Petco Frag Tank
- Thread starter AC2020x
- Start date
justjosh012
New member
the LFS i work at has actually, over time, built a customer base off of people who have bought "systems" from our petco that fail. once this happens they sometimes come to us wanting to know how to fix their SW aquarium. they are generally pretty upset when they find out that the equipment they have purchased is usually sub par and the only thing they have that is worth anything is the tank itself. On the other side there are other LFS that i wouldnt choose over petco due to their staff and livestock being just as bad or worse.
The most recent petco employee recommended setup that im still currently trying to save is a 55g with one of those cheapo waterfall HOB, no LR, just lace rock, no skimmer, and no internal circulation other than that of the HOB thing. the fish, which they were told would be fine are as follows: a 5" niger trigger, bannerfish, 2"volitans, hippo tang, yellowtail damsels, yellow tang, and a few others im forgetting. current casualties are the volitans and the hippo tang.
I do belive these people should shoulder some of the blame for not properly researching on their own, but when employees who represent the corporation as a whole, do things this bad repeatedly, i think most blame should go to the local petco.
so i guess thanks petco, for being one of the best things for the success of our small business :celeb1:
The most recent petco employee recommended setup that im still currently trying to save is a 55g with one of those cheapo waterfall HOB, no LR, just lace rock, no skimmer, and no internal circulation other than that of the HOB thing. the fish, which they were told would be fine are as follows: a 5" niger trigger, bannerfish, 2"volitans, hippo tang, yellowtail damsels, yellow tang, and a few others im forgetting. current casualties are the volitans and the hippo tang.
I do belive these people should shoulder some of the blame for not properly researching on their own, but when employees who represent the corporation as a whole, do things this bad repeatedly, i think most blame should go to the local petco.
so i guess thanks petco, for being one of the best things for the success of our small business :celeb1:
gmate
MASC Member
Plenty of LFS in my area have 6 to 8 foot tanks. In fact, I can't think of one real LFS that doesn't in my area.
firebirdude
User and Abuser
:deadhorse1:
petco is not the worst. I think it varys from place to place just like any store. Lol they would lose money if they let fish and their saltwater sections go to hell on purpose. I think its hard to find good people to run the department for minimum wage. I have had good luck with them. The one person said they sold him a condy nem and a clown fish and good thing they didnt try to pair up.... whys that?
I had that combo in my tank and they loved each other? Is it their fault that you didnt rechearch it first? Just saying.
I had that combo in my tank and they loved each other? Is it their fault that you didnt rechearch it first? Just saying.
Utah Fatman
New member
I grab a tank each year on the dollar a gallon specials. Other than that I avoid them.
Condy's are a fairly strong stinging tropcial Atlantic anemone, while the clownfish are a tropical Pacific fish. As a result, clownfish have no immunity to condy's.
Zach Vs Ponies
New member
My local Petco has an extremely small Regal Blue Tang (1 inch or less) confused with a blue damselfish. They have it in a tank full of them. I pretended to be a person who has no idea anything about fish and asked him what kind of fish it was, and he told me that it was a blue damselfish (after reading the labels on the tank). I never told him what it really was because I wanted to buy it (it was marked for like $5). But, I didn't because my quarantine aquarium is currently occupied and I wouldn't be able to house it when it gets huge.
The majority of their saltwater "professionals" are fools. I feel really bad for the fish they kill, and also feel really bad for the people they scam with diseased & dying fish.
The majority of their saltwater "professionals" are fools. I feel really bad for the fish they kill, and also feel really bad for the people they scam with diseased & dying fish.
BriggsReef
New member
The one near my house is a disaster. 6 20ish gallon tanks 4 are filled with ich ridden fish that have no chance of survival.
The coral tank is mostly brown Polyps or common mushrooms for 40 dollars but the disease all over the fish makes the purchase a terrible one no matter what the coral.
They even have a carpet anemone.. nice pinkish one with purple tips. In a healthy tank it would be beautiful and healthy and i wanted to buy is so bad for 39.99 but didn't want to condone the torture of the animals by making a purchase.
The coral tank is mostly brown Polyps or common mushrooms for 40 dollars but the disease all over the fish makes the purchase a terrible one no matter what the coral.
