I was apalled!!!!!

[dindi]

Well sammy, I will let one and all know if my maderin starves, I know it won't but, hey it might, on the same token I'm still learning. As I said, my 75 provides lots of pods and this little guy accually likes FROZEN, jeeze I'm lucky. If this is a test I will keep all posted on "Lucky" the mandarine gobie

 

[wrassecal]

the guy who owns the lfs I like to go to makes most of his money setting up and maintaining for the "elite" in our area and his wife who is very knowlegdable runs the store. Don't small business lfs owners make most of their money that way?

 

[dindi]

Here fe is taken 15 min ago, you tell me

 

[dindi]

And this, here he is again doing his look for food thing. I'll keep you posted on his progress, dang already had him/her for 4 months

 

[mersonly1]

hey..that (DEAD)FS.LOL.WOULDNT BEGIN WITH THE INITIALS......AZ .?.would it?......dont goto that one in jax either

 

[ophiura]

Originally posted by Dindi
If I can give Ohuirura advice don't judge and do your homework maybe we can all learn, yes I'm still learning. If I learned one thing today then I'm smart
Ah dear Dindi, but you have judged me, OPHIURA, haven't you? What do you know about MY training, my dear, do you want a transcript? What do you know about MY experience? I have done LOTS of homework, more than you can perhaps imagine, and than I care to remember, for sure.
I am most happy you keep a supply of food for it coming from a larger tank...glad you clarified that for people who may try to put a mandarin in a 10g. Even if it is eating, I would still never put a mandarin in a 10g tank, and would never sell one to someone with a 10g tank. IMO, it is not the best environment for that type of fish.
The point of this thread seemed to be that LFS people are ignorant on the one hand, and out to make a buck on the other. You seemed to support this idea, and I refuted it by using an example from your own signature line.
I would never have sold you that mandarin for a 10 g tank, nor for a 29g. Maybe when you get a 6 month old 55g with at least that much LR, I would consider it (if I know the buyer and the tank, eg, they bring water in to be tested) but would be very hesitant. Odds are (and I knew this) people would go to any of the many other LFS in the area, who don't warranty their fish let alone care what they are going into. A mandarin was going to die anyway, why shouldn't I have taken the cash? Responsibility.
Store policy was that we wouldn't sell seahorses unless you brought water in, and the owner often said that he would rather keep them in the store and never sell one, then sell one to a questionable situation just to get the money.
I worked on commission and every $$ counted. But I tried hard not to sell any fish to a situation that I had questions about. I had to go home at the end of the day and think if I sent a fish home to its death. In the end, scr*w commission. Some things are more important.
So dear, take your own advice and don't judge me, alrighty?
BTW, you can show me all the pictures of your happy mandarin that you want. I would still never sell one to a 10g tank and I will never agree that they would be a good choice for a 10g tank.
I agree that people have NO IDEA what it is like to work at an LFS day in and day out. I have also worked with some fine teenagers who know a lot. Age is not necessarily a major factor.

 

[dindi]

Well Susan, I agree with you on almost all of your statements, and yes you do know everything about saltwater fish, 'not!". This is not a bashing board. I do take care of all my pets and would never suggest anyone even buy a maderin gobie. Now, who said a teenager dosen't know anything? Not I, I raised one and she is now 25. Managing a pet store means your under someone else's gun, it does't mean you know everything but you try to learn and improve. There isn't one person out there who knows it all unless you are "god" Would you suggest I put my little gobie in my 2 yr old 75 gal?

 

[ophiura]

