# Should walmart have the right to sell fish.



## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

I mena cmon i dont know about were u live but here our walmart doesnt have anyone that works their. They haveto page over for some one to come and by the time that happenes u waited for over an hour and paged over 10 times. Then when they come they get fish mixed up and u end up paying more money for a fish thats very cheap. U can of coarse go back before u pay and say hey u gave me the wrong fish and they switch. The thing that reall gets me though is that they dont tell u how to take care of it at home and then THEY cant even take care of the fish in THEIR store. BETTAS they are over stocked i see same bettas their same places everyday. I gave them all names already. They order so much then nobody buys them now and they die their is a small little container. SO they just order more to replace the dead bettas. They dont even feed them thats horrible so so many bettas to starve to death that way. WHOS WITH ME.


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## Thunderkiss (Mar 19, 2005)

probably not, but i doubt it will change soon. Hell, here in N.H., ben franklins (an arts and crafts store) now sell fish!!!! makes me cry on the inside.


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

lol its sad though i think u should be licenced to sell fish like store wise. And their should be people like health inspectors but for fish. They shoudl come when they feel like and giv eno mercy to walmart.


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

lol sick thought but oscars love it i bet. At least the big ones if they live that long. Im goign to report them at least try.


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

Wal-mart has grown so big it's i'm sure become pretty hard to stop them. It really all depends on who works there, i mean look at how the one up where Lexus works, am sure she did her best on the tanks, i mean you can't control what comes in but it's really all in the upkeep and advice there.. Not sayin i would buy from there, i just really think it's all in the people who work the area, which majority of time are not know a thing what their doing.


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

LMAO LMAO LMAO that came out of no were baby.


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

they dont tell you anything about the fish because they dont know. they just need to find someone with an interest in fishkeeping and put them in that department. (thats where lexus was like mp mentioned) but i understand your point it is pretty sad..thats how my walmart is, only your waiting 2 hours haha. I still never buy fish there, just supplies, and even still i limit that


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## Mr Aquarium (Jan 18, 2005)

yeah yeah yeah, this same old thing gets started ever other week in every forum around, it aint going to stop, nobody is going to get it stopped, no matter who you call, how many patitions you sign, yaada yaada yaada, nothing is going to change,,,,,,

Plzzz can we ban this topic in the forums..........

Save A Fish Buy From Wal Mart


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## SouthernJustice (Jul 8, 2005)

My Wal-Mart takes great care of their fish and have quite decent customer service, providing you're not there on a Sunday Night at 9 ;-)


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## Orbital (Jun 11, 2005)

If they actually hired people that know what they are doing and maintain the tanks... The wal-mart pet sections I've been to are jokes.


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## Beerleader (May 31, 2005)

Yeah the walmart near me is terrible. The tanks are dirty, lots of them are covered in ich and they'll just sell em on out as if they have no clue, and they probably don't!. There are always tons of dead fish in their for days. The tanks are just dirty looking and the fish look pretty bad. Whats bad is they get in some really good looking fish to begin with, its just their poor care that make them go downhill so quickly. And their poor bettas often die and never receive very decent care. Its really sad! I wish they could get some decent help, someone interested in fish that would give them the proper treatment. And the customer service in ours is horrible no matter what department, especially check-out! 20 minutes lines, no express lanes, and RUDE workers hehe. I rarely go there for fear of wanting to hit someone or spank someones awful kids lol ...although I'd never really do that!


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

In all fairness, if it were not for every little five & dime store across the nation selling goldfish and a few tropicals many decades ago, we'd not be sitting here discussing this, for the hobby would have died out a very long time ago.
Walmart does serve one useful purpose, in that it exposes fish to a LOT more people than petshops ever could have. Those people get interested, get hooked, and eventually move on to the petshops where they learn how to really do things. ( unless they go to petco or petsmart, that is )

However, I am of the opinion that anyone who wants to sell fish must first get certified to do so by passing a national standardized test. The CARE test ( Captive Animal Retailer Examination ) would be a tough one, too! By passing a law requiring the implentation of this test, with NO grandfathering of establishesd stores, we could eliminate all the bad guys in one fell swoop. We'd also very significantly raise the level of excellence in those stores which survived and new stores which opened, and that would make for better hobbyists, and so on.

