Reef Pro Fully Conditioned Fish Review Thread

[Wyvern]

I got a exquisite fairy wrasse a couple months ago, he was healthy, eating and beautiful, but recently died without warning, all other fish show 0 issues a week and a half later, so I don't think it was a contagion (his poop was always healthy.)

He was one of 2 fish I got from you, the first possum wrasse was DOA, but I think it might have been because of fedex throwing the box. You did give store credit for him though.

I really wish you would do full QT, I'm hesitant to getting another since it would go right into DT since all my fish are bought fully QT.

 

[kmwcane]

I purchased a pair (M/F) of Watanabei angelfish back in mid-October and they have been doing great since they arrived - I would highly recommend Reef Pro!

 

[Reef Pro Verified Sponsor]

I purchased a pair (M/F) of Watanabei angelfish back in mid-October and they have been doing great since they arrived - I would highly recommend Reef Pro!

Dear @kmwcane
We greatly appreciate your review and we are very glad to hear the Watanabei pair is doing well. Hope you and your family have a restful holiday ahead.
All the best, Reef Pro Team

 

[HK180]

I bought a yellowtail tamarin wrasse from ReefPro 7 days ago. She is very social and doing great! I'm still struggling to switch her to prepared food, but sometimes transit stress can make fish revert back to natural foraging behaviors (in the meantime, I'm feeding her pods and ROE). Excellent, responsive customer service. I would order from them again.

 

[Reef Pro Verified Sponsor]

I bought a yellowtail tamarin wrasse from ReefPro 7 days ago. She is very social and doing great! I'm still struggling to switch her to prepared food, but sometimes transit stress can make fish revert back to natural foraging behaviors (in the meantime, I'm feeding her pods and ROE). Excellent, responsive customer service. I would order from them again.

Dear HK180, we greatly appreciate your feedback. Thank you for choosing Reef Pro.

 

[Karliefish]

Dear HK180, we greatly appreciate your feedback. Thank you for choosing Reef Pro.

Sadly I had tough experience with my Male Laboute purchase from ReefPro, as the fish was not well conditioned and arrived full of worms. I tried desperately to save the fish with prescribed regiment of Prazipro, but the fish never recovered and swam upside down since the day it arrived. Previously, I’ve had really good experiences with ReefPro fish and hope this was a “one-off” experience and will be ordering a replacement Male Laboute Wrasse from them after Christmas.

 

[Reef Pro Verified Sponsor]

Sadly I had tough experience with my Male Laboute purchase from ReefPro, as the fish was not well conditioned and arrived full of worms. I tried desperately to save the fish with prescribed regiment of Prazipro, but the fish never recovered and swam upside down since the day it arrived. Previously, I’ve had really good experiences with ReefPro fish and hope this was a “one-off” experience and will be ordering a replacement Male Laboute Wrasse from them after Christmas.

Dear Karliefish, we are very sorry you had a bad experience with your Laboute’s Wrasse. Please email us at [email protected] so we can better assist you regarding your fish.
Thank you

 

[HK180]

I bought a yellowtail tamarin wrasse from ReefPro 7 days ago. She is very social and doing great! I'm still struggling to switch her to prepared food, but sometimes transit stress can make fish revert back to natural foraging behaviors (in the meantime, I'm feeding her pods and ROE). Excellent, responsive customer service. I would order from them again.

Quick update: she is now eating small pellets and oysters. Thanks again, Reefpro!

 

[Bxr126]

Hi, any one that has purchased our fully quarantined fish, please let us know your thoughts on your purchase as well as the quality of our specimens. Thank you very much.

Fully quarantined? Or fully conditioned?

 

[sfmacguy]

Fully quarantined? Or fully conditioned?

Fully Conditioned for a while now. I think the Quarantine cost was putting some folks off. That said, the times I have ordered from Reef Pro everything has come in great.

 

[Reef Pro Verified Sponsor]

Fully Conditioned for a while now. I think the Quarantine cost was putting some folks off. That said, the times I have ordered from Reef Pro everything has come in great.

we appreciate the kind words!

