Fish order Dr reef quarantined fish

[fishface NJ]

Well, I'll pile on. I just received my second Dr Reef order and am less than impressed.

First order was placed at the beginning of December. I was a little confused because I paid the invoice and got the email stating it was shipping the week before Christmas. BUT it didn't actually ship. So my order status was "Thursday" for almost 3 weeks. I did call was told beginning of Jan. I understand not shipping during the holidays, but I receive no communication that my fish were not going to ship after I got the email that said they were. Order was a bunch of green chromis, a yellow watchman goby, diamond goby, purple dotty back, and an exquisite firefish. The diamond goby was alive, but barely, and died within a couple hours. The firefish died 3 days later. Dr reef honored his guarantee and added new fish to the second order I had pending. So communication was a little annoying and I ended up with some loss also, but he stood by the guarantee, so overall, not terrible experience.

Placed a second order before the first ended up shipping. Received it just a couple hours ago. After more than 2 months of waiting. The packaging was poor...no enough stuffing in the box to prevent the bags from sliding around in the box. The order was missing a fish, no explanation why, I was not issued a refund, AND, two wrasse (Oranate Leopard and McCoskers) were both DOA, cloudy and very smelly water. Since its overnight shipping, they must of died almost immediately upon packaging...look at the tail rot in the pic below on the ornate leopard.

I've already sent off pics to Dr Reef and at this point have requested a refund of the missing fish at the 2 dead fish. I am not interested in waiting for fish to ship at some unknown time without any real communication....only to end up with dead fish anyway...


EDIT: Already received an email back. They apologized about the missing fish, they believe it was packed....so maybe someone out there got a free china wrasse..said they would issue a refund. Did not address the DOA specifically, but I am hoping they will issue the refund for those at the same time...



Water was super cloudy...and smelled just awful, this fish died very quickly in the bag...

Sorry you had a bad experience. Ornate Leopard don't ship well. They stress too much. Dr R has always been great to deal with.

 

[Hitchhik3r]

Some of you really need to go see the wholesalers in LA. You’d understand just how good Mike is IMO.

Man I hope you aren't talking about Quality Marine. I literally just placed an order today through an LFS that gets fish from them.

 

[Wasabiroot]

Perhaps something like this:

Maybe hold off to avoid the risk of death? It seems that shipping during cold temps isn't paying off. Maybe I'm off base here but most vendors just don't ship if the risk is too great. Idk if that's doable but rolling the dice doesn't seem optimal either

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

Perhaps something like this:

Maybe hold off to avoid the risk of death? It seems that shipping during cold temps isn't paying off. Maybe I'm off base here but most vendors just don't ship if the risk is too great. Idk if that's doable but rolling the dice doesn't seem optimal either

We have a similar warning on our homepage,. It says due tocold temps we rather wait or if necessary then hub pickup is prefered

 

[Wasabiroot]

We have a similar warning on our homepage,. It says due tocold temps we rather wait or if necessary then hub pickup is prefered

It just says you recommend it, not that you would rather wait. While I get your point, some people might go "it'll be fine..." and then it turns out poorly, so being a bit more explicit or refusing/saying don't might be a good call. Just my 2c. No dog in this fight, just an observation

 

[Daenion]

It is almost like people who are ordering are adults who can and should make decisions for themselves. And on top of that dr reef actually provides a safety net for peoples’ decisions.

I am truly baffled by some of these posts.

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

It just says you recommend it, not that you would rather wait. While I get your point, some people might go "it'll be fine..." and then it turns out poorly, so being a bit more explicit or refusing/saying don't might be a good call. Just my 2c. No dog in this fight, just an observation

I changed the wording to rather ship in warmer weather

 

[CourtNjoeZreef]

TROPICAL FISH shipping in WINTER TIME NORTHER AMERICA..... obviously going to have doa and other issues.

I don't blame the seller for that. They are in ice cold cargo planes and trucks ect. The fact that any arrive alive from any seller at this time of year is amazing.

My area is awful as far as package handlers go so I have specific directions to use extra packing and if it is shipped via USPS it gets put into a bin with warning labels on it.

Every fish I ever got from DR.Reef has been perfect as long as the package was handled properly

 

[Wasabiroot]

It is almost like people who are ordering are adults who can and should make decisions for themselves. And on top of that dr reef actually provides a safety net for peoples’ decisions.

I am truly baffled by some of these posts.

I don't see why urging more caution is worse than less, but...hundreds of vendors also flat out refuse to ship in cold weather. So it's not an unprecedented thought to consider taking some of the risk away. Not everything needs to be a wild west roulette wheel. I am sure he's a great vendor; was just offering suggestions

 

[52728299]

Dr reef that was a very kind and generous offer thank you

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

Dr reef that was a very kind and generous offer thank you

My goal is to see your dollar goto the best and healthiest livestock you want. If i fail i dont mind admitting and replacing. Money is not everything in life i learned. Happiness goes a long ways.

 

[PlainEnvelopes]

I just ordered three fish from Dr. Reef two weeks ago. I would much rather the fish be held till a safe shipping window is available. Most people using these sites are ordering specialty fish that they want the best possible chance for survival.

 

[toadstool_paradise]

THIS IS POST #75

ANYONE and EVERYONE that reported a BAD experience here in the first 74 posts feel free to contact me at [email protected] along with your POST # and I will send you FREE FISH of your choice max retail value of $200 + free shipping.

Again I dont do this for money, I do this for fun and passion.

Wow very generous. Thank you.

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

Impressive response Dr. Reef. Very impressive. You can count on me to be back for more orders.....during the spring time of course lol

 

[xWascallyWabbit]

I think I'll go ahead and chime in as well.

Personally, my experience with Dr. Reef has been great. I have ordered a second time. Communication was within 24 hrs of a business day via email but all inquiries about process and payment/shipment were answered.
My first order was two clowns, and a diamond goby. All arrived alive. I was contacted by Dr Reef stating that due to the shipping frenzy that was taking place (black friday/cyber monday) that my delivery would be delayed. This along with the reports of him not shipping during cold extremes is an example of how this company tries their best but nothing is 100% perfect. I get it. I have no issues with that.

I ordered another shipment. Royal Gramma, Hector Goby, Tailspot Blenny, and Yellow Coris Wrasse. Email next day stating livestock was acquired and quarantining. I will receive an email at a later date once it's close to a shipping date and will pay via paypal.

My only two bits of advice to any future Dr. Reef customers is just this:
Read his website.
Email if you have questions.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Moved to vendor feedback per our feedback policy. If you would like to start a feedback thread, you may do so here: https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/vendor-feedback.18/