LFS DOESN'T QUARANTINE

[Tcat1k]

I am in the market for a flame angel and they are few and far between right now in Chicago area. I found one at a local LFS that looks great. I asked about their quarantine procedure and he said they have none and they got the fish yesterday. I am fairly new to the hobby and don't have a quarantine tank. Should I forget about the fish and search out one from a store that quarantines? Should I wait for Biota to stock and order direct from them as they are captive raised? Only other one I found that is nice is at another store that does quarantine. However, this fish is currently under treatment for a cloudy eye. He says it is getting better and he will hold for me until it clears. I know that flames have issues w flukes and bacterial infections, but outside of the eye, fish is a fine specimen. What thoughts do the long timers have?

 

[blaxsun]

Many LFS don't quarantine, so that's not entirely surprising. Ordering from Biota is certainly an option - and may be your best one.

I'm not on the "quarantine" side of the argument, so I can't really advise you. I did get an awesome flameback angel from consignment (apparently he was picking on blastos and acans) and he's proven to be a great addition to the tank.

 

[Saltyreef]

I am in the market for a flame angel and they are few and far between right now in Chicago area. I found one at a local LFS that looks great. I asked about their quarantine procedure and he said they have none and they got the fish yesterday. I am fairly new to the hobby and don't have a quarantine tank. Should I forget about the fish and search out one from a store that quarantines? Should I wait for Biota to stock and order direct from them as they are captive raised? Only other one I found that is nice is at another store that does quarantine. However, this fish is currently under treatment for a cloudy eye. He says it is getting better and he will hold for me until it clears. I know that flames have issues w flukes and bacterial infections, but outside of the eye, fish is a fine specimen. What thoughts do the long timers hav

if your tank is meticulously kept to assure nothing as much as a drop of water from another tank gets in, then yes....hold off.

Otherwise, i wouldnt hesistate.
You should have a small 10g observation tank it could be housed in while you feed and watch it for anything to develop regardless of the LFS's procedure.

And FWIW, most LFS that say they quarantine is nothing more than what the wholesalers do with low levels of copper to keep the infections/diseases surpressed while in temporary holding. IME.
You will be hardpressed to find a LFS owner that does a full 30 days in theraputic levels of copper.

 

[Baldguy]

Few lfs quarantine. I dare say most hobbyists do not qt.

 

[gbroadbridge]

I am in the market for a flame angel and they are few and far between right now in Chicago area. I found one at a local LFS that looks great. I asked about their quarantine procedure and he said they have none and they got the fish yesterday. I am fairly new to the hobby and don't have a quarantine tank. Should I forget about the fish and search out one from a store that quarantines? Should I wait for Biota to stock and order direct from them as they are captive raised? Only other one I found that is nice is at another store that does quarantine. However, this fish is currently under treatment for a cloudy eye. He says it is getting better and he will hold for me until it clears. I know that flames have issues w flukes and bacterial infections, but outside of the eye, fish is a fine specimen. What thoughts do the long timers have?

In this part of the world I don't know of any LFS that do a real quarantine on fish.

Any fish I buy, I put in an observation tank for a month - if nothing shows they go into the DT, if something does crop up I treat properly in the QT tank.

I've not lost any fish to a transmitted disease in the last 8 years following that procedure.

 

[V A R I A N T]

An option

Flame Angel | Quarantined Fish

Centropyge loricula Min. Tank Size: 70 gal Reef Compatible: With Caution

drreefsquarantinedfish.com

 

[Squidward]

Learn how to do TTM qurantine. Real simple. Only takes 12 days. Observation tanks are a waste of time.

 

[Krampus]

if your tank is meticulously kept to assure nothing as much as a drop of water from another tank gets in, then yes....hold off.

Otherwise, i wouldnt hesistate.
You should have a small 10g observation tank it could be housed in while you feed and watch it for anything to develop regardless of the LFS's procedure.

And FWIW, most LFS that say they quarantine is nothing more than what the wholesalers do with low levels of copper to keep the infections/diseases surpressed while in temporary holding. IME.
You will be hardpressed to find a LFS owner that does a full 30 days in theraputic levels of copper.

