The LFS said what????

[Beaker]

I was at an unnamed petstore (Petco) today with my wife getting restocked on pet supplies when I heard something that caught my ear. It came from the aquatics section and I perked up like a Pleco with an algae waffer.

"What you wanna do is take this tank home and clean it up first because it looks kinda dirty. It's been sitting in the back room, so you might have to use some mild [u:65e8cd10e2]soap[/u:65e8cd10e2]."

I was a deer in headlights, I really couldn't move for a second. I am by far not an expert, but isn't soap bad for your fish? You know I've always wanted to take my cichlids in the tub with me. (not really, well one time) I just envisioned these people soaping up everything and killing off their new friends. I could see them coming back to the unnamed petstore (Petco) with the body, receipt, and water sample with fricking suds.

Customer: "Um our two fish, Zest & Ivory died. What happened?"
LFS Guru: "Let me test your bath water you brought in."
Customer: "Ok, they were fine for 10 secs, I'm not sure what happened."
LFS Guru: "Looks like the tank hasn't cycled, why don't you buy this bottle of benficial bateria."
Customer: "Um, ok, and why don't you sell me like 10 Bala Sharks for my new 10 g."
LFS Guru: "Ok, I bag 'em up for ya!"

Luckily, to Petco's credit, the manager overheard too and stepped in before that actually happened. I don't think I would have let them leave though without saying something. It's no wonder people lose intrest in fish when they don't do the research and rely of the LFS guru. That's why people end up breaking down their tanks every month, scrubing down the gravel, running the filter through the dishwasher, and filling the tank back up with Evian.

What stuff have you guys overheard? I've heard a few things come out of the LFS guru, but that's just the one that happened tonight.

[Boilermaker]

:lol: I was at the little ma and pa lfs just down the street, I can't remember what cichlids I bought they only have a half dozen cichlid tanks.
Anyway the employee was bagging my cichlids and he filled up the bag with a good long deep breath of carbon dioxide emitted from his lungs.
I asked him if he was trying to kill my fish, he had no clue, so I explained the Co2 and showed him how to use the airline tubing off the air pump, and I showed him the fast way by grabbing the top of the bag real fast.
This employee had been there a year and was probaly taught that by another employee I dont know I should of asked him.

[Beaker]

He probably was a smoker too.

Also, I love to see what the LFS is keeping together these days. For example, I once saw a store keeping one of those blue lobsters with a group of figure eight puffers. They must have just done it too because the lobster still was in one piece! I told the guy he might want to move the $30 appetizer to another tank. He was kinda surprised, and blamed it on the new girl.......suuuuure buddy!

[SGypsyMermaid]

just yesterday, one of my co-workers told me that her son had a new 10 gal tank and the fish are doing fine, although a couple of them died. she said: he's got neons and goldfish and a nice black one, too..." i told her that neons were tropical fish and goldfish were coldwater fish. she said: "but the saleslady said that it would be fine..." :roll: :shock: :?

[Chet]

I was at my LFS and I discovered a 6" American cichlid in a tank of juvenile red devils. Another guy was inquiring about it. He said he had a 55 with a 10" red devil and he wanted to know if he could add the other fish. The sales staff said it would be fine, although they couldn't tell him the name of the 6" cichlid in the tank. (one of the LFS guys said "well it says red devil on the tank,") I pulled him aside and told him that a 55 really wasn't big enough for even his red devil, and that the fish he was inquiring about was a trimac and that one of them wouldn't make it through the night in any case. He thanked me and promptly left the store. Sometimes I just wanna slap those LFS folks.

[jonah]

This kid at the Petsmart tried telling me an oscar will be fine in a 10g. It was such a ridiculous comment that I at first thought he was joking, but he continued to amaze me with his stupidity. We actually had a semi-heated discussion about killing the hobby with ignorant misinformation. I also pointed out that they shouldn't keep fancy goldfish in the same tank as neons.

Of course I used the old "I bought my first fish tank before you were born" bit, but I don't think he was too impressed. :roll:

I met an older woman at Walmart once who was looking at a pacu. I asked her if she knew how big they got. She said she had a 10" in her 15g tank and it looked lonely. :shock: I'm hoping she was just pulling my leg, but her defensive attitude said otherwise. :cry:

[CichlidPete]

Then there was the LFS that said my new Clown Loaches should be fine in the same tank as a couple dozen 1/4 inch convict fry. I asked the kid if he knew the meaning of "carnivore". Despite his assurance I really doubt it.

Took the loaches home and put them in with the fry as the loaches were hungry and there are LOTS of convicts in the main tank. I guess the kid was half right cause the clowns have only eaten half the fry so far.

[Boilermaker]

Hi Jonah,CichlidPete,Others, CichlidPete where are the other mods?

I didn't know if this belongs here or S.Gypsys wild fish tales.
Anyways when I worked at the LFS years ago this customer come in with a giant plecostomus in a cooler. I told him I could only go 5.00 cause a fish that size would never sell this pleco had to go 15".
Well I set the cooler on a stool reached in the cooler with both hands grabbed the pleco who was pretty calm, right when I got him to the tank he squirmed out of my hands hit the floor, the customer dove first I dove second knocking the cooler full of aquarium water all over the customers head :oops:
After getting him a towel to dry off and a thousand apologies, I believe I give him 25.00 for the pleco. Man it was funny though I wish someone could of got it on video :D

[SGypsyMermaid]

definitely a wild fish tale!! :rofl:

[madgamer89]

theres a guy in a town near us which his whole shop is cichlids. he told my bro yhat he could have a pleco and ten africans in a 29 gal.

[BadAndy]

A petstore I went into recently had a puffer fish in with all their snails. There were about 20 large sized snails in the tank. Ten of them were empty and floating at the top of the tank. That was about $30 worth of snails since they were 2.99 a piece. I told the guy who worked there that he might want to move the puffer since they ate snails but I don't think he was convinced.

I found it pretty funny.

BadAndy

[SGypsyMermaid]

:? i had a similar conversation in a petland, also regarding puffers. they had the puffers in the tank with other brackish water fish. the other fish were pretty beaten up--ragged fins, etc. i suggested a divider to protect the other fish from the puffers. they ignored me and continue to do so. needless to say, the fish in that tank usually die, instead of being sold.

[jonah]

[quote:f4d52bcd02="madgamer89"]theres a guy in a town near us which his whole shop is cichlids. he told my bro yhat he could have a pleco and ten africans in a 29 gal.[/quote:f4d52bcd02]

Duh, what kind of pleco? :lol: :lol: :lol:

Maybe the cichlids have to be fry. I've got a bunch of electric yellow fry in a 10g. They're under 1/4 of an inch in size, but they're already beating the crap out of each other. I swear two of the biggest bullies already have dark marks on their pectorals.

[madgamer89]

sorry its just a common pleco

[jonah]

[quote:3457a3817a="madgamer89"]sorry its just a common pleco[/quote:3457a3817a]

I was just kidding about the pleco.:D

[madgamer89]

ohhh :oops:

[M_sfan87]

I was sold 10 aAfricans for a 30 gallon. :oops: