My Last Topic !

smokeyjo · Nov 20, 2011

I don't think its anything persoanl mate it just a liabilty issue think about it from the owners point of view they are trting to make a living. Ok granted that the fish should be looked after properly and the staff should know what yhey are talking about but that is down to the owners/ managment to deal with the well known chain near me has 2 stores down here 1 is brilliant they will do anything to ensure they only sell healthy fish the other is not so good the staff have a good knowledge but the execution isn't the best. We should know what to be looking out for by now and make our own judgement on whether to go elsewhere or not

soybean · Nov 20, 2011

Complaining about a shop on a forum achieves nothing really. People can make their own minds up whether or not to carry on shopping somewhere after they have been and found things not to their liking. Complaints should be directed to the owner/manager so they have a chance to explain themselves.

minnnt · Nov 20, 2011

soybean said:
Complaining about a shop on a forum achieves nothing really. People can make their own minds up whether or not to carry on shopping somewhere after they have been and found things not to their liking. Complaints should be directed to the owner/manager so they have a chance to explain themselves.

100% agree.

Haveagojoe · Nov 20, 2011

Ok so this is an open forum and I guess I'll have to disagree, I've read the replies and while I can see what most people are saying I still think if a LFS is bad name and shame, if on the other hand if a LFS was giving say guppies away for 10p a pair and that was posted up would the topic be locked for advertising? as I said in the begining of this I have seen a well known chain(notice I'm being careful not to name but you all know who I mean)often being brought up and rightly so slagged off for there bad practices but topics being allowed to carry on, but thanks for the input its always good to have a healthy debate. :good:

Xraymark · Nov 20, 2011

Haveagojoe said:
Ok so this is an open forum and I guess I'll have to disagree, I've read the replies and while I can see what most people are saying I still think if a LFS is bad name and shame, if on the other hand if a LFS was giving say guppies away for 10p a pair and that was posted up would the topic be locked for advertising? as I said in the begining of this I have seen a well known chain(notice I'm being careful not to name but you all know who I mean)often being brought up and rightly so slagged off for there bad practices but topics being allowed to carry on, but thanks for the input its always good to have a healthy debate.

You got a good lively discussion there. On line is slander. Good to know.

By the way I've been to Liverpool, it's not always sunny.

minnnt · Nov 20, 2011

Mods can't look at every single topic... You posted at the same time as John happened to be browsing the forum...

If you are willing to stump up for any legal action that may be brought upon this forum for slating a certain shop then contact William and see what he says.

Xraymark said:
Haveagojoe said:

Ok so this is an open forum and I guess I'll have to disagree, I've read the replies and while I can see what most people are saying I still think if a LFS is bad name and shame, if on the other hand if a LFS was giving say guppies away for 10p a pair and that was posted up would the topic be locked for advertising? as I said in the begining of this I have seen a well known chain(notice I'm being careful not to name but you all know who I mean)often being brought up and rightly so slagged off for there bad practices but topics being allowed to carry on, but thanks for the input its always good to have a healthy debate.

Click to expand...

You got a good lively discussion there. On line is slander. Good to know.

By the way I've been to Liverpool, it's not always sunny.

soybean · Nov 20, 2011

Ok, consider the difference:

"LFS is having a sale of guppies for 10p a pair! I'd really recommend them for quality - at least, they've always been good when I've been anyway, but that's just my opinion - see what you think".

"LFS is having a sale of guppies for 10p a pair, but I'm not surprised they're selling them cheaply - when I visited last time there were dozens of dead fish. I wouldn't recommend it."

The first gives a balanced review inviting people to make up their own mind upon visiting. The second is a snapshot of one visit that doesn't give the owner chance to say "You caught us on a bad day - sorry, it's not always like that."