A saltwater version of CARE almost came to be, and may still. I was one of the guys asked to come up with some sample questions. In that version, hobbyists would have to pass the hobby version before being allowed to buy various things, and they'd get little endorsements on their permits by passing more tests as they improved their skills and knowledge. The stores would have to pass a much more comprehensive version before being allowed to buy from their wholesalers, and so on back to the farmer/collectors. Instead we wound up forming IMDA and MAC, and things are improving a lot on the business side of things already, but there are still a lot more uncertified stores than certified ones, and there is still no certification for hobbyists.

The whole system would have worked, and may still someday, on a model very much like the one the SCUBA industry/hobby is based on currently.

So, should Walmart be allowed to sell fish? 
HA! I don't think that MOST places should be allowed to sell them under the current sorry state. Petsmart, Petco, and Walmart are literally destroying this hobby. If we had a CARE test law, and they somehow actually passed the test, then hey, more power to 'em. Watching these imbeciles destroy the independent shops which:

A-- keep their fish in better shape
B-- educate their customers with accurate information
C-- maintain huge varieties of fish

is really appalling.

These superstores don't generally have a clue, and as such they can't pass any useful info to their custoimers. their fish are often kept under horrifying conditions, and their unsightly displays certainly don't do much to promote the hobby among prospective new would-be hobbyists. Finally, because these stores only tend to carry a small variety of bread-and-butter fish, and because they are crushing their competitors who tend to carry a much wider variety, they are actually reducing the number of species available in the hobby. That's right! if the importers and fish farms can't sell their more exotic wares, and have to devote more effort and space toward the lame-o standard stuff, then as things progress we wind up having nothing but lame-o stuff left on the market. The experienced hobbyists get bored and quit, the new ones don't have anything to work up to and hold their interest, and the hobby is forced to somehow survive on a steady influx of newbies, most of whom don't make it because their primary available sources of information are morons who have no business being in the fish business.

You know what we need, if we can't have CARE? We need a new superstore chain. We need a huge chain of aquarium specialty superstores, owned & operated only by people who have been trained according to strict guidlines. I can see a superstore called something like "The Fishbowl" or "Fishland" or Neptune's Palace' or something equally stupid which lets everyone know what it is. In this store we'd find about 600 tanks on average, each about 30 gallons in size on avaerage, and the company policy would demand that at least 1000 species of fish would be in stock at any given time, the clerks would know all about each one, and for each one plenty of reading material would be on hand for immediate use by prospective buyers. Naturally, these fish would have all been thoroughly & properly cleansed & conditioned before going out to the sales floor tanks. Since it would be the final nail in the coffins of all the surrounding independent stores, the indies would be hired to work in these stores if they were not themselves bad-guys. To avoid too much impact on the remaining indies, these superstores would only be placed in cities with petsmarts at first; while it would finish off the remaining independents, the indies in smaller towns could still survive. Each of these stores would also have a meeting room/classroom to be used to hold regular local club meetings and instructional classes for hobbyists. there would be a library and lab, as well. Finally, of course, the shelves would be stocked with just about everything fish hobby related that could be imagined.

Yep, if we had something like that, this hobby could fight back and once again have a good chance at a bright future. I wish I were a millionaire. If I were, believe me, I'd make it happen.


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## maxpayne_lhp (Jan 19, 2005)

I think pets should be sold seperately... and they must have a good crew of employees.. still, there're many good sellers and of course there're bad ones... Some employees may have many experiences and knwledge... Like Lexus, she works at Wal-mart... fish are very lucky to run into such Wal-mart's fish stores...


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

I'm not even going to comment on this because I'll blow off my handle....


