(Apologies if this insults or offends anyone. I just think I need to get some things off my chest.)
I've been doing this for 40 years now: Hobbyist, maintenance, and retail. And since getting back into the business side of things (over a year now), I've encountered things that to me seem almost unbelievable. The first is equipment/products... First, I will say that this hobby has come quite a long way thanks to technology. But what's lacking is QUALITY. In the past year, here is a list of problems I've had: 10 LED fixtures I bought for my business which had to be RMA, bottles of live bacteria that were actually just dead bacteria, bags of dead pods, contaminated DI resin, fish medications with little to no active ingredients, ammonia in salt, etc. etc. I'm not going to name any specific companies, because I'm not seeking revenge. I'm just bringing to everyone's attention the overall lack of Quality Control in our industry. This hobby is challenging enough at times. It becomes even more difficult when you can't rely upon the equipment & products you need to succeed, both as a hobbyist and as a business.
The above complaints could almost be overlooked, because these are just things - not living, breathing animals. (Except for the pods and bacteria. :fun5
But when equipment fails, sometimes livestock is lost. Which brings me to my next gripe: All the sick, dying fish in the supply chain. Just 10 years ago ich was everyone's biggest concern. Now we have velvet, brook, uronema, flukes, bacterial infections, internal parasites/worms and many other virulent diseases to deal with. This concerns me the most for many reasons. First and foremost, I love fish and have kept some specimens in captivity for 10-15 years. When I lose one, it hurts the same as losing a beloved pet cat or dog. However, when I remove my emotions from the equation I realize our days of importing fish may be numbered if this continues. This is something that is in the back of the mind of many hobbyists and those of us in the industry alike. When the day comes where regulating the aquarium industry is front and center, it would be nice to have a leg to stand on so as to muster a defense. I get that livestock wholesalers and LFS need to make money. But sometimes I think they are so focused on short-term profits that they are sacrificing their long-term livelihood.
I will try to end this rant on a positive note. :beer: It is great to see just how far we've come with successfully keeping corals. Back in the 80s, pretty much all corals were collected in the wild and we had no idea how to care for them. :headwally: Nowadays, most corals are aquacultured, and we have detailed information regarding every coral's specific needs & requirements. So, there is hope for the fish. Maybe as captive breeding increases to include more species, fish diseases will be less and less of a problem. One can only hope.
Anyway, that is all. Feel free to discuss below if you feel so inclined.
I've been doing this for 40 years now: Hobbyist, maintenance, and retail. And since getting back into the business side of things (over a year now), I've encountered things that to me seem almost unbelievable. The first is equipment/products... First, I will say that this hobby has come quite a long way thanks to technology. But what's lacking is QUALITY. In the past year, here is a list of problems I've had: 10 LED fixtures I bought for my business which had to be RMA, bottles of live bacteria that were actually just dead bacteria, bags of dead pods, contaminated DI resin, fish medications with little to no active ingredients, ammonia in salt, etc. etc. I'm not going to name any specific companies, because I'm not seeking revenge. I'm just bringing to everyone's attention the overall lack of Quality Control in our industry. This hobby is challenging enough at times. It becomes even more difficult when you can't rely upon the equipment & products you need to succeed, both as a hobbyist and as a business.
The above complaints could almost be overlooked, because these are just things - not living, breathing animals. (Except for the pods and bacteria. :fun5
But when equipment fails, sometimes livestock is lost. Which brings me to my next gripe: All the sick, dying fish in the supply chain. Just 10 years ago ich was everyone's biggest concern. Now we have velvet, brook, uronema, flukes, bacterial infections, internal parasites/worms and many other virulent diseases to deal with. This concerns me the most for many reasons. First and foremost, I love fish and have kept some specimens in captivity for 10-15 years. When I lose one, it hurts the same as losing a beloved pet cat or dog. However, when I remove my emotions from the equation I realize our days of importing fish may be numbered if this continues. This is something that is in the back of the mind of many hobbyists and those of us in the industry alike. When the day comes where regulating the aquarium industry is front and center, it would be nice to have a leg to stand on so as to muster a defense. I get that livestock wholesalers and LFS need to make money. But sometimes I think they are so focused on short-term profits that they are sacrificing their long-term livelihood.I will try to end this rant on a positive note. :beer: It is great to see just how far we've come with successfully keeping corals. Back in the 80s, pretty much all corals were collected in the wild and we had no idea how to care for them. :headwally: Nowadays, most corals are aquacultured, and we have detailed information regarding every coral's specific needs & requirements. So, there is hope for the fish. Maybe as captive breeding increases to include more species, fish diseases will be less and less of a problem. One can only hope.
Anyway, that is all. Feel free to discuss below if you feel so inclined.