 

[Hairyteeth]

I’ve got a yellow banded possum from these guys, great little specimen doing great…have had him for a few months super cool nano fish!

 

[chicago]

I just made two large orders with them and will post my comments shortly. I am currently waiting to see how they respond to an injury suffered by a wrasse during transit. Arrived with issues but not a DOA.

 

[Elliott ll]

I just received an auction won Longnose Black Tang, it is alive and fat, but its got some Ich. Would purchase again.

 

[Elliott ll]

I just received an auction won Longnose Black Tang, it is alive and fat, but its got some Ich. Would purchase again.

Appears to just be mucus plugs from shipping stress. Would recommend them.

 

[Reef Pro Verified Sponsor]

I just received an auction won Longnose Black Tang, it is alive and fat, but its got some Ich. Would purchase again.

Appears to just be mucus plugs from shipping stress. Would recommend them.

This Black Tang does not have any Ich, it has been here for nearly 3 months.

As you can see in the photo the fish is flawless, and fat. not a single spec or scratch.

 

[Elliott ll]

Really happy with my purchase. I have 8 large tangs I have carefully acquired over the years who all peacefully co-exist. Introducing this black tang was ultimately thought to be a massive challenge, however due to its size and health I have succeeded. Previously my purple tang was the tank boss. Day 1 he tried remain king. Day 2 the black tang quickly showed his size and strength and the purple tang quickly submit. Day 3 all fish have established pecking order and now co-exist. All zebrasomas sleep, eat, and swim together peacefully.

 

[stevellem]

I wanted to provide feedback on my latest purchase from Reef Pro, an orange faced butterfly (Chaetodon larvatus).

First, I want to point out that ReefPro had previously provided great communication and service to me in reducing a long standing problem I had with chronically elevated phosphates and nitrates. Following up to emails I sent to them on the subject, they suggested I call them. I spoke to Gilbert who gave me specific short term and long term steps that resulted in my phosphates dropping from .66 to .05 and nitrates from over 50 to less than 10.

As far as the fish they offer for sale, I think it’s hard to find an online source like ReefPro that is able to obtain those hard to find specimens that many of us are looking for. You do have to pay a premium for their conditioned fish (which I would gladly pay and have paid for in the past as I’ve gotten fish that literally ate hours after introducing them to QT).

Unfortunately, the orange faced butterfly that I bought was in my QT for about 48 hours when I found it lying on its side in the morning and dead a few hours later. I ruled out water conditions as the cause of death as I took great care and patience to acclimate the specimen after first matching the QT water salinity to that in the shipping bag then following the directions provided by ReefPro to drip acclimate. On day 1, the fish was alert and active but not interested in eating (in direct contrast to other fish I have put from ReefPro that ate immediately).

A few hours before the fish died, I sent an email to ReefPro with a video informing them of the condition of the fish.

The response was : “ We are sorry to hear this, please keep in mind these fish are incredibly difficult to keep and are notes as expert only care level”.

Though I am fully aware there could have been any number of causes for the fish’s death, I was most concerned about the physical condition of the fish, namely it appeared to have arrived very thin.

After the fish died, I sent a follow up email to ReefPro with photos of the abdomen and area behind and above the eyes which looked sunken when I received the fish (I included a photo of my Golden Butterfly as a reference with a full abdomen and body) with a comment that the fish showed signs of malnutrition. I did not receive a reply.

The point I wanted to make was in regards to their Conditioning Protocol where they state:

“Upon completion of conditioning, all fish are examined, ensure they eating readily available prepared foods, and are conditioned for aquarium life….


At the time of shipping if the particular specimen is unavailable or does not meet our quality standards your item with be substituted for a specimen either one size higher or lower without notice.

