Have I become a fish snob?

Over the last year or two I find myself less and less happy with local lfs and trying to buy more and more fish from members. Have you all turned me into fish snobs or is this the natural progression of the hobby to have what is harder to get?

As you start getting a bit more experienced and you have seen the "bread and butter" fish that are available most hobbyists want to start keeping something that is different - especially when they see other people having different things.... I think that it tends to make something more worthwhile keeping when it is something not everyone else has because there is often a challenge that comes along with it... Several of us here are keeping fish that might not look as pretty as many fish you would see in a store but they might be rare or have little quirks that make them worth keeping or breeding and it just grows from there...

On that note, will you be having any of your dwarfs for sale this spring??

You have become more responsible (in a general sense) buying locally is generally a g0od thing.
Local fish normally means stock that is used to the conditions they are bred in (as long as the seller knows what they are doing)
And as others said, it means you see some more interesting items that aren't normally at the LFS.
It's good.

I buy salt water fish from my LFS but it's a well looked after shop not a chain. It's been years since I bought a fresh water fish a store.

Steve

The real snob here is Steve: importing koi from Japan!

Good point!! If I start feeling bad I'll just remember Steve thinks he's too good for any fish in this country and feel better.

 

Well...

It turns out that my Koi purchase from Japan has burned up on reentry

It was part of a larger purchase and a couple of others got cold feet and backed out. So looks like I will have to wait a few months until we can round up a few more Koi nut jobs so we can make this happen.

Stay tuned fellow snobs   

Steve

Sbenson11 wrote: 

Well...

It turns out that my Koi purchase from Japan has burned up on reentry

It was part of a larger purchase and a couple of others got cold feet and backed out. So looks like I will have to wait a few months until we can round up a few more Koi nut jobs so we can make this happen.

Stay tuned fellow snobs   

Steve

Now that the competition has burned out (sorry Steve), do you know that we have lots of rare livebearers in this forum ? There are species here that cannot be found anywhere else   

Livebearers?

What's that?

Steve

sucker4plecos wrote:As you start getting a bit more experienced and you have seen the "bread and butter" fish that are available most hobbyists want to start keeping something that is different - especially when they see other people having different things.... I think that it tends to make something more worthwhile keeping when it is something not everyone else has because there is often a challenge that comes along with it... Several of us here are keeping fish that might not look as pretty as many fish you would see in a store but they might be rare or have little quirks that make them worth keeping or breeding and it just grows from there...

its the natural progression. and also an obsession. fish people are a bit obsessive!
im one of them!!
Also..nice poodle. I have four toy poodles. if that's your poodle..i saw a black poodle on the side bar. still getting used to this forum.

I have freshwater fish In my shop..and I rarely find a dead one when I arrive in the morning. mine are imported. but I hand pick. I also feed high quality food twice a day..and so they grow fast and look great. healthy unstressed fish don't get sick. .i go by my fish how they look and act. and I talk to them all..
Im also a one person shop. no employees...just me and my fish. I treat them all like they are my fish till sold. Long and short..not all lfs are equal. I almost called my shop. local fish shop. but didn't.

April, where are you?! I would love to come and shop at your store; it sounds like fish paradise!

Biulu wrote:April, where are you?! I would love to come and shop at your store; it sounds like fish paradise!

I know right?? I'd for sure love to pay this place a visit!!

I wish we had stores like yours in Montreal!
We avoid the big chains - I suspect it isn't cost-effective to translate their stuff into French. That in itself is wonderful since the chains are awful places to buy fish.
Still, the kind of small, 20-30 tank place we used to have all over town (and that people could raise their families on, and still employ 2 or 3 people) are largely gone. The stores are big and need capital behind them, and often direct import from the far eastern fish farms - stock unseen. No one is choosing. I remember being in my neighbourhood store when a bad bag of tetras was delivered - the owner ripped a strip off the wholesaler on the phone. Now, dead fish are factored into the prices, as the Thai and Singapore farms are so cheap that quality doesn't matter.

I'd support your shop.

It'd be one heck of a walk for me to get there though...

yes it could be we are on opposite coastlines! Vancouver . My shop is just my hobby and somewhere to hang my hat and play with my fish and pretend I have a job...and run a business. lol. no fish at home..all here. no garden at home..just a cement patio with shade. so here I have my things. It is a very hard business to survive in with the box stores. but I do hear some of the giants are downsizing as their leases run out. the days of the box stores is going..thats what I believe. I see it with best buy, and Canadian tire is even doing kiosks in city centers. So heres hoping some mom and pop shops return. leases are getting costly, and aquariums supply is a plenty to stock..so many little things..people need. And fish and shipping has I catch my gotten very expensive now with importing permits, shipping etc.
If a bag comes in all doa..they replace. with photos.I catch my own out of the tanks.