Would you purchase a fish from Petco.com?

[Daes]

I've recently ordered fish from Petco.com. They shipped to my door from Quality Marine in California. Out of the five fish, one was doa, one died in qt a few days later. The other 3 are doing great. I've had them for 6 weeks now. Petco was great about their 7-day guarantee and refunded the two fish.

 

[braaap]

I would.

But I also just got a very nice and very healthy Yasha from Dr. Reef today. So you could consider them.

 

[GARRIGA]

One advantage of buying from a source that drop ships direct from a large wholesaler such as Quality Marine being that fish only ensures shipping to the buyer. However, LFS provides the buyer with an option to see exactly what they are getting. Wild type maroon clown having less variability in pattern and color than selective bred Gold Nugget, for example.

 

[Fish Fan]

Ask them directly where fish is coming from

Good call, I didn’t think of that!

I would never buy fish from Petco or PetSmart unless it was to nurse it back to health. I was in my local Petsmart two or three days ago for other stuff and there were multiple tanks with every fish dead. Not only is the way they farm them immoral the fish are always dirty.

Thank you for your reply. This seems to differ from retail store to retail store. However, as I’ve mentioned several times, I’m interested in ordering a fish from PetCo.com, not purchasing a fish from my local PetCo. But thanks again for your reply.

I've recently ordered fish from Petco.com. They shipped to my door from Quality Marine in California. Out of the five fish, one was doa, one died in qt a few days later. The other 3 are doing great. I've had them for 6 weeks now. Petco was great about their 7-day guarantee and refunded the two fish.

Thanks for sharing your experience with PetCo.com! I would have guessed that a company like PetCo would be easier to get a DOA refund versus an LFS or even a smaller online vendor. 3 out of 5 doesn’t seem like great odds, but at least they took care of the two that didn’t make it.

I would.

But I also just got a very nice and very healthy Yasha from Dr. Reef today. So you could consider them.

I am unfamiliar with Doctor Reef, but definitely open to other options. I just saw that PetCo had one, but I’m not married to them. Thank you for the suggestion!

One advantage of buying from a source that drop ships direct from a large wholesaler such as Quality Marine being that fish only ensures shipping to the buyer. However, LFS provides the buyer with an option to see exactly what they are getting. Wild type maroon clown having less variability in pattern and color than selective bred Gold Nugget, for example.

I’m not at all ruling out my LFS. The one closest to me is kind of dumpy, but they told me they can order fish for me, so I may try to stop in and see what they can do. I do have a really nice LFS, but it’s about an hour away, and inconvenient to get to. That’s partly why I was considering ordering a fish. Thank you for your help!

 

[Fish Fan]

I would.

But I also just got a very nice and very healthy Yasha from Dr. Reef today. So you could consider them.

Intrigued! I just checked out Affordable Aquaria by Dr. Reef, and they seem to have a great selection and good prices.

https://affordableaquaria.com/product/yasha-shrimp-goby/

While they are less expensive for the Goby, their $60 shipping is a bit high. And they only offer a 24 hour guarantee, unlike PetCo that offers a 7 day guarantee. But they may be a good option, especially if their fish are very healthy.

 

[braaap]

Intrigued! I just checked out Affordable Aquaria by Dr. Reef, and they seem to have a great selection and good prices.

https://affordableaquaria.com/product/yasha-shrimp-goby/

While they are less expensive for the Goby, their $60 shipping is a bit high. And they only offer a 24 hour guarantee, unlike PetCo that offers a 7 day guarantee. But they may be a good option, especially if their fish are very healthy.

They offer a 3 day guarantee. Apparently they have 2 websites.

Yasha Shrimp Goby - Quarantined Fish

The Yasha Shrimp Goby is a peaceful, slender reef fish recognized by its pale body adorned with bright orange spots along the dorsal area that can be bought at Dr. Reef's Quarantined fish.

drreefsquarantinedfish.com

Their shipping is high for sure. But if you have a doa they cover shipping.

 

[Fish Fan]

They offer a 3 day guarantee. Apparently they have 2 websites.