There are two come backs in this hobby that I LOVE to hear.
1) "Just get over it" as in "it isn't the ocean anyway so just get over it."
2) "Bet YOU never made a mistake" (also as "bet YOUR perfect" and "Bet YOU know everything about fish")
I love these because they get us no further in any debate or exchange. It is like kids fighting on the playground. They're kind of amusing.
As I said, I am glad you clarified that you are feeding your mandarin from the 75 and that it eats frozen food. Many people may see your signature, as I did, and believe that you are not doing this and that the animal is starving. Surely you know that most mandarins do not eat frozen food and most people do not have a 75g seed tank. I am very glad that this was brought up for clarification, I imagine someone else would have mentioned it eventually.
I am still allowed the opinion that this is not a good situation. That's what these boards are about.
As for bashing, I believe you can start by omitting comments such as this:
I WILL assure you my mandarin has the best care it will ever get, from someone like you...it's better with me
As for the teenager comment, I was addressing other comments that are commonly heard in LFS bashing threads. Many LFS employees are immediately dismissed because of their age, which is unwarranted, as you seem to agree with. Most of my fellow LFS employees were much younger than I was, and I often turned to them for advice because they had more experience, regardless of age.
Experience, maturity and knowledge are not always correlated with an increase in age. So age alone should not be the basis for forming a positive or negative opinion of an LFS and yet it is often the first criticism "At this crappy LFS, I was helped by this kid who was, like, 16."
I never came close to manager in a fish store. We were all owned by two guys with guns. I can't approach your managerial experience.
I abandoned my book learning to work for $6.50 an hour cleaning algae, doing water changes, etc to do exactly what you said. To learn. To always learn. And the learning curve was incredible. Considering I practically grew physically attached to Scott Michael's Marine Fishes book, and rarely made a sale without consulting it, I will certainly not say I know it all. I don't, and this is why I tend to be very conservative in what animals I keep, and what animals I sold, and what conditions I subjected them to.

 

[pmauro]

You hit it on the head AZ is the place I only know of 2 are there more?

 

[c_bell]

I just got back from the LFS. From other post I have read here it sounds like the same one Ophiura used to work for. I have been going there for the past year, but this time I decided to listen in on some of the conversations the sale people and customer were having, (after reading this post I wanted to know if my LFS was practing the same methods as discribed above.) In the few conversations I heard, the sales people were giving good, sound advice, much like the advice that I have read on the BB. I wanted to buy I fish and was pleased that the sales person would not sale me one because the fish just came in that day and that I would have to come back after the fish had been there for a few days. I just wanted to share my experiance with a good LFS after hearing so many thing about the bad ones.

 

[dindi]

Susan, your very right, I was a little put off about my mandarin and and all the negative comments, I'm very happy he is doing so well, I have hatched brine shrimp supplemented with kent Zoe, changed his live rock from my 75 refugim with calurpa 2 x a day since I noticed loads of pods, and more pods than needed there in my refugium and tried frozen brine and he is excited when i stare into his little world with my feeder syringe. Even after all my work I'm still unsure as to the fact if I'm doing everything I can for him. I don't mean to bash and this is a formal apology to you. We really don't know everything and this board helps one and all to learn. I learned more from my daughter than anyone else because she made me see her intelligence through an adults eye. In other words listen then judge, kids know more than we think!

 

[yellowfin]

Although I may not know everything about saltwater tanks. I do know one thing, and One thing only, Which is an opinion at that!!. There are many ways to run a tanks. So many options. There are Many Variables. I agree with everyone on this board about LFS and I also agree with the LFS as well. It is All about the Benj's. Money makes the world go round. Wheather it is with this Company Or ABC of xyz in Some city State.... There is no diference in buying a fish at a LFS for a hobby or Buying a dead fish to eat... WE as humans all should take resposibilities for ourselves and Not judge others. because they don't do it the way you do..Like I said there are many ways to run a tank. And many ways to Run a business. And there are so many ways to Judge People. But Not many people jugde themselves and ask the questions.
If someone will buy a fish that is dying from a person that is selling it then To each his Own..That fish IMO was dying when it left the Hand of Mother Nature.. At least that person was able to sell the dead Fish to put food on the table to keep the Human race Going... So you see THere are many ways to look at things in this World.. Lets try to make it abetter place to Live Take resposibilities for your own actions.. Not others, Unless you are the resposible for them... Peace ,Love, and Happiness
" Everyone dies, But not Everyone Lives".........IMO

 

[jarvis]

Originally posted by BigMac
Silly guy It happened yesterday to a couple while I was at the LFS. Its been almost 20 years since that kind fo thing happend to me.

I guess that what happens when you search for hours on end of reading previous post. You start to get your people confused. lol