Okay, this would be a first for me, I am thinking about buying some fish online though I am worried about doing it, as I heard about Ich and Marine Velvet and I do not want to crash my tank. The fish I am looking at is a BiColor Foxface, so any suggestions would be helpful
Thinking about buying fish online
- Thread starter Steven91
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cracker
5000 Club Member
Hello Steven91, I asked the same question. it's pretty much hit or miss when ordering on line. That being said, Some keepers don't have access to a decent fish shop. You have a shop ? let's see what others say
GoldeneyeRet
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I very much prefer shopping for livestock online.
For some delicate species or known poor shippers I may try to source locally, but with 14 day guarantees from online vendors even those species are good candidates for online shopping.
For some delicate species or known poor shippers I may try to source locally, but with 14 day guarantees from online vendors even those species are good candidates for online shopping.
lacrosseboss18
Active Member
I too was worried my first time ordering online. I’ve only done so 4 times and each time was a great experience. I’m lucky enough to have a great LFS.
Try and purchase from a trusted source. See if who you purchase from will send you a wysiwyg. If they are willing to go the extra step then it shows their customer service is good IMO. Best advise get from a well know trusted shop.
Try and purchase from a trusted source. See if who you purchase from will send you a wysiwyg. If they are willing to go the extra step then it shows their customer service is good IMO. Best advise get from a well know trusted shop.
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
You’re just as likely if not more likely to get parasites from an LFS as you are online (usually shipped direct from the wholesaler). This is because the fish have been exposed to at least one more tank with hundreds of fish moving in and out of it, thus more opportunity to be exposed to more.
I still think we should support good LFS, just food for thought.
I still think we should support good LFS, just food for thought.
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Big G
captain dunsel
It's hard to beat the 14 day guarantee by places like Live Aquaria. You'll know within a few days if you have a fish that's not doing well from shipping. LA is easy to get refunds. No questions asked. Direct refund to your cc. That being said, I would much rather buy a fish I've had a chance to watch being fed and see for my own eyes it's physical appearance and behavior. Support your LFS if possible.
OP
OP
Steven91
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I do love to support my lfs, im watching a Saddle Butterfly that they had, wasnt eating at the time, was going to wait until it started eating, though lately the foxfaces they have been getting havent looked good or just look very plain
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
@NYAquatic does a great job, too.
EmdeReef
2500 Club Member
This maybe location dependent, but one way that’s worked really well for me is to make an arrangement with an aquarium installation/maintenance company. They can order fish for you, quarantine and treat if necessary. I get the the same 2 week guaranty obviously at a premium (more than happy to pay vs. running a QT).
LA divers den is a bit safer than the main site but I got a butterfly with ich from them. Some sites claim to quarantine and treat though hard to verify.
EmdeReef
2500 Club Member
I wouldn’t care about ich unless a fish is struggling with a severe outbreak. Basically a lot of Petco fish I used to buy to treat... (I know it’s blasphemous to say that) But I’ve lost many more fish to treatment than the disease. I don’t recommend adopting that view as I don’t do as I say.
A few other common and deadlier problems worry me, which is why I’ve been outsourcing quarantine and treatment over the last 6yrs
I have been stocking a 220g over the course of the last year, and have had to rely on internet vendors for 95% of my fish. I would take a look at the vendor feedback forum on this site, search on the name of any vendor you may consider before you purchase. It won’t be hard to figure out who to trust, and who to stay away from, at least not for the names that come up most often.
After a year of doing this, divers den is my go to source. There have been issues, but they never hesitate to make it right, 100% of the time.
No matter where you get fish, use a qt process - proactive or observation - and take advantage of the R2r disease forum if you run into anything that gives you cause for concern. Great bunch of folks over there!
After a year of doing this, divers den is my go to source. There have been issues, but they never hesitate to make it right, 100% of the time.
No matter where you get fish, use a qt process - proactive or observation - and take advantage of the R2r disease forum if you run into anything that gives you cause for concern. Great bunch of folks over there!
I'm right with you. I have only been reefing for almost a year now however... i was one who didn't believe in QT... I had a huge ich outbreak when all water parameters were perfect and fish were in a low stress environment. I moved all fish in another tank and performed hypo salinity. I waited 8 weeks, then slowly brought the salinity back up. Decided from that point on, i would always qt. Went to petco, and got a cheap 40 gal breeder, and small powerhead, filter, and heater. Luckily i lost no fish due to the ich outbreak (out of 10-12 fish. Long story short... Please try your hardest to learn from others mistakes. QT whenever possible. As for online dealers, i agree with others. Do your research and you should be alright. Best of luck and i think everyone would like to hear about your online ordering experience.
NowGlazeIT
Happy to help, Ask away.
Right now petco is having there dollar/gallon sale it’s a good time to start practicing QT even if your shy on medicating there’s no harm in having a observation tank. If the fish arrives sick after a few days (my experience with LA) you will have prevented this from spreading in your DT
NowGlazeIT
Happy to help, Ask away.
It always scared me to read stuff like this from people before I decided to QT but let me be breathing proof and say that with nothing but R2R as my research tool I have successfully QT’d 7 fish and have treated internal parasites, possible Brooklynella, and am still currently treating for ich and velvet prophylactically. They’ve been in QT for almost 4 weeks they eat just as well if not more then when I had them together in my main display. I think that’s because it’s a bare bottom tank.
EmdeReef
2500 Club Member
I hear you. That’s why I made sure to include that I don’t recommend people adopt my view of ich treatment. Definitely didn’t mean to discourage anyone, apologies about that!
I will say that when it comes to ich if I were to see a few spots I felt confident were ich I wouldn’t blink and def.wouodn’t tear down everything to catch the fish unless it was severly distressed. However, that said I’ve never seen a spot in my 3 tanks over 6yrs thanks in part to strict quarantine and treatment. I’m fortunate to have someone do it for me as I just can’t stand doing it anymore - 5-10x is enough, when you start adding zeroes it takes a LOT of effort and patience
