Captive bred fish from LiveAquaria? A good idea?

[Cv111]

I'm looking at getting a captive bred pair of a particular ORA clownfish breed. Unfortunately my LFS says they don't have them in stock frequently. I was wondering if I can trust LiveAquaria as a source?

 

[mattzang]

they drop ship from ORA so it's basically like ordering from ORA itself

 

[James M]

You can also order from

Clownfish – Cultivated Reef

But like mentioned above they all come from ORA

 

[brawthy]

LA has great shipping (overnight, good containers, good volume of water an unmatched guarantee. They also actually answer their phone too-which helps.

They have a good qt system-so unless I see a lfs running copper in their tanks in person I order from LA.

 

[Cv111]

LA has great shipping (overnight, good containers, good volume of water an unmatched guarantee. They also actually answer their phone too-which helps.

They have a good qt system-so unless I see a lfs running copper in their tanks in person I order from LA.

Interesting, would you not even QT fish from LA/ORA then? I'm looking to get a pair of clowns. Will be the first fish in the tank.

Also wondering if you have any idea on their ordering options? It lists either a single fish or a pair. I'm assuming single fish are juveniles? With a pair being a matured set where one has become the female? It isn't clear from their description. I'd prefer a pair of juveniles in theory.

 

[mattzang]

standard liveaquaria does not quarantine anything, they drop ship their wild caught fish from quality marine in LA. definitely QT that stuff

diver's den does a sorta kinda QT that's really more conditioning than it is quarantine

ORA drop ships from the actual breeding facility in florida and are safer, but some have reported getting flukes on fish from them. i just QT their fish by doing GC twice and watch for a bit, haven't had an issue yet

idk how the biota fish are shipped on LA. biota lets hobbyists get a wholesale account with them you just have to apply and you can order directly from them

 

[OrionN]

You can also order from

Clownfish – Cultivated Reef

But like mentioned above they all come from ORA

The breeder here is Sea&Reef instead of ORA

 

[Cassian]

Definitely qt them if you get them. I’ve gotten more diseases from liveaquaria than anywhere else, including the ORA stuff. ORA has great fish, especially clowns, Just stay safe and qt.

 

[Big G]

ORA drop ships from the actual breeding facility in florida and are safer, but some have reported getting flukes on fish from them. i just QT their fish by doing GC twice and watch for a bit, haven't had an issue yet

Yep. Got a pair through LA drop ship from ORA a couple of years ago. Their "small" size was teeny, tiny. And they did have flukes. One died from the infection. But man, were they ever tiny.

 

[cd459]

According to their website the Biota fish ship from Wisco, so you would probably (def) need to qt those since they keep WC fish mixed with CB.

For designer clowns I would buy them from DD since appearance can vary and personally I'd want to see what I'm getting.

 

[AcroNem]

They have a good qt system-so unless I see a lfs running copper in their tanks in person I order from LA.

They "sort of" quarantine their Divers Den stuff. Everything else is just about guaranteed to come in with something as it comes from QM most of the time.

As for ordering stuff from ORA where it gets drop shipped, I trust that a lot more. ORA has some pretty strict biosecurity protocols but I would still quarantine it to be sure, that's my protocol but you can likely just add them without issue.

 

[brawthy]

Interesting, would you not even QT fish from LA/ORA then? I'm looking to get a pair of clowns. Will be the first fish in the tank.

Sorry, I should have been more specific. In terms of them vs a lot of LFS, they have a better procedure a whole (small shops usually mean no dedicated hospital tanks). They do have multiple vendors though, and it's always best to QT no matter the source. ORA is pretty good on qt and you can order directly from LA. Diver's den Stuff is held for a few weeks as far as I know prior to putting them online.

I haven't had an issue adding fish from diver's den (but I usually only add a lot of fish at the start of the build). When I order fish from Diver's Den I still observe them before letting them into the DT.

 

[Cv111]

Sorry, I should have been more specific. In terms of them vs a lot of LFS, they have a better procedure a whole (small shops usually mean no dedicated hospital tanks). They do have multiple vendors though, and it's always best to QT no matter the source. ORA is pretty good on qt and you can order directly from LA. Diver's den Stuff is held for a few weeks as far as I know prior to putting them online.

I haven't had an issue adding fish from diver's den (but I usually only add a lot of fish at the start of the build). When I order fish from Diver's Den I still observe them before letting them into the DT.

A lot of people seem very pro-Diver's Den, but they don't carry any ORA breeds kn their do they?

 

[cd459]

They have ORA clownfish all the time. Plus angels, files, etc.

 

[Cv111]

They have ORA clownfish all the time. Plus angels, files, etc.

My next question is doesn't that just introduce more handling that increases the odds of them picking something up? Or do the diver's den fish get handled with particular care? my understanding was simply that you'd be able to see the exact fish?

 

[cd459]

It does increase the handling, but the fish at the Wisco facility are well cared for and under daily observation. You pay for this, but I feel like the value is there. As others have said, quarantine/observation is probably best regardless of where you buy from.

Some clowns have deformities from intensive breeding (overbite, etc.) or don't have great markings, so I like to see them before I buy them. They're also usually sold as bonded pairs, which is slightly more convenient. ORA is great, don't get me wrong, but I think Diver's Den is a step above.

 

[Payne Train]

If it was me, I would consider seeing where the next closest LFS was and call to see if they have what you want. Then I’d take a drive and go see them in person.
but that’s just me

Ive read a lot of bad and a lot of good on here about Live Aquaria.

 

[Cv111]

It does increase the handling, but the fish at the Wisco facility are well cared for and under daily observation. You pay for this, but I feel like the value is there. As others have said, quarantine/observation is probably best regardless of where you buy from.

Some clowns have deformities from intensive breeding (overbite, etc.) or don't have great markings, so I like to see them before I buy them. They're also usually sold as bonded pairs, which is slightly more convenient. ORA is great, don't get me wrong, but I think Diver's Den is a step above.

Ah they look like they don't have very many options when it comes to clowns, sadly. None of the breed I was looking for at least. Maybe that'll change by the time I'm ready to order.

 

[Cv111]

If it was me, I would consider seeing where the next closest LFS was and call to see if they have what you want. Then I’d take a drive and go see them in person.
but that’s just me

Ive read a lot of bad and a lot of good on here about Live Aquaria.

Yeah I've checked with every store in my city, the two closest to me are the best reviewed, and said they don't often get them. Sadly nobody else could give a guess about when they'd have one let alone two. Driving isn't really a thing here to begin with so driving outside the city isn't very appealing. I do know one store that might be worth the Uber ride, but they also didn't have any in stock or a guess when I called. LA says they're in stock, but maybe that's a lie too haha! I do know of at least one that was present at the store nearest me several weeks before I started looking.

 

[Payne Train]

Yeah I've checked with every store in my city, the two closest to me are the best reviewed, and said they don't often get them. Sadly nobody else could give a guess about when they'd have one let alone two. Driving isn't really a thing here to begin with so driving outside the city isn't very appealing. I do know one store that might be worth the Uber ride, but they also didn't have any in stock or a guess when I called. LA says they're in stock, but maybe that's a lie too haha! I do know of at least one that was present at the store nearest me several weeks before I started looking.

I got ya - I didn’t think about location.
As someone said above - I’ve read a lot of posts about the live aquaria fish being tiny ... so you may want to look at the size that you want and go a size bigger .

good luck !!