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## Lydia (Feb 6, 2005)

walmart is terrible where i live....there are always dead fish in the tanks and last time i went there i looked at the fish just out of curiosity and there were at least 3 dead fish in every tank! i agree with TOS....there should be some kind of standard....and once i become a millionaire i will make a superstore for fish like he said, lol :lol:

it isnt just walmart that is bad though....alot of the chain stores are bad too...although, around here we have a petland, and, as much of a nerd as the fish guy is, he really knows his stuff and always trys to find out what size tank people are putting their fish in....like one time i was looking at a pleco (i wasnt going to buy it because i have way too small of a tank) he came up to me and said something about how huge they grow and how it would take a very large tank to house a fullgrown one.....if every chain store and walmart would just hire people like him or like lexus that actually know and care about the fish, there wouldnt be any problem! but of course that wont happen any time soon, lol

that is my opinion on the matter, and if it just looks like alot of rambling to you, thats probably because thats what it is, lol


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

My petsmart is number 1 in the "district" our staff actually is pretty decent and we have a pretty low death rate with all our animals. Not that I can say that for every petsmart (infact being #1 kinda makes me wonder).


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

id love to work at fish dep. at petco they probably reject me though lol.
petco is usually a nice place to go get fish at down herethey tell truth not what u want to hear. petco and LFS is what deserves your money. (could not think of anything else then money)


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## *GoGoGo Fish!* (Jul 6, 2005)

The walmart down in Falmouth, MA sells fish and this lady diffently knows how to take care of fish. The bettas are sold in kind of medium sized plastic cups. They get fed and are usually sold (all sold) in a few days like 3 days. Some fish die though they die from stress. The goldfish don't do good, but do okay in walmart and the prices are reasonable. I bought a balloon molly and it was great for a month or so and then it died. My platy, I bought from them is still alive today. Its been a month and half since bought platy.

CLeo


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

still not all walmarts are like that.


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

I think it ironic Walmart sells fish where kmart, Montgomery Ward, and other stores use to carry fish, birds and other critters. Now it is almost hard to find pet supplies in some of those stores.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

Its not just walmart our Petco sucks...


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

I know all you younger folks are saying - "Whats a Montgomery Ward?"


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

lol yep ////


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

fish_doc said:


> I know all you younger folks are saying - "Whats a Montgomery Ward?"


yup, your right  both our petcos and petsmarts stink. petcos fish are good, but not their products.


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

Headlines back in Dec of 2000



> *Montgomery Ward closes after 128 years
> *[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Mail-order shopping founder will shutter all 250 stores[/font]


They were the first mail order store and they sold everything from fish and clothes to houses and furniture.


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

wow, thats a big selection! whyd they close?


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

I used to work in a TG&Y, if any of you remember _those_, and we had fish, birds, hamsters, tarantulas, etc...

Our new Walmart is supposed to be of the newest typre, and the Pets dept. manager is upset because 
A: she doesn't know a thing about fish, and
B: she doesn't know a thing about the BIRDS AND HAMSTERS that this store is supposed to also be getting.

Is this the beginning of a new trend? Just how much worse can things get?


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## shev (Jan 18, 2005)

"I used to work in a TG&Y, if any of you remember _those"

_uuuh, thank god its....


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## Lydia (Feb 6, 2005)

haha lol shev

wow TOS that is pathetic....and it does seem to be the beginning of a bad trend....who knows? maybe convenience stores will take it upon themselves to sell fish now, too! thats a scary thought....


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

very but if they do it might just be gold fish and bettas not much though. I bet they might take better care then walmart and some petcos.


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## m_snider (Dec 18, 2005)

*WalMart Fish*

I realize that this is an old topic, but.....
Firstly, I understand your concern about improper care of fish (and possibly other creatures) at "Big Box" retail outlets, such as WalMart. There is definitely a lack of...let's call it, "procedure" when it comes to the maintance and well being of these water-dwelling life forms. 
I, personally, feel these large companies have no buiness in the sale of live animals (no matter how small). It is too difficult to monitor the health of the fish, let alone the pH and temperature of the water, regular feeding and tank cleaning or, simply, whether or not some "customer" has decided to bang on the glass too hard (or perhaps, shared their beverage with the residents inside the aquarium).
I'm not saying this is the case everywhere. I know that there are WalMart employees out there that are 100% dedicated to providing the best to our finned friends--and to them, THANK YOU!!
P.S. Not to be grim, but I have had a secondary thought...even if the fish did live in a less than perfect environment, would they even remember with their incredibily short memory?


