Went To My First Petco

[Kevinator]

I am from St. Louis myself and not quite sure what Petco FishOrBust went to but I have 3 Petcos within 10 miles of me (the are about 15 in Metro St. Louis) and 2 of them have very knowledgeable staff. One of them has the best set up of aquarium displays I have ever seen! The other one I saw I could care less about. Like what RDD said it depends on the manager of the store and how much care he puts into how the store is ran. Petco is a little more pricier than Petsmart but when it comes to quality and knowledge you can't put a price on that!

 

[FishOrBust]

I am from St. Louis myself and not quite sure what Petco FishOrBust went to but I have 3 Petcos within 10 miles of me (the are about 15 in Metro St. Louis) and 2 of them have very knowledgeable staff. One of them has the best set up of aquarium displays I have ever seen! The other one I saw I could care less about. Like what RDD said it depends on the manager of the store and how much care he puts into how the store is ran. Petco is a little more pricier than Petsmart but when it comes to quality and knowledge you can't put a price on that!

I went to the one in Arnold, just south of st. louis I am about 50 miles south of there, I might try some ones farther up, i was told there was a great place called Tropical world in crestwood on watson road, maybe igger city ones are better, ill try some more if i can get off off work in time to go up there this week before they close.

 

[Kevinator]

I went to the one in Arnold, just south of st. louis I am about 50 miles south of there, I might try some ones farther up, i was told there was a great place called Tropical world in crestwood on watson road, maybe igger city ones are better, ill try some more if i can get off off work in time to go up there this week before they close.

If you feel like driving an extra 20 miles here is the link to the one I prefer. http/www.petco.com/Content/Locator/Detai...;zip=&Nav=2
If you go on the weekend ask for a guy name Jeff. Their aquariums are right when you walk in the door.

 

[Lhutch]

if anyone is in massachusetts go to millis and go to Uncle Neds Fish Factory,the man knows what he is doing and he always has a very good stock,fresh and salt,has a whole big section dedicated to cichlids. He has alot equipment everthing you would need, if you need something ordered from him he will always ask what kind of tank you have and make sure it will be ok and order the fish for you.Totally recomend this guy, i go there everyknow and then when i need to get something important,other wise i go to petsmart,dont know alot,but they stock the basic products.

 

[dollfaced]

I went to one Petco and it barely had any fish. The fish that were there didn't look so healthy and alot of tanks were empty. But that was a few years ago and never been back since. Petsmart is the closest store near me that has fish products so that's the one I go to to buy food and filters and such. The fish there are ok, but it does depend on the manager. Last year the fish were more horrible looking and more dead fish floating around. Now it seems much better. The staff does seem knowledgable. I asked if they had any melafix and she said no and told me when more would come. So I talked about my tank and how my angels were having fin nipping problems and she said "Oh, that would be why you want some melafix." I was quite happy with that. She pointed out other great medicines to use also. I like how Petsmart has signs up saying if they are aggressive, semi-aggressive, community, etc. They even put the maximum size they get. I even like that they have a guide on their website.
http/www.petsmart.com/careguides/index.s...ftcareguides
Still, I prefer more specialized fish stores to buy my fish.

 

[Teelie]

Their guides are off a little and in some cases a lot but that's still a great improvement over some of the other places and even LFS' that don't even bother with that much.

 

[dollfaced]

Yea, their guides aren't completely accurate or too detailed. But I like how they atleast try to inform.

 

[33moths]

I went to a Walmart in Rhode Island that had actually a rather healthy selection of fish, which is saying a lot considering the source. I bought four apple snails from them and bought a small drink cooler and put them in it and drove three hours home with it. They turned out okay. It really depends on what staff the place has and how much they know. My local Petco has some great employees who make sure you're responsible about what you're doing. I was buying a tank today, and I asked if they had any female platies (for future reference) and they said not to buy them yet. They have fish themselves. It was nice. <3

 

[Musho3210]

i have 2 petcos near me, one terrible, they have big buckets of salt IN THE TANKS THAT IS SLOWLY DISSOLVING!!!! (freshwater tanks im talking about) with fish that are dead and sucked up into filter intakes and everything was just dead......

Other petco is very very good, healthy fish, not one dead one, helpful staff, they were selling a pink tip anemone and they said "Warning, this sea anemone is not for the beginner, they need a tank that is at least 6 months old with very strong lighting" That made me smile since it was true.

I hate petsmart and petco though, whenever i go there theres always a person buying a small tank with big fish. What idiots. Die.