Fah!

[Not Really Funny]

I don't have a problem with Petsmart or Petco (actually, I get a lot of supplies from them), but around where I live, the people there are absolutely stupid. I have only met one employee who knew what she was talking about, and she was the one that helped me set up my tank for my goldfish (very thankful towards her!). The rest of them? Well, I've had people tell me I can put my goldfish in with betas, I've asked for breeding cages/nets and been shown normal nets... But today, I asked what kind of tank I would need for a rainbow shark, since I love the guys.

Response? "Well, they get to six inches, so a six gallon tank will do."

I just kind of said, "Okiedokie, well, I'll get a tank suitable for one later on and try it out," and left with my heater while thinking of the poor little sharks.

EDIT-- Also... This particular Petsmart has a ton of bettas, and they all look like mine did before he died: their color is extremely pale and they look exhausted, barely even flare, some just kind of sit on the bottom of the cup.

 

[nino]

a few weeks ago i was trying to find ADF's and the LFS didn't have any so i tried the local petsmart. i asked the guy working in the fish department when they would be getting another shipment, since it looked to me that all their ADF's were dead. he then tried to tell me it just looks like they are dead, but really they are all alive. i disagreed, since i'd seen a bunch floating on top, or starting to decary at the bottom of the tank.
i guess i was a little rude to him about it, he looked quite sheepish when he realized that so many were dead
they should really just stick to selling supplies, but maybe not even that if they tried to sell you a six gallon tank for a six inch fish

 

[Not Really Funny]

a few weeks ago i was trying to find ADF's and the LFS didn't have any so i tried the local petsmart. i asked the guy working in the fish department when they would be getting another shipment, since it looked to me that all their ADF's were dead. he then tried to tell me it just looks like they are dead, but really they are all alive. i disagreed, since i'd seen a bunch floating on top, or starting to decary at the bottom of the tank.
i guess i was a little rude to him about it, he looked quite sheepish when he realized that so many were dead
they should really just stick to selling supplies, but maybe not even that if they tried to sell you a six gallon tank for a six inch fish

That sounds like the Monty Python parrot skit, really sad.

 

[Teelie]

I haven't kept dead ADF's for any extended period of time but the dead ones I have seen at stores never floated, only the live ones.

 

[daniodude]

im not saying that all people that work at petsmart hav no clue, but a fair amount dont. i think that the people that apply for jobs at stores like that should have to take a test in the department they will be in, because in fish, you need to know more about fish than to clean tanks. there is a petsmart by me and i was amazed at the knowledge of one employee, he told me about what id need for a saltwater, and they dont have any altwater fish there even. all of the other employees, if you ask them how many male bettas is advisable to have in a 20 g tank they will say "well, i would say no morw than 5" and I'd be like wtf? but they should hav to take a test or some other assasment of some kind

DD

 

[Teelie]

The only problem with that is those who have that kind of knowledge generally demand a higher salary than you'll get working for a chain store like that. To fully be capable of working there takes either a lot of money in education or a lot of money in the hobby to properly learn how to keep the varied kinds of fish so you get stuck with teenage high schoolers and whoever else they can snare to work the job.

Fish are a pet but lower than cats and dogs on the pet scale and even cats and dogs don't have sellers who are fully qualified or paid well.

In otherwords, you're stuck with who you get.

 

[nino]

I haven't kept dead ADF's for any extended period of time but the dead ones I have seen at stores never floated, only the live ones.

i know that live ADF's float , but trust me, these were upside down and looking rather pale.
the guy at petsmart also seemed to think that they were still alive, but then he stuck his hand in by the floating ones and they didn't budge at all.

 

[Teelie]

I would assume they had been dead for some time then to float like that. Yuck.