The Liveaquaria process???

[ryshark]

What does Liveaquaria do with fish before they are ready to be sold?
1. Do you QT fish from the regular sales section or only Divers Den section? How long?
2. Do you do any kind of prophylactic treatments or freshwater dips?
3. Can I arrange for local pick-up at the California location, or do you have certain days where customers can come inside to see the whole setup you run?
4. Anything else I missed?
Thank you.

 

[dfs/la2]

ryshark,

Thank you, for your post. We apologize that we do not offer tours for our holding facility in California, nor are we able to have orders held for pick up. If your concern is that you will not be home to accept delivery, there are a few options that will prevent orders from sitting outside in uncertain temperatures. We will be more than happy to ship an order to your business location, a friend or family member, or your order can be held at a local FedEx facility for pick up.

Regarding our quarantine procedure for the live specimens that are sold through LiveAquaria, our fish and invertebrates are acclimated in a temperature-controlled room illuminated under red lighting to prevent the risk of shock to these animals when the boxes are opened. They are cut from their shipping bags and placed in polyethylene totes with shipping water. Brand new seawater of the same temperature is adjusted to a low pH to match the new shipment and this is then dripped into the totes. Water is exchanged with low pH water so that the fish will not be exposed to lethal ammonia levels that can burn their gills during acclimation. Once the inbound fish are in this low pH solution they are then acclimated to the main fish systems where they will reside after acclimation. They are then transferred to the holding system and covered with a tarp until they are breathing normally.

The live specimens are held at the aquatic center for an unspecified time, which will vary depending on the species, origin and transit time. Any fish that shows any sign of damage or disease are transferred off the floor into a dedicated treatment system so that antibiotics can be administered to combat their specific ailment.

If we can be of further assistance, please contact our LiveAquaria Department at 1-800-334-3699, via email at CustomerService@LiveAquaria.com or PM us.

Gwen S.
LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith

 

[ryshark]

Thanks for the reply. So when we get the delivery at home should we try to open the box up in a dimly lit room? I am assuming the answer is yes, even though I never thought about that until I read your reply. So the Divers Den fish and the regular fish all go through the same process from the time you guys get the fish until the time you sell the fish?
Also do you recommend us not doing a freshwater dip after acclimationg the fish to our QT or display and then putting it in?
Thanks, I plan on placing two fairly large orders over the next few months.

 

[dfs/la2]

ryshark,

Thank you for your response. Making sure that you open boxes containing live fish in dimly lit rooms will definitely help reduce the amount of stress to each specimen during their acclimation. The quarantine procedure for our Aquaculture Coral & Marine Life Facility is very similar to the one performed for the LiveAquaria specimens. If you are interested in reading about the quarantine procedure for Diver’s Den specimens, we recommend reading the article LiveAquaria.com Diver's Den® Quarantine Procedure for Fish located in our LiveAquaria Information Center.

Gwen S.
LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith

 

[ryshark]

Wow, those were awesome links I enjoyed reading about the care you put into your specimens. It sounds like there would be no need for us as the buyer to do a freshwater dip on a Divers Den purchase.
But what if it is not divers den. Do you think it would be too much stress on the fishes for a freshwater dip after being drip acclimated to our system?

 

[dfs/la2]

ryshark,

Thank you for your post. We normally do not recommend performing freshwater dips unless the fish in question actually show signs of disease or parasites and it is the last resort. However, we highly recommend performing your own quarantine procedure for each specimen before adding them to your main tank. A quarantine period will allow new arrivals to acclimate and recover from the stress of transport and ensure optimum health of any new fish and the prevention of potential illness in the main aquarium.

Gwen S.
LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith

 

[ryshark]

Thanks for answering all of my questions Gwen. One last question, is there a certain day of the week or time that items are added to Divers Den or can it happen any day and any time?

 

[dfs/la2]

ryshark,

Thank you for your post. New Diver’s Den specimens are typically added daily during the evening. The exact time the update is done will vary within this general period. If you would like to receive notification on new items as they are added, you are certainly welcome to sign up for our Diver’s Den E-Mail Alerts or our RSS Feed.

Mike S.
LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith