Taking fish back to your lfs

[Elisabeth83]

So what are your views of taking fish back to a pet shop or your lfs?

I have on a few occasions taken fish back to my lfs if they haven't worked out or if I need some room in my tanks. I've also taken in numerous amounts of fry for store credit.

At the moment I want to start keeping different types of fish like dwarf cichlids, shaoling fish, anabantoids and what not but some of my current tanks are housing fish that I first started out with like mollies (only fish in the tank due to salt). I have 7 tanks but I can't afford/fit another tank in my apartment so if I want to get new fish I've got to get rid of some of my other fish.

I'm in two minds about this. In one way I feel its wrong to get rid of fish you've had for awhile but in another way I feel if I don't get rid of them I wont be able to start keeping fish that I am into now. If I had an unlimited amount of tanks I'd have no problems keeping them. Do you think once you get a fish should you then have to keep it forever?

Also what are your views about getting fish trying them out but then realize they arn't what you expected/wanted. Is it ok to return them?

 

[SnowyzMom]

Given the life spans of some fish, the "am I stuck with it forever?" query makes me think "WOW,check the lifespan before buying..." That being said, with livebearers one NEVER seems to run out of fish! Sigh....... Right now my niece is trying to convince me to take on sailfin mollies...it seems she accidentally bought a female along with four males...you can imagine the results! I've said maybe I'll take some when I return from holidays. My daughter says she can take 10 as pets but she'll take 50 tiny fry if she can let her cichlids snack on them! That didn't go over well with my niece but honestly she's got fry everywhere now. I mean TONS. She is planning on segregating the female asap.

We're in an area where MAYBE the local petstore lady will take fry or fish from people she knows if she has room for them (and it's an awesome lfs place, no worries there). Our Wallyworld of course only takes back dead fish, presuming they die within days or 1 week...but since they've started a 3 day quarantine period on all new arrivals so they can destress from 24 hours riding in a semitrailer, they rarely lose fish that way anymore.

So far as returning perfectly healthy fish...I imagine that would depend on the store involved, check with them first...personally I haven't heard of fish tryouts but others may have. Most stores won't take fish unless they REALLY REALLY know you well, because of the risk of sick fish and infecting their entire stock. At least that's the line I've heard. Makes sense. There are fish swaps, here on Fish Forums, via animal shelters-my daughter just got a shark rehomed for somebody. Sometimes you can place an ad in the paper or pinned up around town, fish for sale.

Hope things work out for you and you get to enjoy your new fish and their offspring soon. It doesn't seem fair that you should be stuck with so-called "beginner" fish the rest of your life, eh? Of course if you have a hungry cat.....JUST KIDDING!

 

[LifeBear]

Hmm, there are some nuance issues in my mind about this.

1. A fish bought but didn't work out...go ahead and take it back.

2. Fry for store credit...I like the idea. What else are we going to do with all these mollies?

3. Taking in a fish that gets too big or aggressive, etc...shame on you for buying it in the first place, but good thought to take it back rather than letting it die or dumping it in a stream.

4. Needing to make room for a new fish interest...seems kind of selfish, but people are allowed to be selfish at times. Again, better taking them back than euthanizing needlessly or dumping in the wild.

Have you considered selling them to other hobbyists?

I say go ahead and take them back. Many lfs welcome the returns. Especially mollies, if that is what you had in mind. Those sell better than almost anything else.

 

[Teelie]

I don't have a problem with taking fish back in general, it's when there are specific fish that you have to take back. I don't want to take any of my fish back but I may have to with my Clowns eventually, though unlikely any time soon.

I have had to take fish back or exchange them a few times though. Overly aggressive 3 Spot Gouramis, Fantail GoldFish (which we had gotten attached to), and worst of all was my albino channel cat. He was growing too fast and I had no time/money to get him a pond so I dropped him off there intending to pick him up again when I was able to get the pond built. But he died from a sick goldfish which killed the other albino channel in there as well. It was too bad too as the pond they were in was quite nice and adequate. I got him around a quarter to third of an inch and grew him out to eight inches. It sucked when he died.

Overall though, I don't know why some people object to taking fish back like it's some kind of crime. IMO better than "releasing" them into the local water or keeping them in a tank unsuitable for them.

 

[Elisabeth83]

I know the people at my lfs very well so there are no problems in returning fish. I am probably one of the few people they actually do this for as their policy is they dont allow the return of fish.