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Their thoughts might not remember, but their bodies would. It can take a long time to recover from environmental damage.


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## CVV1 (Oct 7, 2005)

uh oh.... my town is getting a super wal-mart! thats not good for the animals


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

The Old Salt got u thier, If u cant take care of what u sell then why sell at all. Its liek i sold a toth brush thats losing all the little brissles and has other peoples food in it. Just not right . I went to wal-mart yesturday and found that in several tanks (almost all) thier was mass amounts of dead fish hanging out by the filter. I got into a argument with walmart the other day when they were telling a custumer total bull-crap just to make money. It just sickens me when they think they have the right to sell dead fish and send them to their graves.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

Some associates are not telling them bull or what they think is bull they tell them what they know which often times is very wrong. There is an tutorial for pets and that is the info they give them, the tutorial is ALL wrong. So are the info cards on the tanks. 
Also we have "procedures" to follow but most dont.


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## heatherhoge (Nov 13, 2005)

Walmart here told a guy it was ok to put an oscar in a 10 gal tank. As far as feeding flakes is all he needs. I am very picky about fish foods and believe they need more than only one type. Yes they can survive but I like to give balance diets for color enhancments and other reasons of course. Any ways I interupted the conversation and told the guy that oscars get very large and quick and a 10 gal tank wouldn't be good enough. I didn't get into the food thing with him because he took my advice not to get the oscar. They will say anything to make a sell even if they have no idea what they are talking about. People think because fish are in tanks they are not living creatures and are not taken very seriously. The store wouldn't sell a dog to a home if they knew the dog would never get out of the cage. I think fish should be treated as such and horrible they are not.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

I can honeslty tell you walmart does not try to make a sale on fish. We do not recieve much of anything for the sale of them. The markup is almost non-existant on some, plus the 90 day thing exchange or money back. Thats why Walmart doesnt care about fish they are there to make it a one stop shop, entertainment and draw customers. We make most our money in Pets on Dog Food, Cat Food and Kitty Litter. Most associates refuse to argue with the customer the standard line is goldfish get goldfish flakes and tropical fish tropical flakes. Thats the extent of un-informed employees. There is no formal training at all, you go through a computerized CBL that tells you some stupid thing about the last digit in the price if the same you can keep those fish together. THATS HOW BAD IT IS. There are procedures for medication, feeding and cleaning but most are not aware of it or care.


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## micstarz (Oct 22, 2005)

look at this product of walmarts...









Even some cherry shrimp would be uncomfortable in such a bowl!


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## micstarz (Oct 22, 2005)

one more thing., at walmart's online website (walmart.com) in their fish section they still think they have the right to talk about Health Care and Maintenance!!


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## micstarz (Oct 22, 2005)

here is something to complain about:

Sharky the Fresh Water Fish

Did you know I have a 30 day guarantee?

This is because Petcetera imports us direct from our home to Vancouver then we are distributed to all Petcetera's across Canada with minimal stops.

This reduced travel time decreases our stress levels and our handling which inturn helps us to stay healthy for you.

This also allows Petcetera to sell us at 2 for 1, so we have a friend to keep us happy with you and our new home.

Buy 1 Fish, Get 1 Fish Free!

Because we come in many different shapes & sizes, some of us are more expensive than others so you can purchase any one of us at regular price and receive the second one of us of equal or lesser value absolutely FREE!

Bring me home with a friend today!
*
 Standards met by the Marine Aquarium Council of Canada*


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## micstarz (Oct 22, 2005)

but actually all the fish are so damn streesed out!