Cazgar · Nov 20, 2011

I think we can all make a judgement on any fish store we go to, whether independent or chain.
Some will be good, some will be bad.
We vote with our wallets, buy from the good ones, avoid the bad.
For instance, I bought 3 guppies from a small independent, the tanks looked good, no dead fish, but those 3 died within a week.
I wouldn't go there again

This Old Spouse · Nov 20, 2011

There are and always will be bad LFSs that should be avoided. If you're a responsible fishkeeper, you can tell which are the good shops and which aren't just by going inside and observing. We preach here all the time to do your research before buying ANY fish, and that's where it stands. If you buy fish from a bad shop that routinely treats their stock badly and has dead fish in the tank, then that's on you. Any purchase you make from a bad LFS keeps them in business that much longer. It's like complaining about your mother-in-law on the forum ... might make you feel better momentarily but it certainly doesn't change her behavior. Only a confrontation can do that, and even then it's iffy.

Let's just keep the store names out of the discussions and keep the world's best fish forum in business!

Cazgar · Nov 20, 2011

This Old Spouse said:
Let's just keep the store names out of the discussions and keep the world's best fish forum in business!

+1

Dieses Madchen · Nov 20, 2011

Any store though can have a bad day. The best store in my area had a newer person that had me convinced that Jewels were good tankmates for Green Terrors. This is far from reality and it didn't end well. Okay, so that is one bad experience. One in 15 or 20 visits to this store. They are a really good company with great fish and a lot of knowledge. But if that had been my first trip to the store, I might have told my other friends not to go there.

I totally agree that we cannot label a store based on one experience. I still shop at some of the chains simply because I have had more good experiences than bad. The only thing is, I know what I should and should not buy from them, and I know they are not the best place for advice.

Take what you know and choose wisely on where you shop. Then label as more and more experiences add to your opinion. Also bear in mind that fish store lose fish, and they may not always catch them. They lose a lot of fish when they get in new stock. Fish are stressed from travel and then being in a new environment. As far as dead fish, i would be concerned more if there were a bunch of dead, decayed fish, than if there are a few fresh ones.

Bignose · Nov 20, 2011

http

/www.techdirt.com/articles/20100510/1047319358.shtml

It is sensitive to us because of the above link that describes a scuba diving forum being sued over posts about an outside company. Believe me when I say it has been the subject of some very long discussions in the mod's forum. While we don't have specific guidelines about what is and isn't allowed -- in no small part because the above lawsuit is still pending. So, it kind of ends up being a judgement call. Generally, we are going to close the 'name and shame' threads, the ones that just simply call out companies by name to decry all the bad things. In short, until it is very clear that such threads do not expose us to legal liability (and hence expose the assets of the forum), we're probably going to continue to close these types of threads.

pyrofishtoo · Nov 20, 2011

I am an Admin on my home clubs website. We do not tolerate any negative feedback or store bashing in our forum. However we recently set up a store feedback section where members could post about their experiences. They can post about bad experiences however we ask that they post in a positive manner. As an Admin, I can go in and edit the feedback if it doesn't meet our expectations. The store owners are all invited to review and comment if they feel it is necessary. We watch it carefully as we want the overall post to express the concern but not be rude or ignorant. It is a very fine line.

the_lock_man · Nov 21, 2011

My two penn'orth, is that you cannot judge a shop based upon one visit. The staff are human, they make mistakes, they have good and bad days. For instance, before I bought my first aquarium, I went into one particular shop, and didn't like it, the tanks were dirty, you couldn't see the fish well, and I walked out. A few months back, I happened to take my 3yo in, as we had some time to waste and were in the area. That shop is now my favourite LFS, and I've bought a number of times from there. THey also have some pretty rare fish too.

I think you'd be pretty hacked off if you were criticised at work for a one-off error, especially if that error was then made world-wide knowledge. If that made you lose your job, for a one-off error, you'd be spitting feathers, I'm sure.

If the site owner's policy is to not risk being sued by allowing such threads. Yes, you have a right to free speech, you do not have the right to use somebody else (and their assets) to propogate your free speech.