Don't order fish

I ordered fish and plants two times. If you don't mind the very high
shipping cost, their plants are ok but fish orders are incomplete and
poor quality. Both of my orders were only partly filled and YOU DO NOT
GET A REFUND. If you're lucky you may get an in-house credit (to
have additional aggravation with your next order.) The quality of
livestock is poor and only DOA's are replaced. Compare this to
"Petsmart" were you get two weeks warranty; granted they don't
have some fish that are available at AAG but there are several better
mail order places.
The other problem is you can't talk to anyone and left messages are
ignored. If you send them an email it is also most often ignored. I
filed a complaint at BBB and I encourage you to order somewhere else.

"Methuselah" wrote in message
ps.com...
I ordered fish and plants two times. If you don't mind the very high
shipping cost, their plants are ok but fish orders are incomplete and
poor quality. Both of my orders were only partly filled and YOU DO NOT
GET A REFUND. If you're lucky you may get an in-house credit (to
have additional aggravation with your next order.) The quality of
livestock is poor and only DOA's are replaced. Compare this to
"Petsmart" were you get two weeks warranty; granted they don't
have some fish that are available at AAG but there are several better
mail order places.
The other problem is you can't talk to anyone and left messages are
ignored. If you send them an email it is also most often ignored. I
filed a complaint at BBB and I encourage you to order somewhere else.
==========================
I would NEVER order fish sight unseen by mail-order. I get all mine at
PetsMart or PetSupermarket. Since both places know me they'll replace
anything that dies even it's a little past the 14 days.
--
KL....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö ~~~~ }((((({*

On Sat, 2 Dec 2006 15:49:04 -0600, Köi-Lö wrote:

I would NEVER order fish sight unseen by mail-order. I get all mine at
PetsMart or PetSupermarket. Since both places know me they'll replace
anything that dies even it's a little past the 14 days.

That's fine if you are lucky to live near a well run PetSmart, PetCo,
etc. and you are not looking for anything unusual. Otherwise I'm not
sure what else you can do if you don't live near a good specialty LFS
that has what you want. The fish quality and health in my local
Petsmart and Petco are awful. You are very lucky down there in TN
Köi-Lö.


AAG is quite clear on their site that they are unavailable many days
of the week and that they only issue credit for DOA fish applied to
your next order. I called them once on their best day (Tues IIRC).
Someone answered promptly and gave good plant advice. Of course I
didn't have a big problem or complaint for them to deal with. The
shipping was so huge the one time I ordered plants there I have been
forever hesitant to order again. And also yes, Köi-Lö I don't like
the idea of ordering fish sight unseen either, although I have done it
before.

"Jolly Fisherman" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 2 Dec 2006 15:49:04 -0600, Köi-Lö wrote:

I would NEVER order fish sight unseen by mail-order. I get all mine at
PetsMart or PetSupermarket. Since both places know me they'll replace
anything that dies even it's a little past the 14 days.
------------
That's fine if you are lucky to live near a well run PetSmart, PetCo,
etc. and you are not looking for anything unusual. Otherwise I'm not
sure what else you can do if you don't live near a good specialty LFS
that has what you want. The fish quality and health in my local
Petsmart and Petco are awful. You are very lucky down there in TN
Köi-Lö.

That's the pits! When I was visiting relatives down in Atlanta GA the fish
at PetsMart were every bit as healthy and nice as up here in TN. We have a
Petco here but it's a long drive through heavy traffic and the PH of their
water is too different than what I have out here. With the long drawn out
acclimation process, I don't go there any more. Pet Supermarket has nice
healthy fish but a more limited selection. Aquarium plants there are really
nice and low priced, when they get them in.

AAG is quite clear on their site that they are unavailable many days
of the week and that they only issue credit for DOA fish applied to
your next order. I called them once on their best day (Tues IIRC).
Someone answered promptly and gave good plant advice. Of course I
didn't have a big problem or complaint for them to deal with. The
shipping was so huge the one time I ordered plants there I have been
forever hesitant to order again. And also yes, Köi-Lö I don't like
the idea of ordering fish sight unseen either, although I have done it
before.

I'm really surprised the stores near you don't have the same nice healthy
ones we have here since they all come from the same wholesalers. Find out
what day they get their shipments in and be there late in the afternoon.
That may give you a better chance to get something still in good health or
those oddballs we all watch for.
--
KL....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö ~~~~ }((((({*

"Köi-Lö" wrote in message
...