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

They are stressed out i got a pea**** eel from a freind he said he had it for 3 days and it hasnt done anythign hasnt moved at all. Finally i asked him were he got the fish he said wal-mart. I went to check it out and sure enough they were all their for the whole 3 hours i was lookign aroudn they never moved. As to were u go to petsmart or petco their fish are very active and swimming and healthy. well most of the petsmart and petcos. I hoenstly want a petsmart to come to kingsvile they woudl show wal-mart a thing or 2. and maybe with wal-mart havign no buisness in fish they will stop selling.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

Well the point is they will never stop. No matter how much we complain on FF about it its not stopping them and only a handful complain anyways and when they do they get blown off. Walmart has bigger issues to deal with. But you cant just say walmart there are horrible pet shops, petcos, petsmart ect that are just as bad. I think Walmart is so easy to pick on because it is a big box retailer and isnt a pet retailer. Do I think they should sell fish, no, not unless they have some experts working there. 

and micstarz that betta bowl isnt all that small. its better than the cup they come in and some people proceed to keep them in. vbmenu_register("postmenu_67006", true);


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

> it better than the cup they come in


and with one extra purchase u can upgrade your betta from a .5 gallon cup to a .7 and well also through this handy light in sos u can boil your fish alive. 

P.s. my cousin did boil a fish alive in one of thos but not on purpose.


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## Cliffizme2 (Oct 15, 2005)

I don't like Walmart for fish, and I hate how nobody is ever there to help.


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## semocichlid (Dec 9, 2005)

*Walmart and selling fish*

I usually don't get involved in giving my view about things on the internet but this is a great topic. I am a local cichlid breader and I get so mad every time I walk into Wallyworld I have to go and check on the fish invironment. I have to go to the paint department to get a sales person to come and get the DEAD fish out of the tanks. I dont think it is right for a child to see dead fish being eaten by other fish on display. I am very sorry if I make anyone mad but I am venting. I refuse to buy fish there or send anybody there for fish, I have given people fish to keep them from buying fish from places like that. I know they dont teach tank maint or up keep at stores but it dont take a collage education to know that if a fish is dead it will not sell so get it out of the tank and throw it away. Like I said I am sorry if I offend anyone.


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

Im pretty sure u didnt offend anyone everyoen has their own oppinion and yours cant get any closer to the truth. They never have sombody their to help with fish. If u want somthign from the fish department they take forever. And i know from experience when i first started keepign fish i would get mine from wal-mart and i really didnt know why my fish would die so soon until i would come on this forum i learned abotu how they are mostly stressed from wal-mart and stuff that really helped me keep my fish alive longer and oh i say few months-weeks (if i got from wal-mart). U can say that its just a coincedence but really its not. If u want to try yourself then go buy 6 fish say all comet goldfish. 3 from walmart and 3 from say petsmart or petco. Put them in the same living conditions and see which ones live longer. I bet all 3 from wal_mart die before 1 from petsmart/petco even give signs of dieing.


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

It is quite simple though impossible because walmart will never do it but in a perfect world people in charge of the pet department should have to go through a test on fish to be able to get the job. Also in this perfect world Walmart would hold random inspections on the pet sections. That would help in the up keep.


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## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

I have some opinions on this too you know! lol

Like already stated, you have to get somebody from the garden department or somewhare else because they are nvere there. The one guy who works at the one buy me won't talk to you and is the wierdest person I have ever met. He never understands what you are saying and if you ask him a question he kind of shy's away like hes afraid or he just doesn't know. Jeesh. the garden lady knows more than him! Theres always the other one to go to though, shes very nice and seems to know a bit, still tells some totally wroong thing and acts like a know it all but a lot better than the rest.

The other thing is stress... 1. the lights are on 24 hours a day.... and 2. there are 30 people every 10 minutes staring at the dang things yelling " its nemo" or " I want a sucker fish!!!!".

They have even gotten into synodontis, dragon gobies, and hermit crabs around here. In osme places the even had stingrays but a lot of people comlained constantly on the matter and the stopped selling them. So heres a thought...everybody post what fish they sell at your walmart... I would love to hear what they have.

Here they have simple stuff like 20 types of goldfish, dragon gobies, gouramies, cichlids, oscars, tinfoil barbs, synodontis, bumblebee and sun cats, and many other little things.



The one thing I hate the most is how people start a thread on boycotting it...SO!
Like 20 people is going to matter. Kudos for you who dont buy fish stuff but I mean it gets to a point with some people that its stupid. Search on google for boycotting walmart, petco, and petsmart, and others like that and do you know how many times it's been done and how many thousands of letters have been written? Do you honestly think they even read your letter or if they do even care?!?
Just my opinion but it gets old really quic and unless you get amassive amount of people nothings going to change.