Previous to placing my order, I called ReefPro and asked specifically about how well the orange faced butterfly was eating. Over the years I’ve tried to keep this species knowing full well that in nature, it is a corallivore (I’ve only seen anecdotes and a few videos posted showing success in getting them to eat anything other than live coral). The person I spoke to told me “I’ve seen a couple of them eating some mysis” and when I followed up with how well they were eating the mysis, he said “you can’t expect them to eat as well as they do in nature”. I asked if it were possible to see a video of them eating and he said “we don’t do that here”.

I’ve kept saltwater tanks for over 40 years and presently have a 500 gallon system with more than a few “expert only care level fish and coral”. When I was told that ReefPro was successful in getting a strict corallivore to eat prepared foods, I was excited to try this species again. But from the fact that the fish never showed interest in eating, that the fish showed physical signs of malnutrition, and the communication I received both before and after the purchase of the fish, I wouldn’t recommend obtaining Chetodon larvatus from ReefPro (if anyone has had success purchasing and keeping this species from ReefPro or any other retailer, please let me know). If I were to try keeping this species again, I would want to see it eating myself prior to purchasing.

 

[Plandauesq]

I wanted to provide feedback on my latest purchase from Reef Pro, an orange faced butterfly (Chaetodon larvatus).

First, I want to point out that ReefPro had previously provided great communication and service to me in reducing a long standing problem I had with chronically elevated phosphates and nitrates. Following up to emails I sent to them on the subject, they suggested I call them. I spoke to Gilbert who gave me specific short term and long term steps that resulted in my phosphates dropping from .66 to .05 and nitrates from over 50 to less than 10.

As far as the fish they offer for sale, I think it’s hard to find an online source like ReefPro that is able to obtain those hard to find specimens that many of us are looking for. You do have to pay a premium for their conditioned fish (which I would gladly pay and have paid for in the past as I’ve gotten fish that literally ate hours after introducing them to QT).

Unfortunately, the orange faced butterfly that I bought was in my QT for about 48 hours when I found it lying on its side in the morning and dead a few hours later. I ruled out water conditions as the cause of death as I took great care and patience to acclimate the specimen after first matching the QT water salinity to that in the shipping bag then following the directions provided by ReefPro to drip acclimate. On day 1, the fish was alert and active but not interested in eating (in direct contrast to other fish I have put from ReefPro that ate immediately).

A few hours before the fish died, I sent an email to ReefPro with a video informing them of the condition of the fish.

The response was : “ We are sorry to hear this, please keep in mind these fish are incredibly difficult to keep and are notes as expert only care level”.

Though I am fully aware there could have been any number of causes for the fish’s death, I was most concerned about the physical condition of the fish, namely it appeared to have arrived very thin.

After the fish died, I sent a follow up email to ReefPro with photos of the abdomen and area behind and above the eyes which looked sunken when I received the fish (I included a photo of my Golden Butterfly as a reference with a full abdomen and body) with a comment that the fish showed signs of malnutrition. I did not receive a reply.

The point I wanted to make was in regards to their Conditioning Protocol where they state:

“Upon completion of conditioning, all fish are examined, ensure they eating readily available prepared foods, and are conditioned for aquarium life….


At the time of shipping if the particular specimen is unavailable or does not meet our quality standards your item with be substituted for a specimen either one size higher or lower without notice.

Previous to placing my order, I called ReefPro and asked specifically about how well the orange faced butterfly was eating. Over the years I’ve tried to keep this species knowing full well that in nature, it is a corallivore (I’ve only seen anecdotes and a few videos posted showing success in getting them to eat anything other than live coral). The person I spoke to told me “I’ve seen a couple of them eating some mysis” and when I followed up with how well they were eating the mysis, he said “you can’t expect them to eat as well as they do in nature”. I asked if it were possible to see a video of them eating and he said “we don’t do that here”.

I’ve kept saltwater tanks for over 40 years and presently have a 500 gallon system with more than a few “expert only care level fish and coral”. When I was told that ReefPro was successful in getting a strict corallivore to eat prepared foods, I was excited to try this species again. But from the fact that the fish never showed interest in eating, that the fish showed physical signs of malnutrition, and the communication I received both before and after the purchase of the fish, I wouldn’t recommend obtaining Chetodon larvatus from ReefPro (if anyone has had success purchasing and keeping this species from ReefPro or any other retailer, please let me know). If I were to try keeping this species again, I would want to see it eating myself prior to purchasing.