"Jolly Fisherman" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 2 Dec 2006 15:49:04 -0600, Köi-Lö wrote:

I would NEVER order fish sight unseen by mail-order. I get all mine at
PetsMart or PetSupermarket. Since both places know me they'll replace
anything that dies even it's a little past the 14 days.
------------
That's fine if you are lucky to live near a well run PetSmart, PetCo,
etc. and you are not looking for anything unusual. Otherwise I'm not
sure what else you can do if you don't live near a good specialty LFS
that has what you want. The fish quality and health in my local
Petsmart and Petco are awful. You are very lucky down there in TN
Köi-Lö.

That's the pits! When I was visiting relatives down in Atlanta GA the
fish at PetsMart were every bit as healthy and nice as up here in TN. We
have a Petco here but it's a long drive through heavy traffic and the PH
of their water is too different than what I have out here. With the long
drawn out acclimation process, I don't go there any more. Pet
Supermarket has nice healthy fish but a more limited selection. Aquarium
plants there are really nice and low priced, when they get them in.

AAG is quite clear on their site that they are unavailable many days
of the week and that they only issue credit for DOA fish applied to
your next order. I called them once on their best day (Tues IIRC).
Someone answered promptly and gave good plant advice. Of course I
didn't have a big problem or complaint for them to deal with. The
shipping was so huge the one time I ordered plants there I have been
forever hesitant to order again. And also yes, Köi-Lö I don't like
the idea of ordering fish sight unseen either, although I have done it
before.

I'm really surprised the stores near you don't have the same nice healthy
ones we have here since they all come from the same wholesalers. Find out
what day they get their shipments in and be there late in the afternoon.
That may give you a better chance to get something still in good health or
those oddballs we all watch for.

That's one thing I've always wondered if I was doing the right thing. Do I
really want to get the fish the same day they arrive at the store. It seems
like a lot of stress on the fish to me.

"John" wrote in message
et...

"Köi-Lö" wrote in message
...

"Jolly Fisherman" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 2 Dec 2006 15:49:04 -0600, Köi-Lö wrote:

I would NEVER order fish sight unseen by mail-order. I get all mine at
PetsMart or PetSupermarket. Since both places know me they'll replace
anything that dies even it's a little past the 14 days.
------------
That's fine if you are lucky to live near a well run PetSmart, PetCo,
etc. and you are not looking for anything unusual. Otherwise I'm not
sure what else you can do if you don't live near a good specialty LFS
that has what you want. The fish quality and health in my local
Petsmart and Petco are awful. You are very lucky down there in TN
Köi-Lö.

That's the pits! When I was visiting relatives down in Atlanta GA the
fish at PetsMart were every bit as healthy and nice as up here in TN. We
have a Petco here but it's a long drive through heavy traffic and the PH
of their water is too different than what I have out here. With the long
drawn out acclimation process, I don't go there any more. Pet
Supermarket has nice healthy fish but a more limited selection. Aquarium
plants there are really nice and low priced, when they get them in.

AAG is quite clear on their site that they are unavailable many days
of the week and that they only issue credit for DOA fish applied to
your next order. I called them once on their best day (Tues IIRC).
Someone answered promptly and gave good plant advice. Of course I
didn't have a big problem or complaint for them to deal with. The
shipping was so huge the one time I ordered plants there I have been
forever hesitant to order again. And also yes, Köi-Lö I don't like
the idea of ordering fish sight unseen either, although I have done it
before.

I'm really surprised the stores near you don't have the same nice healthy
ones we have here since they all come from the same wholesalers. Find
out what day they get their shipments in and be there late in the
afternoon. That may give you a better chance to get something still in
good health or those oddballs we all watch for.

That's one thing I've always wondered if I was doing the right thing. Do I
really want to get the fish the same day they arrive at the store. It
seems like a lot of stress on the fish to me.
===================================
Yes, it's added stress but they do BETTER for me when I get them the same
day or the next morning. Be there shortly after the store opens. Better
another hour or two of stress than DAYS or even a few weeks of stress in the
store. No matter how devoted the employees are the tanks are often
overcrowded, a pleco is rasping a fish's slime coat, more aggressive fish
are getting all the food, parasites may be lurking etc.