I hate walmart and they re fish, some places are good KUDOS FOR THEM! but heres its somewaht sad. A while back they had 20 pacus in a 5 gallon.. not good. Then they're huge wrack of betta cups...all of them were dead or just stressed to the point of almost dying!!!!

I dont have problems with petco or petsmart because here they are actuall good 9 except petco sometimes) But walmart just makes me sad sometimes. I do buy stuff from them but VERY rarely.
When they start hiring better employees it should get better, I personally like that they have people like "us" at some stores like FishFirst at petsmart or lexus at walmart. The stores are usually run better when theres someone who actually knows there stuff but more importantly CARES about the customer.


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Well I usually never get involved in topics as these as they are useless; all talk and no action. Anyways......................

I find it odd how people blame the Walmarts of the world for the cruelty of fish and whatnot but NEVER the people who don't do any research before investing in the aquaria hobby. How about trying to educate people about fish and show them the right way so they can learn what to look for and not shop at places like these. The simple truth of the matter is as long as people buy from these places, they will continue to sell. Law of supply and demand (entry level econ). While I don't care for the Walmarts of the world, I cannot blame them for catering to a market of people who are still willing to buy. The majority of people (and believe me, there is 25 people out there for every one of you reading a message on anaquatic board like this one) who will say "oh well my fish died, we'll just get another one". How many of you belong to a local aquatic club? Started one? Its amazing (or should I say normal) to rant about something yet do nothing. In fact, its downright human anymore


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## AshleytheGreat (Jul 24, 2005)

I agree with Simpte. Education is the best way to prevent Walmart from having a fish department. If people are educated about what they want they can see signs that will lead them out of the store.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

Correction, tank lights are not left on 24hrs a day. Pop open the top cabinet above the sink you will see a timer. It is scheduled for 7am-10pm, way too much in my opinion, but varies store to store. Yes the store lights themselves are left on but they have to be for us to be open. 

I do agree though, unless you are gonna go get hired at WM and work in pets or do something more than rant then what is the point. For everyone of you that says they are not buying fish or supplies there 100 more people get into the hobby for that pet goldfish their kids want and keep buying crap. In fact I had a lady friday say just that. I went into a rant about not having goldfish in a 10g and she said it doesnt matter they die anyways... its to make em happy for awhile. I then proceeded to ask about water ect... and she would have none of it she just wanted the fish and no lecture. Another lady came in she said she didnt know what size tank she had nor what fish she had in there, her fish kept dying and needed more fish for it, again TRIED to inform her but she would have none of it she didnt really even know what her fish looked like. She simply said I want something that gets along with everything and I need an algae eater. Well after all that and much persuasion from me she ended up with a snail, 2 platies, and a frog. All I assumed safe bets but god knows she probably had piranahs and didnt know it. People do not want to listen they want to do it their way. So even if they get the info at the store or elsewhere doesnt mean that they will follow it in any way.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

I've figured out a simple solution to the lights problem, but that leads to the next problem of getting anyone to implement it. I'm going to pitch it to our District Manager to see if it flies.


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## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

Well at the one by me I never see the lights off...even at like 4 in the morning...don't ask me what I was doing there at that time lol.

And yes I agree tha tpeople do not listen to what they don't want to hear...i try to help people but they look at me crazy and are like " They're just fish."...well you know what..your dog is just a dog but would you want it to die?

I always yell at the little kids when they hit the glass lol.

Sometimes people ask me stuff but get offended or something and walk away..like some people on this forum that i wont say there names...IN CHAT btw....
If you ask me a question I answer it staraight out..i dont waste my time on those who wont take me seriously so youd better listen the first time. 
RANT!! lol

I really want to take a sticker and write animal cruelty on it and stick it to the goldfish tank lol..its just sad..theres about 500 of them in a 20 gallon.