I don't make a habit of buying fish and returning them but in some cases it has happened. I started getting into cichlids a couple months ago researching and asking questions here on the forum. I ended up buying a pair of jewels and a pair of kribs (separate tanks) Turns out they were a lot more than I could handle and I decided it was best to return them then to keep them and feel stressed out about the agression and fighting. I was sad to let them go and I was actually mad at myself for getting them in the first place but sometimes reading stuff on the net or hearing other peoples experiences turn out not to be the experience you have with them. Sometimes you need to try things out for yourself.

I figure it's better to give my lfs the fish than to euthanize them. At least if I give them to my lfs they will most likely be bought by someone else and have a hopefully good life.

I have 7 tanks so I've been fortunate enough to be able to keep a variety of fish. It's only now I have come to a point where I can't afford/fit an 8th tank in my apartment that I've had to think about rehoming some of my fish.

Is a fishkeeper ever satisfied with the fish they have?

 

[John_Nicholson]

Taking fish back for credit is fine. I will not take fry in to them for credit unless they are going to let you buy at wholesale prices. They normally wnat to pay you wholesale for your fry and then charge you retail for purchases....Doesn't work for me.....

-john

 

[jollysue]

I had ment to take my first fish, a Shubunkin, to the pond at the lfs when he got too big for me. I thought I was planning the honorable thing and at some personal sacrifice. He would have been better off if I had. I wish I hadn't waited. He would have had a shot at a good long life in an apprpriate home.

If I can' find a good fit for the serpaes, I intend to see if the lfs can find them a home.

I have had pets that I could no longer keep. I agree with the member who posted a thread some time back about his growing annoyance at tne personification of our fish. They are after all fish not children. Good husbandry requires thoughtful care, not lifelong adoption. Nevertheless, life is precious, and we are responsible for these little bits of life.

Well that's my opinion anyway.

 

[Miss Dib Dabs]

Hmmm toughie. I personally cannot abide the thought of returning any of my fish, no matter what. I simply become too attached to them all. Even if it means I have to do a re-shuffle in my tanks to accomodate them happily I'd rather do that then get rid of them.
To get rid of them because you want different ones seems real selfish to me. Would you do it to a cat? Or a dog? IMO we have no more right to treat fish that way then any other creature. Like you said, you have 7 tanks! That's one helluvah lot.
How long have you had them? Livebearers lifespan isn't all that long. 4-ish years I believe.
But then if you really don't want some of them you're less likely to pay as much attention to them so letting them go to a good home would be ok. Just not any lfs. I wouldn't trust any with my fish. I hate seeing them crammed in them tanks, no matter what the filtration is like etc.
Hugs,
P.

 

[Elisabeth83]

I'm not sure if you can compare a fish (eg: molly) to a dog or a cat (though many will probably disagree ). I have a feeling if I took my mollies into my lfs tomorrow that they truely would not know the difference between there and my house whereas a dog or cat would know the difference. Like jollysue said about the thread started a week or so ago that so many people try and put human feelings to fish (or other animals) and you just cant.

I'm not sure what you mean by having 7 tanks is a lot? sure it's a lot but I'm sure if you ask a lot of members on this forum how many tanks they have (serious fish keepers) that you will get numbers a lot higher than 7 I started off with 1 tank thinking that was all I would need that I could keep all the fish I want in that one tank. I soon found out that fish require different types of care and a lot of the fish I had were unsuitable tankmates thus me getting a second and third tank.

Then I went through a phase where I rescued all the fry and was raising them all. That ended up in me having to purchase a further 3 tanks just to be able to raise them big enough to sell to my lfs Mind you I'm not doing that anymore!

Edit: Actually most of my mollies I have now are ones I've raised myself. They kind of keep re-populating themselves so I've had them for all different amounts of time.

 

[jollysue]

I have a feeling I'm going to get into trouble here, but here goes:

There's a member who in his signature says that his opinions are just that his opinions. This particular thread is asking for opinions. I think it is good to share our perspectives with one another--tolerantly. That way we can learn and become wise.

My view is that the fish were made for us not us for the fish. BUT we have a responsibility to make God's creation a garden not a sink hole. I don't intend to let a mollie run my life. At the same time I want to preserve and enjoy the creation that I am a partner in preserving. I want to do the responsible thing.

I believe that the struggle between the preservation and use of nature is one we do well to consider with honest deliberation.

I have a coworker who's pet is a boa snake. He laughs if anyone tries to make it more than it is--a boa constrictor. His advice: don't trust a snake.

There is a member who's avitar or signature suggests that his fish wants one thing: food. I don't expect my fish to love me. I get beauty from a pleasant (and expensive) hobby, not companionship or self worth. I get the pleasure of almost controlling a little slice of life and creating some beauty.

