Just left Petco super depressed

[Jake Gremaud]

But yeah most of them are pretty ******

 

[huskerreefatl]

I was in the one near my home in the ATL area and several fish were covered in ick which means their entire system is infected.

 

[frogman_reefer]

Really? then why is it being advertised on PETCO.com
http://www.petco.com/Fish-Home.aspx

Two reasons. Let's look at PepsiCo

They own Taco Bell, KFC, Lays Potato chips, Gatorade, Quaker Oats and Tropicana just to name some of the 22 other top names they own. However, just because they might own them or be in a partnership, doesn't mean they take over a successful marketing campaign and product.

F&S/ Live Aquaria (same company) has proven market share and products. Petco won't jack with their process, but they will ride their coat tails. Do you know PetCo also partners with Texas A&M aquatics? But they don't run the scholastic program do they?

No. It's marketing. That's all

 

[frogman_reefer]

As far I know, Petco was founded back in 1965 under the name of UPCO (United Pharmaceutical Company) by Walter Evans and in 1979 it became Petco (Attached photo of the very first Petco store)
Moving forward....Today, Petco is owned, operated and trading at Nasdaq as Petco holding. Petco has 27800 workers today and the current CEO is James Myers.

So who is the parent company of Petco, I'm really confused?

The post was referring to F&S and the reference to Live Aquaria. Not PetCo

 

[frogman_reefer]

As far I know, Petco was founded back in 1965 under the name of UPCO (United Pharmaceutical Company) by Walter Evans and in 1979 it became Petco (Attached photo of the very first Petco store)
Moving forward....Today, Petco is owned, operated and trading at Nasdaq as Petco holding. Petco has 27800 workers today and the current CEO is James Myers.

So who is the parent company of Petco, I'm really confused?

Ahh. Never mind, I just went back and read the post. I completely typed that incorrectly. I'm sorry. That was my fault.

 

[Luka]

Would you ever purchase a sick fish just because you felt bad for it and you knew you could actually help it?

 

[Cleo642]

Would you ever purchase a sick fish just because you felt bad for it and you knew you could actually help it?

I believe Humblefish has rescued fish from petco several times.

 

[Humblefish]

Would you ever purchase a sick fish just because you felt bad for it and you knew you could actually help it?

I do this all the time. But I also learn something new every time I do it, even if the fish dies. I never would have figured out the "formula" for treating velvet infested fish without Petco's "help" : https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/defeating-marine-velvet-disease.217570/

 

[Jentsch32]

I really think it's up to the manager or maybe the department manager if the store is worth a ****. When I lived in Vegas the one by my house was amazing, but that was in the late 90s. Here in the chicagoland area there is no middle ground, they are either impeccable or deplorable.

Agreed as have few around me the people running the store that are familiar with saltwater their livestock is "decent" but then a few where no body has a clue to what they are doing their tanks are despicable but hate to say a few of our LFS are just as bad on my side of AZ

 

[Cleo642]

I do this all the time. But I also learn something new every time I do it, even if the fish dies. I never would have figured out the "formula" for treating velvet infested fish without Petco's help : https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/defeating-marine-velvet-disease.217570/

Even good things can come out of bad things.

 

[frogman_reefer]

Would you ever purchase a sick fish just because you felt bad for it and you knew you could actually help it?

I have a yellow tang, a scopes tang and a bi color blenny I rescued from near death. They are all nice and healthy. But I've had a few pass as well. The Petco I really do like, their aquatic specialist is a member of our local reef club and she is great. (Goes back to managerial issues and money)

She is always asking for pics of the rescued fish. I volunteer at this one twice a month. They don't get the items they need and I am always sending corporate her needs request. And believe it or not, she is getting the stuff they need. Primarily foods and lights.

 

[Griff]

The pet I here in Fredericksburg Virginia is awful. Ich covered fish dead coral. More cyano than I've ever seen. They do a fair job with the freshwater but the marine dept is deplorable!!! I'll post a pic next time I'm there. My son likes to go in and see the animals but we only buy cat food there. We do have a fantastic LFS in Richmond Virginia "Tiki Corals". I've been in the hobby almost one year and their knowledge and advice has been a huge help learning the hobby. Everything looks pristine and they have a good variety of coral!

 

[zabel]

Petco would probably keep the same employees at live aquaria. If they let live aquaria get bad like petcO is, they would be sending fish that would all die in shipment do they can't do that. Petco probably bought all of there fish from live aquaria and decided to purchase the company to save money. Just my thought.
There freshwater fish at petco are horrible also. The bad part is the unsuspecting people that bring a diseased fish home and kill most of there healthy fish.

 

[Pfisherman]

Another truly disappointing store is petlands aquarium adventure. This place unlike Petco has all the right equipment, just there is nobody that does it right or something.

 

[MT. Reefer]

There are 2 Reefers that have run the fish Dept at my Petco, but recently one moved out of state so we'll see what happens. Whenever I want a fish or invert, I either order it or I'm there when the fish are delivered and they never hit the Petco tanks. They told me a long time ago that all the tanks are plumbed together and if one fish shows up in bad shape, the disease can spread around the tanks and there is nothing they can do about it. So even though they are conscientious aquarists, there's only so much they can do with the limited equipment that they have to work with. But I still quarantine my fish for at least three weeks before they hit the display tanks.

 

[knukles55]

Sounds like a store I have called allpets

 

[FishFishFish]

Petco here is the exact same way, I quit going there to buy any salt even just to hope they quit carrying marine products if they don't sell them. The tanks are filthy, livestock is in horrible health. Liverock looks like spray painted concrete. It's a ridiculous representation of the hobby in my opinion.

you are right about the live rock... it is painted purple and they call it FIJI cultured live rock...

 

[FishFishFish]

If you can, shop long time established Aquarium Shops... it is their business to ensure the livestock is the highest quality and the tanks should look super. They are shrinking in numbers so better support them before they are all gone...

 

[frogman_reefer]

Another truly disappointing store is petlands aquarium adventure. This place unlike Petco has all the right equipment, just there is nobody that does it right or something.

I won't shop there at all!! Saw one of their "puppy farms" and was so appalled.

Never!

 

[knukles55]

If you can, shop long time established Aquarium Shops... it is their business to ensure the livestock is the highest quality and the tanks should look super. They are shrinking in numbers so better support them before they are all gone...

The convenience of shopping online and having it shipped the next day doesn't help local stores either. I honestly think technology has made local stores go out of business thinking back to before when there was dial up Internet. Before all people had to rely on was a library book and a fish store owner to guide him in the right direction of there aquarium until you learned the hard way