i dont care if you hate me for this
- Thread starter jagsandpits
- Start date
It would be nice if guys like yourself would be a little more helpful getting out these "legitimate" fish to the MFK community instead of just hopping on here and making some comments like this late at night. I know you have the connections Mr. B!
Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
So your want true green terrors? Perhaps you should research the fish you are asking about. If you had you would see that they are not the easiest to keep. They grow extremely slow and very few people have had them spawn and successfully raised fry.
Are there a couple of other places on the planet that you could get some, probably. Will they have to be shipped also, very likely. You asked for a fish that is on Rapps fish list and you live close to him so the shipping would be very reasonable. That is why people recommended him, he is also very likely to be your only reasonable way of getting any. Does that make him superman or a fish keeping god? No, he is an importer and seller who specializes in rare wild type SA/CA fish. You want something rare you will likely have to use him or a handful of other vendors. You will find the 99.9% of the population that wants rare wild type fish have to order them. Local fish stores are not going to carry them because the market for them is very small and they will not make money on them.
Are there a couple of other places on the planet that you could get some, probably. Will they have to be shipped also, very likely. You asked for a fish that is on Rapps fish list and you live close to him so the shipping would be very reasonable. That is why people recommended him, he is also very likely to be your only reasonable way of getting any. Does that make him superman or a fish keeping god? No, he is an importer and seller who specializes in rare wild type SA/CA fish. You want something rare you will likely have to use him or a handful of other vendors. You will find the 99.9% of the population that wants rare wild type fish have to order them. Local fish stores are not going to carry them because the market for them is very small and they will not make money on them.
^ What jgentry said...
By "True Green Terror" I'd assume you're referring to Andinoacara stalsbergi. Just not a fish that you're likely to run across in an LFS...or that many in the hobby are breeding.
To go a little different direction on this, the market supports much fewer local fish retailers than it used to. Not too long ago, just about every shopping center had an LFS...and most towns had a handful of big ones that would compete to bring in new and exciting stuff. People today buy online and/or from big box stores, so LFS are largely a thing of the past. And ones that focus on niche hobbyist demands - vs. the multitudes - are the ones that often go out of business.
Fish clubs represent an awesome alternative to buying fish online or from LFS. In addition to having "mini-auctions" of fish and supplies (usually around 150-200 lots) at our monthly meetings, CCA has group buys for members, where vendors send fish (often at a discount...and with fish thrown in for donation) and members split shipping. Our Breeders Award Program (BAP) encourages people to bring in new fish, breed and distribute them to members and this has resulted in lots of rare and cool fish being available in our auctions and directly at meetings.
Finally, we try to bring in great vendors at the weekend event(s) we hold each year. CCA's AquaMania event (earlier this year) had Rapps as a vendor (plus, I think ~35 other fish and supply vendors). Registered attendees pre-ordered from Jeff and he brought them to the meeting. He also had other stuff for sale at the swap meet. I think folks at AquaMania bought a big chunk of the wild stuff he brought in earlier this year. We also had a rare fish silent auction with ~50 bags of really, truly rare and unusual fish available. AquaMania 2014 (Feb 28-Mar 2 2014) will be awesome as well.
The Monster Fish Konvention put on by MFK and *** is also coming up in NJ. There are some amazing speakers and vendors that are going to be there. If you can't find A. stalsbergi there, then there will be lots of other great stuff (and an all day auction)...
Matt
By "True Green Terror" I'd assume you're referring to Andinoacara stalsbergi. Just not a fish that you're likely to run across in an LFS...or that many in the hobby are breeding.
To go a little different direction on this, the market supports much fewer local fish retailers than it used to. Not too long ago, just about every shopping center had an LFS...and most towns had a handful of big ones that would compete to bring in new and exciting stuff. People today buy online and/or from big box stores, so LFS are largely a thing of the past. And ones that focus on niche hobbyist demands - vs. the multitudes - are the ones that often go out of business.
Fish clubs represent an awesome alternative to buying fish online or from LFS. In addition to having "mini-auctions" of fish and supplies (usually around 150-200 lots) at our monthly meetings, CCA has group buys for members, where vendors send fish (often at a discount...and with fish thrown in for donation) and members split shipping. Our Breeders Award Program (BAP) encourages people to bring in new fish, breed and distribute them to members and this has resulted in lots of rare and cool fish being available in our auctions and directly at meetings.
Finally, we try to bring in great vendors at the weekend event(s) we hold each year. CCA's AquaMania event (earlier this year) had Rapps as a vendor (plus, I think ~35 other fish and supply vendors). Registered attendees pre-ordered from Jeff and he brought them to the meeting. He also had other stuff for sale at the swap meet. I think folks at AquaMania bought a big chunk of the wild stuff he brought in earlier this year. We also had a rare fish silent auction with ~50 bags of really, truly rare and unusual fish available. AquaMania 2014 (Feb 28-Mar 2 2014) will be awesome as well.