Yasha Shrimp Goby - Quarantined Fish

The Yasha Shrimp Goby is a peaceful, slender reef fish recognized by its pale body adorned with bright orange spots along the dorsal area that can be bought at Dr. Reef's Quarantined fish.

drreefsquarantinedfish.com

Their shipping is high for sure. But if you have a doa they cover shipping.

They cover the shipping cost in case of DOA? I believe most places do not.

 

[braaap]

They cover the shipping cost in case of DOA? I believe most places do not.

What they told me the other day. When they ship they can hold items back. They wont charge on a reship. I asked if my fish died on the way if they would charge again and I was told no. There would be no charge. Now they won't refund you shipping if you ask for a store credit. But if you want a reship they will do that it seems.

Their customer service is very good. I send an email and within 10 minutes I have a response it seems. Even around 10pm. Pretty crazy.

 

[Fish Fan]

What they told me the other day. When they ship they can hold items back. They wont charge on a reship. I asked if my fish died on the way if they would charge again and I was told no. There would be no charge. Now they won't refund you shipping if you ask for a store credit. But if you want a reship they will do that it seems.

Their customer service is very good. I send an email and within 10 minutes I have a response it seems. Even around 10pm. Pretty crazy.

Wow, that’s pretty impressive! If they have more livestock I need, I may be able to justify the higher shipping cost too. But, I do want to see what my LFS can do before I decide. I mean, I would prefer to get one locally instead of ordering, I’m just thinking my LFS is going to be kind of pricy for a special order.

 

[Fish Fan]

Well, I am newly impressed with my LFS that I had previously said was kind of dumpy. Don't get me wrong, it's dumpy for sure. A solid inch of salt creep on the tanks, kind of thing. But, in talking to the owner I learned that they source all their livestock through ORA, Biota, and Quality Marine. They have two Biota tank-raised Yasha gobies, and at least one Randall's pistol shrimp, which is what I had wanted. He's at $80 for the goby and $40 for the shrimp, but he said he'd do $110 for the two of them, which I thought was a good deal.

I do have some reservations. For example, although the fish and shrimp are coming from a high quality source, I am now buying them out of this LFS's tanks. Their tanks have obviously been established for a long, long time, and are teaming with all kind of sea critters like worms, snails, those little sea stars, etc. I would think there would also be fish parasites present, and I would think the fish would have to be QT'd and treated. I have been planning on quarantining all new livestock, but I have questions about the process, and don't yet have a QT tank running. But if I can figure out that process, I may just go through my LFS. I'd really rather support the local shop, I just didn't think they were going to have a Yasha or be competitive on the price. Glad I stopped in.

 

[Tray21]

Well, I am newly impressed with my LFS that I had previously said was kind of dumpy. Don't get me wrong, it's dumpy for sure. A solid inch of salt creep on the tanks, kind of thing. But, in talking to the owner I learned that they source all their livestock through ORA, Biota, and Quality Marine. They have two Biota tank-raised Yasha gobies, and at least one Randall's pistol shrimp, which is what I had wanted. He's at $80 for the goby and $40 for the shrimp, but he said he'd do $110 for the two of them, which I thought was a good deal.

I do have some reservations. For example, although the fish and shrimp are coming from a high quality source, I am now buying them out of this LFS's tanks. Their tanks have obviously been established for a long, long time, and are teaming with all kind of sea critters like worms, snails, those little sea stars, etc. I would think there would also be fish parasites present, and I would think the fish would have to be QT'd and treated. I have been planning on quarantining all new livestock, but I have questions about the process, and don't yet have a QT tank running. But if I can figure out that process, I may just go through my LFS. I'd really rather support the local shop, I just didn't think they were going to have a Yasha or be competitive on the price. Glad I stopped in.

A while back I was talking to the aquatic manager at my local petco, he said that while it was perfectly fine to order through their website, he could order the fish and would call me before they ever entered the stores tanks so i could inspect them. He was clear on the fact that if I changed my mind after he ordered them that I would not have to pay and they would just be put in the stores tanks. Might be something to talk about with your local store if youd like to get the deal and inspect before it enters their tanks.