They even have a carpet anemone.. nice pinkish one with purple tips. In a healthy tank it would be beautiful and healthy and i wanted to buy is so bad for 39.99 but didn't want to condone the torture of the animals by making a purchase.
ReachTheSky
Active member
I must be lucky. The fish department in the Petco near me is managed by an aquarist with at least a decade or two of experience (I've spoken to him on many occasions). They are poorly stocked for the most part which I'm assuming is due to budget constraints, but whatever fish, inverts, anemones and frags they do have usually look reasonably happy and free of ailments.
My friends and I have made purchases from them before and have had no issues or incidents.
My friends and I have made purchases from them before and have had no issues or incidents.
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AC2020x
Marine Conservationist
Perhaps, I spoke too soon about the Petco in State College, Pa..
Upon returning to the store and viewing the frag tank about 2 weeks later, almost all the frags were in very bad shape... losing color, turning brown and certainly not doing well. I was not impressed at all.. I'd imagine they looked good at first because they just received the shipment.
Returning again a week after that, almost all the frags were gone, likely dead and there were just a couple new ones they had in.
It seems I won't be tempted any more about buying frags close to my apartment.
Upon returning to the store and viewing the frag tank about 2 weeks later, almost all the frags were in very bad shape... losing color, turning brown and certainly not doing well. I was not impressed at all.. I'd imagine they looked good at first because they just received the shipment.
Returning again a week after that, almost all the frags were gone, likely dead and there were just a couple new ones they had in.
It seems I won't be tempted any more about buying frags close to my apartment.
Da Maui life
New member
Speaking of "professional" fools and people they scam, the Petco in Kaneohe, Oahu.
Two Oahu women have filed a lawsuit against Petco, claiming their dogs had parts of their bodies cut off while being groomed at the Kaneohe store. The lawsuit alleges that Petco attempted to reattach, glue or sew the ear back on, and failed to disclose what happened when Kapuwai picked the dog up.
http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/...ohe-claiming-groomers-cut-off-dogs-body-parts
"Was dried, bloody, was dry blood, everything," Kapuwai said. "I noticed that at home, so when I took her to the vet, the doctor had told me it looked like they tried to glue it back."
"I couldn't believe what they did," Kapuwai said. "I started crying because this is our baby, too, you know."
The civil complaint alleges that a similar incident happened with Attorney Michael Green's pet. Green's wife is also listed as a plaintiff.
"The nails are bleeding because they were cut too short, the dog was filthy and the tip of the dog's tail was cut off," Green said. "They didn't seem, the people at Petco didn't seem overly concerned about that.""My dog, they offered another free grooming," Green said. "I guess they wanted to take off other body parts."
Zach Vs Ponies
New member
That is so sad. I did read a woman post on their Facebook page saying that the grooming dept. killed one of her friends's dogs. I'm not sure if this case is related to that one.
AC2020x
Marine Conservationist
While I agree that I'm certainly not a fan of petco.. I also believe that the specific workers at each store are what really makes it a good or bad store in each different section of store care.
The petco near me.. while the fish department is terrible and no one really knows what they are doing. They have a great dog section and grooming section and very friendly people and service. I've had many neighbors who take their dogs there and love the place and what they do.
The issue comes back to petco not be through enough when hiring people and training them where it is needed.
shananagans
New member
I don't think you can generalize that they are all terrible or ich ridden. I definitely think that the company should be far most strict and use better discretion when hireling employees. I also think it may be a geographical thing. I recently moved from central NJ to Tucson AZ. Not only are are the tanks cleaner here, I feel ( for the most part) the staff is more knowledgeable, they have more choices, and for some reason prices are better. Unfortunately the mom and pop stores down here might have the knowledge, most don't have great stock, prices are ridiculous, and some are so algae ridden I would never put anything in my tank.
There's always online!
There's always online!
from what I have been told they are all supposed to be getting a saltwater section. none near us have it now that I know of, but that is supposed to change very soon. The one in San Diego has some cool corals at good prices and the fish look good as well. I think it really depends on the workers at each store taking care of their department.