The Monster Fish Konvention put on by MFK and *** is also coming up in NJ. There are some amazing speakers and vendors that are going to be there. If you can't find A. stalsbergi there, then there will be lots of other great stuff (and an all day auction)...
Matt
That's what I tried to explain to op and he thought I was BSing him. Like I asked who bred them when he's said that plenty of people breed them. As I know of at least a hand full of people who keep them and only one to successfully breed them is Andy in uk(I forgot his username).
Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
Mr. B ? My point is there are venders out there that sell wild fish at large sizes in large quantities with locations which are not wild pond raised if that, I even know the people who supplied them! It's ridiculous to spend these crazy prices on fish marketed as something they are not. I have in the past bought from these venders paid insane prices along with high shipping quotes, I have ended this years ago, unless there is a fish I must have now which I haven't run into lately. For example there is "wild ornatum" for $100 for a 3 inch fish while another vender has the same fish for $50 at 5 inches, I understand this is a business but I'm looking for a reasonable price for a fish, I have no interest or concern to fatten someone wallet, if you want wild either collect your own or get your fish from close trusted friends....
Like said before if you want a specific fish and can grantee that it is wild from the location named why not pay top dollar. Can you grantee that the cheaper vendor had true wild fish or top quality fish. In this hobby or any sometimes being cheap doesn't always work out.
Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
Here is my 2 cents and you can take it or leave it , dealers like "jeff rapps" provide a "higher end" product for those whom feel the need to know the lineage or source country or whatever about their fish, so for this example were gonna call jeff rapps the ferrari of fish importation granted he isnt the be all end all of fish imports but the dude has built a rep of having quality stock with if nothing else a more "controlled" approach to what he brings in,
Now if jeff rapps is the ferrari of imports then "petsmart" would be the chevy chevette or ford escort of the fish game..
While you may not have such high standards, some folks on here in my exp with mfk do. So in summary im not super fussy when it comes to the source of my fish so long as I <key word> feel as though the fish is healthy and is the species that I was looking for.
if your after a gt they sell them ****s at petsmart, I have a 10 inch male gt from petsmart and he is balling , that being said as i pointed out before im not super fussy and im sure some gt expert will come on here and rip the ISH out of my fish and give a 100000 reasons why the one they bought from rapps is 100% better and mine is a mutt but really who cares
case and point while driving a ferrari may be fun if you have the bucks , you can still go get your groceries in a jacked up ford escort if those are your options.. remember it is up to YOU to decide what you put in your tank , patience and research are the 2 greatest things to learn with keeping fish..
another side note a gt is one of the few fish from the ca/sa world that even in its "ford escort" form is still reasonably unmolested due to their lack of ability to hybridize
take it or leave it but when your hobby begins to bring you a great level of agravation maybe you might want to think about why you got into the hobby in the first place
breathe grasshopper , find your happy place and remember it supposed to be fun, a rewarding exp that you electively got involved in if it brings you to rant/rave level of frustration maybe you are in the wrong hobby..
Now if jeff rapps is the ferrari of imports then "petsmart" would be the chevy chevette or ford escort of the fish game..
While you may not have such high standards, some folks on here in my exp with mfk do. So in summary im not super fussy when it comes to the source of my fish so long as I <key word> feel as though the fish is healthy and is the species that I was looking for.
if your after a gt they sell them ****s at petsmart, I have a 10 inch male gt from petsmart and he is balling , that being said as i pointed out before im not super fussy and im sure some gt expert will come on here and rip the ISH out of my fish and give a 100000 reasons why the one they bought from rapps is 100% better and mine is a mutt but really who cares
case and point while driving a ferrari may be fun if you have the bucks , you can still go get your groceries in a jacked up ford escort if those are your options.. remember it is up to YOU to decide what you put in your tank , patience and research are the 2 greatest things to learn with keeping fish..
another side note a gt is one of the few fish from the ca/sa world that even in its "ford escort" form is still reasonably unmolested due to their lack of ability to hybridize
take it or leave it but when your hobby begins to bring you a great level of agravation maybe you might want to think about why you got into the hobby in the first place
breathe grasshopper , find your happy place and remember it supposed to be fun, a rewarding exp that you electively got involved in if it brings you to rant/rave level of frustration maybe you are in the wrong hobby..
^ +1 if your down to get the rare and imported fish you gotta pay up. I like the car analogy haha
Sent from my DROID4 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Sent from my DROID4 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
