be gone if not purchased right away - however, I prefer to have the store hold the fish for 2 weeks before bringing it home, in order to see if it is eating and adjusting well to captivity, and to lessen the stress of being moved twice in a very short space of time.

That being said, I guess it is a calculated risk to leave it at the store, the only advantage being that this particular owner can diagnose disease better than I. Feedings and water quality are excellent at this shop - perhaps an agreement in writing at the time of purchase, stipulating the conditions of total or partial refund (if any) would be helpful.

Sometimes it just seems that once they have your money, you are at their mercy, as in the case of the unscrupulous dealer who sold the fish and then said it had died, in a previous post.

[Canadian]

I sort of assumed it was at Safari Pets - when I was there it was a full time job just trying to keep that guy and his father honest, let alone take care of the tanks and such.

How's the reefing scene in Victoria looking now anyway? The only place I've been into in the last year was Creatures, and their saltwater selection is basically non-existent now. I would assume that it's dwindling a bit in light of the fact that most people in the hobby are now well aware of J&L Aquatics.

My reefing future looks bleak. I'm not even going to fathom setting up another tank until I'm finished classes, and that could be a long way off due to the fact that I'm considering doing my Masters.

[ron101]

does this apply to special orders? I don't think so, I think that only applies to normaly stocked items. IMHO if you special ordered a fish, they were right in making you pay up front with a no return/exchange.

Yes and no. If the lfs receives a healthy specimen and informs you of its arrival and gives you a reasonable amount of time to pick it up, then yes the customer should be expected to pay in full. If on the other hand the specimen in obviously unhealthy then the lfs should offer credit, a substitute, order another, or if possible nurse it back to health.

When a customer places an order it is, unless otherwise specified, for a non-defective product. So IMO it really depends if fishnut placed and payed for an advanced order or if he made a casual request to the lfs and what, if any, policies the store has.

[Aquattro]

Originally posted by Canadian:


How's the reefing scene in Victoria looking now anyway?

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Going downhill, I'm afraid. We had potential with one store, but that went away. Safari has lowered prices to be competitive for the Vic market(which doesn't mean much) and the fish seem to be in decent shape. Rock and coral prices are still out the window...$15/lb for marshall rock. A recent near dead m. capricornus was priced at $120....kinda silly...
Hillside tries to offer corals at good prices, but J&L is still the source for almost all my purchases. Some of the other online shops are OK, but shipping is more to Vic.
Good luck with the Masters....lots of work ahead with that!!

[Troy F]

Originally posted by Canadian:
My reefing future looks bleak. I'm not even going to fathom setting up another tank and that could be a long way off due to the fact that I'm considering doing my Masters.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">How many Masters do you have? :D

[Canadian]

Oh you're one sick puppy Troy, but I like it! :D

[Troy F]

:D