For that matter, there are a few businesses in the hobby that sell quarantined fish, and rightfully so. The equipment and time involved in the process has real value, and if you're not paying roughly twice the price of what everyone else is charging, then you're not buying a quarantined fish. They're rare.

But the fact is, 99.9% of LFS do not quarantine, and I would wager north of 90% of hobbyist don't quarantine either.

To your point, if you can guarantee that a single drop of water from another tank never gets into your system then quarantining is worth it, in addition to having properly sized quarantine facilities that don't add more stress to the fish than the disease would itself, then go for it.

 

[eqbal9947]

Most dont quarantine, and if they do the price reflects it.
its not an easy process to properly quarantine for 30 days so most LFS don't do it.
Some placed keep their tanks and low salinity or with copper levels, but that doesnt mean its properly QT'd

 

[Bramzor]

Some keep them in a tank for a few weeks for observation and call that QT. Most will just sell them directly. It’s all about risk management and there is no good or bad method. But there is low and high risk.
Some fish are ich magnets and others have a slime coat that will almost never carry something like ich. Ich can also travel on corals which almost no one will QT.

If you can QT yourself and want to, that’s probably the best option. If you don’t, nobody should blame you because almost everyone skipped QT before.

 

[jayman19]

Few lfs quarantine. I dare say most hobbyists do not qt.

No need to dare say lol. It’s true. Quarantine is expensive and space consuming. I don’t myself unfortunately

 

[Alexopora]

I am in the market for a flame angel and they are few and far between right now in Chicago area. I found one at a local LFS that looks great. I asked about their quarantine procedure and he said they have none and they got the fish yesterday. I am fairly new to the hobby and don't have a quarantine tank. Should I forget about the fish and search out one from a store that quarantines? Should I wait for Biota to stock and order direct from them as they are captive raised? Only other one I found that is nice is at another store that does quarantine. However, this fish is currently under treatment for a cloudy eye. He says it is getting better and he will hold for me until it clears. I know that flames have issues w flukes and bacterial infections, but outside of the eye, fish is a fine specimen. What thoughts do the long timers have?

Majority of lfs that I have visited dont quarantine as well. Those that do l, charge higher prices for their fish since well quarantine does incur costs since they do need dedicated tanks that have separate systems.

 

[NCsalt]

Sometimes tank maintenance companies offer quarantine services if they provide livestock for customers. I have one local that offered very reasonable fees for any fish that I could find that their supplier couldn’t get or were backordered.

 

[TheBear78]

Some keep them in a tank for a few weeks for observation and call that QT.

I've yet to find a definition of the term quarantine that actually includes any kind of medication.

 

[Saltyreef]

Learn how to do TTM qurantine. Real simple. Only takes 12 days. Observation tanks are a waste of time.

Unfortunately this is been proven to not rid some strains of velvet...

 

[Atherial]

Are you willing to drive to either Madison or Milwaukee? Wet Dreams Aquatics in Milwaukee or Big Kahuna in Madison will order whatever fish you want and both stores quarantine. Big Kahuna is slightly better in that they will hold the fish once you've paid a deposit.

 

[Rmckoy]

I don’t quarantine but have transferred fish that were Ill to a hospital tank once .
The fish that I medicated seamed to go through more stress transferring back and forth .
For the fish posted about from that one lfs.
I would ask them to hold it for you for a week for observation . If it appears to settle normal I would purchase it

the real issue is when it’s added to your tank and other tank mates chase or bully .

 

[jhadaway]

You can also order fish from saltwateraquariun.com for ora fish, algeabarn does ora and biota. You can buy straight from biota (shipping is crazy high) or dr reef. There’s lots of debate on the quarantine front to say the least. I have bought ora and doctor reef both with great results.

 

[mike550]

Are you willing to drive to either Madison or Milwaukee? Wet Dreams Aquatics in Milwaukee or Big Kahuna in Madison will order whatever fish you want and both stores quarantine. Big Kahuna is slightly better in that they will hold the fish once you've paid a deposit.

@Atherial thanks for the suggestion. What happens if the fish you purchase dies during quarantine / under their care?

 

[BuckChoklit]

You can always contact TSM Aquatics, Ive always had good luck with them.