Poll: How much more would you pay for quarantined fish?

[PDR]

I see a lot of discussion on quarantining fish, with a lot of replies simply stating that the problem with this service is that hobbyists just aren't willing to pay more for a fully quarantined fish. I don't know about you, but I would be willing to pay quite a premium for a good quarantine service.

So what is the maximum amount you would be willing to pay for a full qt service on top of the price of the fish?

Edit: By full quarantine, I am referring to fully and properly medicated followed by an observation period. Use humblefish's procedure as a reference.

Edit 2: For the sake of argument, let's assume you are buying from a reputable vendor with great QT practices.

 

[madweazl]

I'd suggest a percentage vice dollar amount; I'm not going to spend $160 on a $10 fish for instance but perhaps a 10-25% markup would be acceptable.

 

[PDR]

I'd suggest a percentage vice dollar amount; I'm not going to spend $160 on a $10 fish for instance but perhaps a 10-25% markup would be acceptable.

I thought about that, but honestly the cost to qt a fish should be roughly the same no matter the cost of the fish. IMO that is not the right way to look at a service like this.

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

What @madweazl said. I would more think if it as what markup is acceptable. I would probably pay 2x the normal price for a fish to have it pre-quarantined.

 

[PDR]

What @madweazl said. I would more think if it as what markup is acceptable. I would probably pay 2x the normal price for a fish to have it pre-quarantined.

If it takes a company x amount of time and x amount of meds, should they really charge more or less for that service just because the cost of the fish is different? You are paying for an extra service. IMO that shouldn't change based on the base price of the fish.

 

[madweazl]

I thought about that, but honestly the cost to qt a fish should be roughly the same no matter the cost of the fish. IMO that is not the right way to look at a service like this.

It's the only way it will work; you may lose money on inexpensive fish but recover the loss with the more expensive fish. I also think it reasonable for a customer to expect a healthy fish in the first place so paying more for something that should happen doesnt seem fair.

 

[Idoc]

I think it also depends on the depth of your advertised quarantine process. Some consider 2 weeks of observation quarantine....versus observation, 2 weeks prazipro, 4 weeks copper, medicated foods for internal parasites, and further observation.

 

[PDR]

I think it also depends on the depth of your advertised quarantine process. Some consider 2 weeks of observation quarantine....versus observation, 2 weeks prazipro, 4 weeks copper, medicated foods for internal parasites, and further observation.

By full quarantine, I am referring to the latter, something along the lines of what humblefish will be offering.

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

It's the only way it will work; you may lose money on inexpensive fish but recover the loss with the more expensive fish.

+1. In one of Thomas Stanley's books (I think it was Millionaire Next Door, not sure though), he discussed how this happens with car manufacturers. Take Honda as an example. Honda makes the most money on more expensive cars, like their SUVs, minivans, and more expensive Acura-branded cars. They don't lose money on cheap models like Civics and Fits, but they don't make nearly as much money as they do on the SUVs. If they priced the Civic perfectly in an economic sense, or exactly how much it cost to make and R&D, they'd lose sales because it would be too expensive for the target demographic.

Sometimes, charging exactly what a product cost doesn't make economic sense if you can get more sales and reach other demographics by shifting the costs around on your balance sheets.

 

[madweazl]

Something else I thought about was the risk involved with more expensive fish. How do you mitigate losing a high dollar fish during the quarantine process (i.e. who pays for the fish)?

 

[PDR]

I added options for percentages as well.

 

[Dom]

I see a lot of discussion on quarantining fish, with a lot of replies simply stating that the problem with this service is that hobbyists just aren't willing to pay more for a fully quarantined fish. I don't know about you, but I would be willing to pay quite a premium for a good quarantine service.

So what is the maximum amount you would be willing to pay for a full qt service on top of the price of the fish?

It would depend on the fish I was buying. But I wouldn't always quarantine a fish myself. You never know what the seller considers quarantine.

 

[Brew12]

That is a hard question. I have 2 full QT setups that I have spent a total of $100 or so on. The ongoing cost of salt, test supplies, and medications is very low on a per fish basis. From this perspective, the value of a QT service to me is very low. I would be willing to pay a very minimal amount to have someone QT easier fish such as Tangs, Clowns, Damsels or Angels. I don't mind setting up and tearing down QT systems. It takes me less than an hour total and I enjoy observing the fish. If I didn't like either, that may add a little value.
Some species of fish are much harder to get through a QT system such as Anthias and some wrasses. I would be willing to pay a very high premium for getting these fish in a healthy condition. I've purchased 4 anthias and have none in my tank because I didn't succeed in getting them healthy. I could try to do 4 again with no guarantee of success. If I did succeed with all 4 new ones I will have effectively charged myself a 100%+ markup. If it takes 3 tries to get 4 fish, that is a 200% markup.

