I know everyone hears horror stories about lfs...

[inkyjenn]

so i thought id post something nice about one.

my bf yesterday stopped into a chain store (im not mentioning names, but its not petco or petsmart) because it occassionally carries the odd pleco. he noticed that they had a bunch of figure 8's and a lone gsp that were in horrible condition: grey, sunken bellies, total lethargy, etc. you all know how it is. he was mumbling to himself about the deplorable condition they were in and the store manager overheard him and said she didnt know too much about them and asked for help. apparently, they were in fresh water and were being fed nothing but flakes and the occassional cichlid pellet. my bf explained that ideally, the gsp would be kept separate from the figure 8's because while they both need brackish water, they need different kinds of brackish water. since they had every tank on the same filtration system, thats pretty hard, but she promised to check out this place and print out good care sheets for the people who buy them. on top of everything, my bf pointed out the wrong food they had been feeding them and got the lady to thaw out some blood worms. apparently there was a feeding frenzy in the puffer tank! they whitened up and their bellies filled out a bit. my bf said they needed blood worms and mysis shrimp and krill and the occassional brine shrimp at the very least. the lady went and pulled a bunch of frozen food out of the stock to keep as store food.

it was really nice to hear about someone who actually gave a crap. shed been wondering what to do for them since they werent eating much and were looking awful. were hoping the trend will continue and given the proper resources there will be a reliable place to purchase puffers from

[yunachin]

That is fantastic. Good to know some people still want to properly care for fish.

[Jase]

Glad to know some stores do care. Thanks for sharing!

[Agnate]

Indeed! I always like hearing a bad story turn good. Restores my faith in humanity a bit... only a little bit, but a bit nonetheless. ^_^

Hopefully she signs up and asks some questions. Everyone benefits when animals are taken care of properly.

[edmlfc1]

That's awesome. Give your bf a big thumbs up!

[Idontknow]

It's really nice to hear that a LFS would take advice from a customer. It's very encouraging.

[marksrush]

Wow that is excellent, thank goodness she cares. I just started working at a LFS, and while they are so good at everything else, they just don't really know as much about puffers as you'd wish. I'm kind of in a tight spot because I can't really tell them their business since I haven't been there but a few weeks, but they know puffers are my "thing" so hopefully with time things will change.

[inkyjenn]

i checked back in over the weekend and they were in fact listening. i made a few more observations and they actually jotted them down and took out more frozen foods for the little guys. it was really gratifying...

on a side note, the one gsp they had was so tiny! same size as my little guy when i got him. i hadnt realized how much hed grown until i saw that teeny fellow

[DRRT]

i would say this is the only lfs success story i've read, most are them being irritable at people like us just trying to help.

[Jase]

I didn't want to barge in on your story, but Petco here has some nice people who are willing to learn. I've even had them ask me to help a costomer when they were swamped one day.

[apachepufferman]

i would say this is the only lfs success story i've read, most are them being irritable at people like us just trying to help.

My lfs is awesome, they always listen to what I have to say when it comes to puffers and they are really knowledgeable of there other fish. I think the fact that the owner is a 6th grade teacher helps a lot. Teachers seem more willing to learn as well as teach to make things better.

[marksrush]

Just to say again, you're lucky. My LFS bosses are disappointing me because they show little interest in properly caring for our puffers. They wouldn't let me give proper food (shrimp tail, clam on half shell, both frozen for about 2 weeks) to a depressed little porc, and told me to give him a guppy instead, which he of course ignored. Also they put a suvatti in with F8's, which of course resulted in the death of one of the F8's, and the suvatti's death as well - not to mention the different water requirements of these two species, especially since the F8's are adults. They respect cichlid fans for their knowledge, but I guess they don't realize that puffer people know and care for their fish at least as much as do cichlid keepers.

[inkyjenn]

I didn't want to barge in on your story, but Petco here has some nice people who are willing to learn. I've even had them ask me to help a costomer when they were swamped one day.

youre not barging in at all...i think its great when suggestions can be made and you dont get tossed out on your keister or yelled at or ignored for trying to make their fish live better.

[Jase]

and you dont get tossed out on your keister or yelled at or ignored for trying to make their fish live better.

that is why I don't go to the little LFS very often. The owner doesn't like me very much...

[inkyjenn]

*shrugs* i usually just keep my mouth shut. there are a couple of lfs that despite the ignorance about the specifics of the fish they are selling, they seem to take decent care of them anyway and they carry good stock. i do my best now to buy fish after having thoroughly researched them. my gsp was a great lesson. i think thats the best way to avoid trouble. sometimes, though, i just have to chime in with my two cents