Buying New Fish
- Thread starter Uncle Albert
- Start date
I buy local. I have a couple chain stores to choose from. The really good indie lfs is in the next town south of here and I just don't get down that way very often at all. Plus, there is a chain store here (Pet Supplies Plus) which has a fish distributor who'll order anything you like that he can get hold of. He's in on Tuesdays, or was a couple of years ago, which is the last time I had any money to speak of to spend on fish. I'll probably need to go there to get a pair of Bolivian rams. Their fish nearly always look good too. Their fish section really looks more like an indie store setup than any chain store I've seen. If you can ask around locally, you may find a good source. I heard about this guy through the grapevine.
Before we had a local fish store (LFS), we used to go on fish store tours up to two or three hours away. I generally prefer to buy fish I can see.
I've heard really good things about LiveAquaria.com for fish. I've bought saltwater corals from there, but never fish. The packaging and quality was great. I believe That Fish Place also sells quality livestock. The downside is that shipping is expensive, especially if you're only buying a few low-cost items. Larger quantities or more expensive items seem to balance out the cost of shipping.
I've heard really good things about LiveAquaria.com for fish. I've bought saltwater corals from there, but never fish. The packaging and quality was great. I believe That Fish Place also sells quality livestock. The downside is that shipping is expensive, especially if you're only buying a few low-cost items. Larger quantities or more expensive items seem to balance out the cost of shipping.
For me it just depends on what I want. For tropicals I hit either the chain stores or the one good LFS here in town (I have ordered online once). Since my interest is mainly native fish I have to order those if I cant catch them myself, but I know a few good sellers that I trust and have taken good care of me in the past.
online is just way too expensive. I have a good store here at school that I trust that I have gotten to know pretty well and another back home that I dont know as well but is even better so I dont need to order online to pay for shipping. As long as there is a store that you can get good fish that wont die on you in a week then go for it. Saves a lot of money on shipping.