Not to debate lfs, again, but I like my lfs. And think that they do care about being responsible husbanders, responsible neighbors, responsible business people. They are a positive part of my community and have been for a few generations.

Nevertheless I my new Honey.

 

[MAM]

I guess I personally see nothing wrong with it. I look at more from a hobby point of view rather than a pet point of view. My dogs and cats I'll keep for life but with my fish I see it just a little different. Unlike dogs and cats, there isn' t the worry of having to take unwanted fish to a shelter where they may end up being killed if they are not adopted. Shops that accept owner-turn-in fish will just re-sell them and often, the larger fish, end up in store clerks' personal tanks. I have one shop that I've taken many fish to. Whether it be my excess livebearer fry (which they resell not as feeders but as regular fish at a discounted rater) or other fish I just no longer wish to keep. I've also taken fish there when I've decided I wanted to try my hand at keeping something different, or there was a problem with the fish (too aggro for example). My tanks have gone through many communities as I explore and discover the hobby of fishkeeping. By taking them to a reputable shop, where they'll be resold to dependable hobbyist and not tossed into a feeder tank or killed, you're still be a responsible fish keeper.

 

[Fishy411]

i dont take fish back. ive tried but my LFS doesnt accept returns. i tried to return an RTBS because i wanted a BP.

 

[Elisabeth83]

I guess I personally see nothing wrong with it. I look at more from a hobby point of view rather than a pet point of view. My dogs and cats I'll keep for life but with my fish I see it just a little different. Unlike dogs and cats, there isn' t the worry of having to take unwanted fish to a shelter where they may end up being killed if they are not adopted. Shops that accept owner-turn-in fish will just re-sell them and often, the larger fish, end up in store clerks' personal tanks. I have one shop that I've taken many fish to. Whether it be my excess livebearer fry (which they resell not as feeders but as regular fish at a discounted rater) or other fish I just no longer wish to keep. I've also taken fish there when I've decided I wanted to try my hand at keeping something different, or there was a problem with the fish (too aggro for example). My tanks have gone through many communities as I explore and discover the hobby of fishkeeping. By taking them to a reputable shop, where they'll be resold to dependable hobbyist and not tossed into a feeder tank or killed, you're still be a responsible fish keeper.

[snapback]862510[/snapback]​

MAM - you just spent how long on responding? I've been sitting here for the past hour and a half trying to articulate everything you just wrote in the matter of 5-10 mins You make it look so easy Anyways, I agree with everything you just wrote it's exactly how I feel about things too. I view my fish more as a hobby than as pets too.

jollysue - I agree with everything you wrote too. I wish I could write nearly as good as you can I like what you wrote about the boa snake that your friend says it's just a snake and they shouldn't be trusted. It's true most animals just view us as the supplier of food and really want nothing to do with us no matter how much we try and convince ourselves they do

I guess I was under the impression (until recently) that once you bought a fish you were meant to keep it forever. I've been battling with myself lately because my taste (no pun intended ) in fish has changed a lot and I've been sitting here with fish that I started off with that sure are nice fish but I don't have much of an interest in anymore. It's nice to know that it's ok to "explore and discover" different types of fish.

 

[jollysue]

We are in the same position Elisabeth. Struggling to figure out what we can and should put together to make our new community. We have money wrapped up in these little guys

and some work and effort. When I look at them I like them mostly and want to keep them.

You are a level headed and reasonable young woman who thinks things out and wants to understand and make reasoned choices. BRAVO!




Buy the way, you said exactly what I wanted to say to MAM. Good job!

He said in a paragraph what it took me a page to say.

Later, Girl! Don't let the haters bring you down.

Edit: it took me three pages

 

[lucky62]

I take fish back , or trade them off if they don't meet my expectations , I've been doing for many years . um ..........reading and taking someones word for it are one thing , but actually having and caring for the fish is the deciding factor .

What is worse , returning , or trading a fish so someone else who may enjoy them more will have the chance , or become disinterested , and possibly even neglect them .........it happens

Selfish is a strong adjective to be using here , fickle, undecided , maybe , not selfish .

I see absolutely nothing wrong with bringing fish back to lfs or trading them to someone else . BTW I know quite a few experienced fish keepers that do the same , I think it's a self-less act , and in the best interest of the fish .


Dogs , cats , and fish ...................in all the years I've been keeping fish , I've never taken one to the vet , and don't see any when I take my dog or cats , sorry IMO that's just a bad comparison , don't get me wrong I love fish keeping , but interests change over time [ in 34 years of keeping fish mine have changed many times ], some people see so many fish in a shop , and simply have trouble trying to decide what to keep .

Elisabeth , Keep looking and asking questions , kid , until you find something that sticks with you .