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## DUSTIN323 (Sep 21, 2005)

ALFA WOLF said:


> They are stressed out i got a pea**** eel from a freind he said he had it for 3 days and it hasnt done anythign hasnt moved at all. Finally i asked him were he got the fish he said wal-mart. I went to check it out and sure enough they were all their for the whole 3 hours i was lookign aroudn they never moved. As to were u go to petsmart or petco their fish are very active and swimming and healthy. well most of the petsmart and petcos. I hoenstly want a petsmart to come to kingsvile they woudl show wal-mart a thing or 2. and maybe with wal-mart havign no buisness in fish they will stop selling.


Don't count on any petstore makin their business in fish stop. We have 2 Petsmart, 1 Petland, 1 Petco, 1 locally owned aquarium store, and 2 locally owned petstores. And they still sell them.


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## Fishy Lee (Nov 9, 2005)

micstarz said:


> look at this product of walmarts...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


First...not a product of WallMart. Sure they carry them, but not a product of WallMart.

Second, how could you hate on the Betta Sphere? For Smaller Bettas, it's really not that small, open it up.


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## Chazwick (Aug 24, 2005)

That would be a nice comfy idea, if it was bigger..


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## muddydogs (Dec 14, 2005)

Walmart is not that great around here in the fish department. There are a few local guys that are being pushed out by Walmart, Petco, and Petsmart. I would however rather purchase my fish from Walmart then give one penny to wacko animal right supporters which both Petco and Petsmart are. There is no since in supporting my mortal enemy to buy a few fish.


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## shev (Jan 18, 2005)

muddydogs said:


> Walmart is not that great around here in the fish department. There are a few local guys that are being pushed out by Walmart, Petco, and Petsmart. I would however rather purchase my fish from Walmart then give one penny to wacko animal right supporters which both Petco and Petsmart are. There is no since in supporting my mortal enemy to buy a few fish.





You have moral problems from buying fish at petco and petsmart but not walmart?

Hmmmm... wacko animal right supporters would be peta. last time I checked there was actually a bunch of animal rights groups trying to get rid of petco for their incompetence of keeping animals. If you see petco as being a radical animal rights supporter then I would hate to see what you think of an actual good petstore that takes care of their fish.

so... petsmart is your mortal enemy because... they dont treat their fish bad enough?


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## micstarz (Oct 22, 2005)

ok thx for the correction but all a betta can do is turn around in there!its so shallow surface and bottom are within the same four inches!


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

i foudn a betta bowl yesturday actually abotu 5 they were hidden behind boxes of fish food 3 were dead and one wsa dieing but i got him and put him in the tank with ghost shrimp not sure if good idea but still didnt want it to die like that. but yeha i got in trouble lol but my storie stood up see the plastic thing that the betta was in had a small whoel in it and their was a slow leak and nobody could see it bacuse someone got all the fish and hid them. WHAT FRIGIN IDIOTS but it goes both ways some idiotic teens that wanted to be a i say idiots or an employee that put the bow thier without looking to see if somthign else was their. But i had my chance i blew up at them tellign them stuff how i was wrongly accused to quickly for my actions and i told them that they need somebody that actually knows somthign abotu fish to be in the fish department to take care of them.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

ALFA WOLF said:


> i foudn a betta bowl yesturday actually abotu 5 they were hidden behind boxes of fish food 3 were dead and one wsa dieing but i got him and put him in the tank with ghost shrimp not sure if good idea but still didnt want it to die like that. but yeha i got in trouble lol but my storie stood up see the plastic thing that the betta was in had a small whoel in it and their was a slow leak and nobody could see it bacuse someone got all the fish and hid them. WHAT FRIGIN IDIOTS but it goes both ways some idiotic teens that wanted to be a i say idiots or an employee that put the bow thier without looking to see if somthign else was their. But i had my chance i blew up at them tellign them stuff how i was wrongly accused to quickly for my actions and i told them that they need somebody that actually knows somthign abotu fish to be in the fish department to take care of them.


WOW that post was confusing... um clarification or english please?


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

yeah im nutorious for doign that but i relly cant think of how else to put it if someone wants to try adn tell em in a easyer form.