But that's just my experience.
--
KL....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö ~~~~ }((((({*

Jolly Fisherman wrote:

I would NEVER order fish sight unseen by mail-order.**I*get*all*mine*at
PetsMart or PetSupermarket.**Since*both*places*know*me*they'll *replace
anything that dies even it's a little past the 14 days.

That's fine if you are lucky to live near a well run PetSmart, PetCo,
etc. and you are not looking for anything unusual.**Otherwise*I'm*not
sure what else you can do if you don't live near a good specialty LFS
that has what you want.

There are both good and bad on line vendors out there. A couple of good ones
I've ordered from are Anubias Design and Aquaboy Aquatics.

AD had the fish I ordered die before he could ship them. Since he had no
substitutes I wanted, he promptly refunded my money.

AA sent me two more than I ordered and threw in a few White Clouds for free.
The fish were shipped promptly and arrived in great shape.

I've also ordered MTS and vinegar eels on line and both vendors were good
vendors.

So let's not give up on online fish. If you wonder about a vendor, ask here
or in some other aquarium forum.

--
It's turtles, all the way down

On Mon, 04 Dec 2006 10:51:21 -0800, Larry Blanchard
wrote:

snip

I've also ordered MTS and vinegar eels on line and both vendors were good
vendors.

Just curious. Where did you get the vinegar eels?

So let's not give up on online fish. If you wonder about a vendor, ask here
or in some other aquarium forum.

Oh I'm not totally against it. I just got in an order last week of
Rams, Apistos, shrimp, MTS, and a plant. All either unavailable
locally (or unavailable at decent quality/health). But I have to
admit I prefer the idea of giving the fish a once over and picking out
exactly what I want or walking out the store without any commitment if
I don't like what I see.

On Sun, 3 Dec 2006 22:50:32 -0600, Köi-Lö wrote:

snip

That's the pits! When I was visiting relatives down in Atlanta GA the fish
at PetsMart were every bit as healthy and nice as up here in TN. We have a
Petco here but it's a long drive through heavy traffic and the PH of their
water is too different than what I have out here. With the long drawn out
acclimation process, I don't go there any more. Pet Supermarket has nice
healthy fish but a more limited selection. Aquarium plants there are really
nice and low priced, when they get them in.

We don't have "Pet Supermarkets" in the NE.

AAG is quite clear on their site that they are unavailable many days
of the week and that they only issue credit for DOA fish applied to
your next order. I called them once on their best day (Tues IIRC).
Someone answered promptly and gave good plant advice. Of course I
didn't have a big problem or complaint for them to deal with. The
shipping was so huge the one time I ordered plants there I have been
forever hesitant to order again. And also yes, Köi-Lö I don't like
the idea of ordering fish sight unseen either, although I have done it
before.

I'm really surprised the stores near you don't have the same nice healthy
ones we have here since they all come from the same wholesalers. Find out
what day they get their shipments in and be there late in the afternoon.
That may give you a better chance to get something still in good health or
those oddballs we all watch for.

That's the problem. They replenish the stock very infrequently. You
really have to get a straight and honest answer about when things are
coming in and be there then. The tank populations dwindle low for
months, then they get a big shipment, and surprise everything gets
Ammonia poisoning and look half dead. The employees always want to
tell me that "a new shipment is coming next week" so I'll come back.
But it's more like sometime in the next month or 2. Depending on when
things start to look embarrassingly pathetic.

The last time I was at the local Petsmart (20 mins away) I overheard
an employee complaining about how they used to carry such wonderful
stock but don't have the variety anymore. I'm convinced that in these
neighborhoods at least, the fish livestock don't really move and are
or are viewed as a loss leader for the dry goods. But that's just my
local assessment.

"Jolly Fisherman" wrote in message
...

The last time I was at the local Petsmart (20 mins away) I overheard
an employee complaining about how they used to carry such wonderful
stock but don't have the variety anymore. I'm convinced that in these
neighborhoods at least, the fish livestock don't really move and are
or are viewed as a loss leader for the dry goods. But that's just my
local assessment.
===========================
I'm clueless as to what kind of area you live in but get the impression
you're not near any cities or large towns. You may have to plan a trip or
two to another city some distance away. A bigger city where there would be
more turnover of their stock. And CALL the store to make sure the shipment
came in before you dive or take a bus or train there.
--
KL....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö ~~~~ }((((({*