So, would I pay a 200% markup for 4 healthy Anthias? You bet. Would I pay a 20% markup for a clownfish? Probably not.

 

[ca1ore]

It will be interesting to see if Humblefish can make this work. While I applaud the effort, my guess is that it's impractical. I've thought about it, and the only way I could see it working is to position it as a service. You pay for the fish and I charge a QT service fee. If the fish dies in the process, you bear the cost. Upcharge is a function of fish classes. Small ones are less expensive to QT that large ones; some species easier than others. Probably a range of $20/fish to $100/fish. The one thing to consider is if a person's tank has latent disease. This can be quite common with ich. So you buy a certified disease-free fish, put it in your tank, and a week later it shows ich. What is the recourse? Maybe it wasn't actually disease free; or maybe your tank was infected.

The other thing to consider is that folks that value QT (and would be the addressable market for such a service) are likely to prefer to do it themselves. Me, for example.

 

[PDR]

That is a hard question. I have 2 full QT setups that I have spent a total of $100 or so on. The ongoing cost of salt, test supplies, and medications is very low on a per fish basis. From this perspective, the value of a QT service to me is very low. I would be willing to pay a very minimal amount to have someone QT easier fish such as Tangs, Clowns, Damsels or Angels. I don't mind setting up and tearing down QT systems. It takes me less than an hour total and I enjoy observing the fish. If I didn't like either, that may add a little value.
Some species of fish are much harder to get through a QT system such as Anthias and some wrasses. I would be willing to pay a very high premium for getting these fish in a healthy condition. I've purchased 4 anthias and have none in my tank because I didn't succeed in getting them healthy. I could try to do 4 again with no guarantee of success. If I did succeed with all 4 new ones I will have effectively charged myself a 100%+ markup. If it takes 3 tries to get 4 fish, that is a 200% markup.

So, would I pay a 200% markup for 4 healthy Anthias? You bet. Would I pay a 20% markup for a clownfish? Probably not.

You make some good points. I guess this poll is more for someone like me who just doesn't have the extra space to have a proper qt. I have been reading over and over where members have been stating that hobbyists are not willing to pay extra for qt, so I figured I would see what others are really willing to pay.

 

[showmebutterfly]

I think this would require a level of trust that I probably wouldn't have with most businesses. I prefer to do my own quarantine so that I know what treatments have actually been used. I would not be willing to pay a markup for a fish that may or may not have actually been quarantined or treated. I have heard that some LFS run hypo-salinity and/or low levels of copper in their systems 24/7 to reduce risk of disease being evident. Technically, this could be considered treatment. But it doesn't mean the fish are healthy. I am way to old and cynical to pay extra for that particular service.

 

[PDR]

It will be interesting to see if Humblefish can make this work. While I applaud the effort, my guess is that it's impractical. I've thought about it, and the only way I could see it working is to position it as a service. You pay for the fish and I charge a QT service fee. If the fish dies in the process, you bear the cost. Upcharge is a function of fish classes. Small ones are less expensive to QT that large ones; some species easier than others. Probably a range of $20/fish to $100/fish. The one thing to consider is if a person's tank has latent disease. This can be quite common with ich. So you buy a certified disease-free fish, put it in your tank, and a week later it shows ich. What is the recourse? Maybe it wasn't actually disease free; or maybe your tank was infected.

I sure hope he can. I do get what you're saying, definitely something I would want to take the risk on if I were in his shoes.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Working on the contingency that the LFS had a properly cycled QT system setup and running with the correct treatment level meds, I'd say between 10-20% additional cost of the fish would be acceptable to me.

 

[Herby’s reef]

I would be happy to pay the same amount for even a cheap fish. You are paying for the service not the fish, and I would be willing to pay alot if I could trust it was done well

 

[ArowanaLover1902]

I think that the percentage paid is going to be different for each area. For example; both of us have to deal with oceans floor, if there was another supplier whose fish I trusted I’d buy from them. If we had a really good LFS then I’d probably just keep going there.