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## Frozen (Jan 4, 2006)

Iv gotten a lot of good fish there, beautiful and cheap, but only when it doesnt look like everything has ick. (which is most of the time). It does take about 100000 pages to get someone to come help you catch fish though x.X


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

You guys wanna know the BIGGEST problem with Petsmart, Petco, and WalMart?
The biggest problem is that they are not, ironically, big enough.

These 3 chains are destroying the entire pet industry.

Think about it.
They only have a few tanks full of a relative few species of crappy fish, and they're nearly invariably run & staffed by incompetent morons. However, despite this, they are very successfully exterminating all of their competitors who actually have a clue and carry a selection worth having.

As a result of this, the hobby is dwindling. Look at all the fish magazines. Today they are all about 100 pages shorter than they were a decade ago. hobbyists are dropping out of the hobby in record numbers. 
Why?
Because they are frustrated and bored.
The availability of nifty new species is much lower than it used to be. It's all just the same old bread-and-butter crap we all got tired of long ago. These fish are also in very poor shape, so the newbies who actually think that albino tiger barbs are just the coolest are still having problems keeping them alive, and that takes the fun out the hobby for them.
FUN. That's the whole of it right there in one word. The new hobbyists have more problems than success, and the experienced one are jaded. Both groups just aren't having as much fun as a hobby should be providing.

It gets worse, of course.
With the independent stores going extinct, they of course aren't buying fish anymore from the suppliers. The biggest customers of the fishfarms, the big chains, only want a few species, and oodles of them. As a result, the collectors & fishfarms don't have much reason to produce or collect the fun & unusual species, many of which are actually going extinct themselves because there are more of them in the hobby than in the wild. With more & more fishfarms themselves going out of business due to lost sales, the remaining farms will have to redouble their efforts to produce bread-n-butter fish to meet the demand.
Of course, that demand will inevitably drop as well, since eventually the hobby itself will decline due to the loss of the old pros and the word of mouth from the newbies that fishkeeping isn't as fun and easy for some reason as it apparently used to be...

By then it'll be too late of course. 

Something has to be done. Obviously, the best solution is a super-chain of aquarium superstores. Fight fire with fire! A super chain of 500 fish stores across the continent, each with at _least_ 600 tanks, and staffed with people who had the required skill & knowledge... yeah, that could save the hobby as well as the species now utterly dependent upon the hobby.

Currently, the rest of the entire pet trade is also in peril, since the fish make up over haldf of the total pet industry. Without fish, the other stuff has nothing to support it. You can't pay the rent selling parakeets & pythons.


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## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

Im proud of u frozen see frozen got fish at wal-mart and help them turn out ok BUT thats not what im against i against newbs buying fish just cause they look kewl and, then their in the "exchage" line cause the fish died on them and they think they bought a bad fish......THATS WHAT MAKES ME MAD. still its not their fault its walmarts also. If i worked at walmart i woudl refuse to sel a fish to somoen that knows crap about fish and just wants one for like the looks id make sure they have the right stuff and knows about fish. 

Wouldidnt it be cool to have all of us come up with like a fish superstore were u have a "variety" of exotics and other fish to buy and like were the employees actully know what their doing. Those are the kind of store to put wal-mart , petsmart, and petco out of buisness well not out of buisness but to stop sellign fish. they shall also pass a new law that all stores intending to sell fish must pass a test from one employye that will stay in their fish area. Thats what we need


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## solar-ton (Aug 15, 2005)

salty has a good point the only good fish at walmart and petsmart are albino clawed frogs,oscars,and africans. all the lfs stores around here are actually are prospering but walmart is still overselling tetras to idiots. once there was one snakeskin gourami at petsmart and shes still here now im looking at her now lol. but thats about it the only good thing about people not buying anymore fish is that the abuse of them will stop and we can just order them online but when fish die out lizards and other reptiles will start selling and that will be even worse


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## ron v (Feb 24, 2005)

solar, I bought a group of snakeskins from petsmart about a month ago. That's not a fish you see a lot. Mine were big ( 6" ) or so and were cheap. I wonder if the one in your shop and the one's I have are from the same batch. Interesting...


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