 

[Fish Fan]

A while back I was talking to the aquatic manager at my local petco, he said that while it was perfectly fine to order through their website, he could order the fish and would call me before they ever entered the stores tanks so i could inspect them. He was clear on the fact that if I changed my mind after he ordered them that I would not have to pay and they would just be put in the stores tanks. Might be something to talk about with your local store if youd like to get the deal and inspect before it enters their tanks.

Thank you for your reply! I this case, my LFS has them in stock. I didn’t they were going to because they are a small shop, but they had two Yasha gobies and at least one Randall’s pistol shrimp, which was the combo I was hoping for.

 

[Fritz05]

I ordered a captive bred Yasha goby from Petco just this week and it arrived half dead, dying within a couple of hours. It was shipped only from LA to southern CA. They refunded without a problem. I ordered from various online sellers before (Liveaquaria, bluezoo, Biota, Oceansgardens), as I only want captive bred fish, and it was hit and miss with all of them. Unfortunately the LFS around here do not carry captive bred, other than Clowns. I also bought captive bred from a local Petco store (Banggais and urchins), and they are fine.

 

[hexcolor reef]

Only fish I’ll buy from petco would be clown fish

 

[Fish Fan]

I ordered a captive bred Yasha goby from Petco just this week and it arrived half dead, dying within a couple of hours. It was shipped only from LA to southern CA. They refunded without a problem. I ordered from various online sellers before (Liveaquaria, bluezoo, Biota, Oceansgardens), as I only want captive bred fish, and it was hit and miss with all of them. Unfortunately the LFS around here do not carry captive bred, other than Clowns. I also bought captive bred from a local Petco store (Banggais and urchins), and they are fine.

Sorry about your experience. Turned out my LFS has a tank raised Yasha and Randall’s pistol shrimp I wanted, so I think I’m going that direction. Thank you for your eeply!

 

[Grog]

Over the years, my best and longest-lived fish have been from Petco. I have zero issues with them. Only buy livestock in the local store, not online shipments. Our local Petco is nice, and the tanks are clean. I won't get coral there (they have some) but If I see a fish I like, I have no hesitation. They have been healthy and typically will eat pellets etc.

 

[Fish Fan]

Over the years, my best and longest-lived fish have been from Petco. I have zero issues with them. Only buy livestock in the local store, not online shipments. Our local Petco is nice, and the tanks are clean. I won't get coral there (they have some) but If I see a fish I like, I have no hesitation. They have been healthy and typically will eat pellets etc.

I think the overall quality of local PetCo's varies a lot from place to place. Just in my area there are several PetCo's and some are certainly better than others. I'm sure the store manager and staff have a lot to do with things.

I would rather give the sale to a local reef store. I had initially had a not so great impression of the LFS that's closest to me, but after seeing the fish and talking to the owner, I am 99% sure I'm going to get my goby and shrimp from them.

Thank you for your reply!

 

[Fishguy1079]

Sorry, this got literally locked up in a short power outage,

This was my full reply:

Thanks again! I'm not really looking at LiveAquaria.com, but isn't that the old Doctors Foster Smith live fish site?? And I think many of us are confusing them with PetCo.com? ?

I will definitely check SaltwaterFish.com - thank you for the suggestion!

Petco bought LiveAquaria(al though I think they sold them recently) which did used to be Old Doctors Foster Smith. When it was Drs Foster Smith it was great IMO, now not so much.

 

[Fish Fan]

Petco bought LiveAquaria(al though I think they sold them recently) which did used to be Old Doctors Foster Smith. When it was Drs Foster Smith it was great IMO, now not so much.

Thank you, I thought Live Aquaria was originally from the old Doctor’s Foster Smith site. Right now PetCo.com and Live Aquaria.com seem to be independent of each other just based on when I see something in stock at one but out of stock at the other. Thanks for your reply!

 

[ReeferRedSox]

Got a clown, dottyback, and skunk cleaner from Petco last week and they are doing fine and a lot less $ than my LFS. HOWEVER, the fish guy (apparently also the store manager) had no clue and nearly ripped a bubble tip anemone off a live rock before I told him to stop. In 4 years he’s never been able to get one off without a lot of carnage. Nice guy but I’m sure he spends most of his days selling dog food. LFS nearby keeps them in a PVC pipe rather than on a rock. I’ll go back but not for anemones.