LotsaFishies

[jonthefb]

Plus if you order something online, and it dies, they do not refund your money, they credit you on a future order, so you have to order again. SO the 14 day arrive alive guarantee is kind of deceiving.

The same thing happens when we order for you. If a fish that you order arrives DOA, you are not charged for it, however we have to eat the cost of the fish and shipping expenses, only to be credited the next time we place an order.

 

[hurrafreak]

Not what I'm saying, I'd feel like crap if I ordered a fish and didn't like it when I go to pick it up so I stiffed you by not buying it. For whatever reason I didn't prepay.

Also, if the fish dies a bit later, I'd be out of $$. With online I could return it, or they could send another one

But why would you order a fish that you didn't like? Wouldn't you be doing research about the fish on how it looks, if it fits in your tank, etc etc. I personally don't order fish from anyone unless I know I'm going to like it, in my mind it makes no sense to just order a fish and not know if you're going to like it or not lol.

One of the main things at MACNA was this argument we are having here lol. About how yeah, it's cheaper to order online you don't normally get the quality that you would when you order from an LFS or Coral guys like Josh and Jon. While you may get a cheaper fish, it may have a shorter life expectancy because of the way it was handled before it got into your hands. When you buy a fish from Andy or Gale, you can see the fish, you can choose exactly the one you want, and almost guarantee it'll live longer because they don't have HUGE operations. They can treat each fish with the care it needs, with the respect for the fish and for their customers.

I think I ordered onine once lol, and don't know if I'd do it anymore. It was a good deal and everything looked great, but I'd rather spend my money with the people who I trust. The people who do it for the love of the hobby, not because they can get in thousands of fish and sell it for a great profit.

 

[WrasseAttack]

But why would you order a fish that you didn't like? Wouldn't you be doing research about the fish on how it looks, if it fits in your tank, etc etc. I personally don't order fish from anyone unless I know I'm going to like it, in my mind it makes no sense to just order a fish and not know if you're going to like it or not lol.

What he means is that by ordering a fish and it comes in not in the shape that he was expecting, he doesn't want to stiff anybody local by not taking the fish. Picking out a fish from one of the breeders is different because you have a choice between animals. I understand completely where he is coming from because when I've received animals or corals from online vendors that were not up to my expectations, I complain. I wouldn't do that to a local because I'm too pathetic.

 

[hurrafreak]

Ah see that makes a little more sense lol. Maybe we should always have an interpreter for Jamie hahaha! I personally think I have a good relationship with most of the people I deal with, and trust that if something comes in that is wrong or not what I thought, that they would do good in fixing the problem. I don't see any of the locals, fish store or not, not helping me out? It's not about complaining though. You can talk to any of the fish stores or the local guys about something without complaining lol.

I guess it comes down to relationships with these people who we do business with lol.

 

[LotsaFishies]

Hello good people of Colorado! My name is Chris Haynes, and I am the owner/operator of Lotsa Fishies and www.lotsafishies.com. I ran accross your website and noticed you had a thread about me from a few months back, and thought I could shed a little light on who I am and what I do.

I am first and foremost an aquarium-servicing and maintenance company located in sunny San Diego, California. Every three weeks I journey up to Los Angeles (aka my "LA-Runs") - where the bulk of the west-coast livestock wholesalers have conglomerated. I take orders in advance from my servicing-clients, from members of several online discussoin forums that I sponsor, and from individuals, clubs, and group-buys I ship out to around the country. I spend the better part of the day hand-picking each and every Fish, Coral, or Invert directly for my end-customer. For my local customers, pickup is the same evening once I have returned to San Diego, for my shipping customers, the orders usually go out the next day.

The pricelists on my website demonstrate what I can potentially get and for approximately what price, not what I carry on-hand. I definitely do not carry any sharks --although, I have shipped a male/female pair to a customer in South Carolina that was starting a breeding program. The pricesheets are more of a theoretical, since the prices at the wholesalers change week-to-week, but the prices shown on my "Specials" page are actual concrete prices from some previous "LA-Runs."

I am very much a passionate hobbyist as well, and livestock compatability with a customer's existing tank is very important - I will never knowingly sell someone an animal that will not work with their aquarium or skill level. Yes, I am a business and have to make money, but I take the high-road at all times.

If anyone has any questions, or is interested in placing an order, or creating a group-buy, please feel free to contact me!

Chris Haynes
www.lotsafishies.com
info@lotsafishies.com
760-803-9447

 

[LotsaFishies]

Prices are good but, personally, I would have to investigate their intentions with regard to supplying white- and blacktip reef sharks. Not a sound practice in many cases.

And garden eels? Who the heck has a setup that can accommodate a garden eel?

BTW - I have a local customer here in San Diego with a 575gallon reef tank with a 12" sand-bed. He has purchased several Garden Eels from me and they are doing fantastic!

 

[Yaten13]

^ I actually attended a talk at reefstock where someone talked about them. Apparently they aren't really all that hard to keep. Just do your research and set up a species tank (or at least a solid "species section" of your tank).

 

[SAZAMA]

If liquid kingdom can keep garden eels than it can't be that hard.lol

 

[Zooid]

They have garden eels?
I've never been in that place hehe