Fish order Dr reef quarantined fish

[Tamberav]

FisHotel is 100 percent worth checking out. The fish sell fast so sign up for the newsletter and it will tell you the date/time new fish will be added. If you go to the website the night before the drop, you can see all the fish that will come available the next day to buy. He has a video of his QT tanks and fish somewhere on YouTube I think

I got a pink streak wrasse that will be coming my way from him.

 

[Johng723]

Most of my fish are from him and I’ve never had an issue. Even a wrasse that had a warning saying they are bad shippers came really healthy. One fish was refunded before shipment because he said it didn’t look like it would survive shipment. So far, I’ve been happy with what I’ve gotten from him and I wouldn’t hesitate to use him again.

 

[toadstool_paradise]

Just got my shipment and was packed super well and my swalesi basslet is alive and a good size, however my neon goby is minuscule and the size is way too small to be shipped imo..I don’t know how it will survive but we shall see!

update: just looked closer into the black bag and realized they gave me a peppermint basslet instead of the swalesi basslet..really sad because I specifically wanted the orange of the swalesi rather than the red (which is have already owned)
I’m borderline mad because I waited over a month for the Swalesi basslet that I had hunted for, for a while..
Pic: what I ordered and then what I got lol

 

[Geebs19]

Im shocked by people saying the customer service is poor. I ordered 6 fish back in december, I emailed them a few times with questions and I always received a response within a few hours. Sadly when the fish arrived the water was at 50 degrees, 1 was DOA, 3 didnt make it an hour after trying to acclimate and the remaining 2 didnt make it past 2 days. I kept them updated and they immediatly provided me with a credit as I wanted to use them again. They suggest checking the weather in Louisville overnight doesnt dip below 40 as they heat packs cant keep up if any lower.

 

[Jpiotro]

Ordered a neon blue goby and a hi fin goby in early January from dr reef. Just received it today. The neon goby was dead and the hi fin goby is half an inch and I’d be really surprised if he doesn’t instantly get decimated in the tank. I’ve heard good things so maybe I just had a bad experience but I wanted to share lol

I ordered a royal flasher wrasse and the first one was DOA they sent me a second one and after about a week he died, he refused to eat anything and hid all the time. I wouldn't recommend them after my experience either.

 

[BirdFish5000]

Im shocked by people saying the customer service is poor. I ordered 6 fish back in december, I emailed them a few times with questions and I always received a response within a few hours. Sadly when the fish arrived the water was at 50 degrees, 1 was DOA, 3 didnt make it an hour after trying to acclimate and the remaining 2 didnt make it past 2 days. I kept them updated and they immediatly provided me with a credit as I wanted to use them again. They suggest checking the weather in Louisville overnight doesnt dip below 40 as they heat packs cant keep up if any lower.

They're the shipper; the weather checking should be on them.

 

[jimmypencil]

Im shocked by people saying the customer service is poor. I ordered 6 fish back in december, I emailed them a few times with questions and I always received a response within a few hours. Sadly when the fish arrived the water was at 50 degrees, 1 was DOA, 3 didnt make it an hour after trying to acclimate and the remaining 2 didnt make it past 2 days. I kept them updated and they immediatly provided me with a credit as I wanted to use them again. They suggest checking the weather in Louisville overnight doesnt dip below 40 as they heat packs cant keep up if any lower.

customer service was good i agree, doa fish was just a let down considering the price and the extra reassurance you should get from their alleged services. Im sure DOA is alot more common than i think but ive ordered 20-30 fish from a bunch of different vendors in the past couple years and never got a DOA.

The microscopic hi fin goby i got actually popped out the other day and is eating. Im blown away because as soon as i put him in the tank my wrasse and hog fish thought he was food and speared him hard. If he can stay healthy and grow then this whole ordeal will be worth it because i love nano fish lol

 

[rtparty]

My order comes in Friday and I have no worries. They’ve been great with communication and holding the fish until the weather clears up here.

My other orders have all been perfect.

 

[Hitchhik3r]

I ordered from Dr. Reef at the beginning of January as well. Received messages that my fish was acquired and quarantining. Paid for it and they sent me the arrival date. Stayed home from work to receive, but nothing came. Called to find out why the fish didn't arrive, and he said my fish didn't make it through quarantine and they can't find another one. No reason given as to why I was never contacted after waiting a couple of months. I didn't feel he was scamming me because he refunded the money. However, after waiting so long they should have notified me and not sent me messages my fish would arrive on a specific date. Not trying to hate, but this was my experience.

Same thing happened to me. I got a arrival date notification a week prior so I arranged to take the day off work to be home for it but nothing came. When I reached out he gave me the same reasoning as you, that he decided the day prior to hold off since it was not eating well. I was very upset he didn't let me know about it since I basically lost an entire day worth of pay for nothing which essentially quadrupled the cost of the fish now.

He seems like a decent guy when I interact with him. I gave him the benefit of the doubt and assumed he is overwhelmed with handling the quantity of orders he received over the holiday season. Unfortunately though, I don't think I will be a repeat customer.

 

[1epauletteshark]

Ordered a neon blue goby and a hi fin goby in early January from dr reef. Just received it today. The neon goby was dead and the hi fin goby is half an inch and I’d be really surprised if he doesn’t instantly get decimated in the tank. I’ve heard good things so maybe I just had a bad experience but I wanted to share lol

I know it’s not what you wanted but that little guy is absolutely adorable, hope he does well.

 

[jhadaway]

I got a tomini tang, a mcCosker's wrasse and a Bangia. All arrived in great condition and are doing great. It was delayed for weather, but no real communication on the delay so i can understand the frustration. I did specify small as I could get for the tang and he delivered.

 

[jimmypencil]

I know it’s not what you wanted but that little guy is absolutely adorable, hope he does well.

haha yea man i absolutely love small fish and i REALLY hope he makes it. He got attacked as soon as i put him in so i guarded him with a pipette until he could find a cave but i didnt think he would last the night. now in the past couple days ive seen him come out of a super small cave when i feed to grab whatever floats his way. i am optimistic!

 

[jimmypencil]

I know it’s not what you wanted but that little guy is absolutely adorable, hope he does well.

also, i ordered the yellow banded wrasse in your profile pic a few months ago and it was actually gigantic lol i thought it would be much smaller. no complaints as that is now one of my favorite fish but i was suprised at the size and mine is pretty much all grey rather than the slight red coloration i was expecting. maybe a gender thing?

anyway, i gotta start specifying my preferred size for the fish i order lol.

 

[Jared Bryant]

I sent two emails and made a call recently and got no response. Went with another vendor.

 

[jhadaway]

I bought a cheap clear acclimation box on amazon. I put in small pieces of pvc and a little gravel so they see a bottom. I leave them in there overnight. Make sure they eat and release. The biota and ora fish especially since they ate generally small.

 

[ReefGeezer]

I use @Dr. Reef. I've learned to be proactive during the order period.
1. Specify and acceptable size in inches, rather than small, med, large. Discuss the order by phone if you can, then place it on the web with a note about size requirements.
2. Check in by email and phone during the quarantine period, particularly near the end.

The last time I called, someone from what I believe is a service answered the phone immediately and transferred me quickly. Seems like emails are returned within a day or two. My last orders were a Blue Tang and a Copperband Butterfly. I always have them shipped to the UPS Hub now and pick them up there. Both fish arrived on time, and were in the size range I specified. They were healthy and are doing well in my tank after several months. The one complaint I had was that both were a little skinny. But, they were healthy and gained weight quickly.

I had fish arrive a couple of times early on that were just way too small. Those little fish just don't seem to ship well though. I got credit for the DOAs without issue.

 

[jimmypencil]

I use @Dr. Reef. I've learned to be proactive during the order period.
1. Specify and acceptable size in inches, rather than small, med, large. Discuss the order by phone if you can, then place it on the web with a note about size requirements.
2. Check in by email and phone during the quarantine period, particularly near the end.

The last time I called, someone from what I believe is a service answered the phone immediately and transferred me quickly. Seems like emails are returned within a day or two. My last orders were a Blue Tang and a Copperband Butterfly. I always have them shipped to the UPS Hub now and pick them up there. Both fish arrived on time, and were in the size range I specified. They were healthy and are doing well in my tank after several months. The one complaint I had was that both were a little skinny. But, they were healthy and gained weight quickly.

I had fish arrive a couple of times early on that were just way too small. Those little fish just don't seem to ship well though. I got credit for the DOAs without issue.

customer service was good i agree. I will definitely specify the size in the future im just suprised someone would sell a fish that small, as im sure most people are not expecting something remotely that small. Based on the price and reassurance that comes with QT fish, it shouldnt be necessary to check in with them through the lengthy quarantine period (definitely doesn't hurt). i know its an expensive hobby and i have absolutely no problem spending extra to get the best, which is why i bought i tried dr reef, but it didnt meet expectations.

like i said, it could be i just had an unlucky experience, but based on that - and many of the replies in this thread - i probably wont use them again. i paid extra for peace of mind with the fish and i didn't receive that at all as one was dead and the other was microscopic lol. also the bags the fish were in felt cold. packaging seemed poor compared to other vendors ive used. it was 70 out the day the fish came.

 

[ReefGeezer]

customer service was good i agree. I will definitely specify the size in the future im just suprised someone would sell a fish that small, as im sure most people are not expecting something remotely that small. Based on the price and reassurance that comes with QT fish, it shouldnt be necessary to check in with them through the lengthy quarantine period (definitely doesn't hurt). i know its an expensive hobby and i have absolutely no problem spending extra to get the best, which is why i bought i tried dr reef, but it didnt meet expectations.

like i said, it could be i just had an unlucky experience, but based on that - and many of the replies in this thread - i probably wont use them again. i paid extra for peace of mind with the fish and i didn't receive that at all as one was dead and the other was microscopic lol. also the bags the fish were in felt cold. packaging seemed poor compared to other vendors ive used. it was 70 out the day the fish came.

I have had that small fish experience with several on-line shippers over the years... including Dr. Reef. It really looks worse when the species is kind of small to begin with. In their defense, they don't know that the goby is going into a big reef or a tiny nano. If you don't specify a size, they'll save the bigger ones for those who do... like me. Kind of a squeeky wheel thing. Look at Dr. Reef's prices vs. some of the other quarantined fish vendors. I think the price difference justifies the extra communication required. FWIW... It is much better to pick up at a UPS store or hub if you have one near you. It saves an all day ride around town in a truck while heat/cool packs start to fail.

 

[piranhaman00]

TSM no longer quarantined just FYI. I’ve seen them mentioned to use as a sub.

debating this vendor but seems very hit or miss.

 

[Tamberav]

I don't think you can choose sizes on Dr Reefs website so while some of the fish I received were very small, it is hard for me to complain about that when I could use a vender that lists sizes.