Could you please fill us in on the steps they recommended to reduce your phosphates and nitrates.

 

[Reef Pro Verified Sponsor]

I wanted to provide feedback on my latest purchase from Reef Pro, an orange faced butterfly (Chaetodon larvatus).

First, I want to point out that ReefPro had previously provided great communication and service to me in reducing a long standing problem I had with chronically elevated phosphates and nitrates. Following up to emails I sent to them on the subject, they suggested I call them. I spoke to Gilbert who gave me specific short term and long term steps that resulted in my phosphates dropping from .66 to .05 and nitrates from over 50 to less than 10.

As far as the fish they offer for sale, I think it’s hard to find an online source like ReefPro that is able to obtain those hard to find specimens that many of us are looking for. You do have to pay a premium for their conditioned fish (which I would gladly pay and have paid for in the past as I’ve gotten fish that literally ate hours after introducing them to QT).

Unfortunately, the orange faced butterfly that I bought was in my QT for about 48 hours when I found it lying on its side in the morning and dead a few hours later. I ruled out water conditions as the cause of death as I took great care and patience to acclimate the specimen after first matching the QT water salinity to that in the shipping bag then following the directions provided by ReefPro to drip acclimate. On day 1, the fish was alert and active but not interested in eating (in direct contrast to other fish I have put from ReefPro that ate immediately).

A few hours before the fish died, I sent an email to ReefPro with a video informing them of the condition of the fish.

The response was : “ We are sorry to hear this, please keep in mind these fish are incredibly difficult to keep and are notes as expert only care level”.

Though I am fully aware there could have been any number of causes for the fish’s death, I was most concerned about the physical condition of the fish, namely it appeared to have arrived very thin.

After the fish died, I sent a follow up email to ReefPro with photos of the abdomen and area behind and above the eyes which looked sunken when I received the fish (I included a photo of my Golden Butterfly as a reference with a full abdomen and body) with a comment that the fish showed signs of malnutrition. I did not receive a reply.

The point I wanted to make was in regards to their Conditioning Protocol where they state:

“Upon completion of conditioning, all fish are examined, ensure they eating readily available prepared foods, and are conditioned for aquarium life….


At the time of shipping if the particular specimen is unavailable or does not meet our quality standards your item with be substituted for a specimen either one size higher or lower without notice.

Previous to placing my order, I called ReefPro and asked specifically about how well the orange faced butterfly was eating. Over the years I’ve tried to keep this species knowing full well that in nature, it is a corallivore (I’ve only seen anecdotes and a few videos posted showing success in getting them to eat anything other than live coral). The person I spoke to told me “I’ve seen a couple of them eating some mysis” and when I followed up with how well they were eating the mysis, he said “you can’t expect them to eat as well as they do in nature”. I asked if it were possible to see a video of them eating and he said “we don’t do that here”.

I’ve kept saltwater tanks for over 40 years and presently have a 500 gallon system with more than a few “expert only care level fish and coral”. When I was told that ReefPro was successful in getting a strict corallivore to eat prepared foods, I was excited to try this species again. But from the fact that the fish never showed interest in eating, that the fish showed physical signs of malnutrition, and the communication I received both before and after the purchase of the fish, I wouldn’t recommend obtaining Chetodon larvatus from ReefPro (if anyone has had success purchasing and keeping this species from ReefPro or any other retailer, please let me know). If I were to try keeping this species again, I would want to see it eating myself prior to purchasing.

Unfortunately this fish does not eat frozen foods no matter where you purchase this fish from. Similar to orange spot filefish, the natural diet of this fish is coral polyps. Your expectation of finding this fish eating frozen foods will likely never happen. This fish is extremely difficult to keep, that is why very few venders will even offer this fish for sale.