Are you kidding me?

[Kaliedoscope]

maybe she was mentally challenged cuz you really cant get a better opposite then chinchillas and blood parrots LOL

I used to work in an lfs, people would come in all the time asking for "chinchillas" when they really meant "cichlids". Dumb people tend to get these terms confused for some reason

 

[Arthur]

As long as we're on the topic, I heard a girl at the LFS go, "Look at how that chinchilla is chasing all the other chinchillas" as she pointed to some blood parrots. She was about 18 years old. I tried not to laugh as I hurried away.

You're supposed to look at them and laugh, it makes if funnier, that's what I do to neon's with wings

 

[Otherone]

Our very large LFS and sometimes advertiser and dealer on this site has had a sign hanging in the cichlid isle that reads - " Oscars can get very large and require a minimum tank size of 30 gallons." - Doh!

 

[Spiritofthesoul]

Well if that dude has a tank large enough for a hammerhead, I think an Oscar would have PLENTY of space to swim in there.

 

[Aquamojo]

Sounds like less sarcasm and laughter and more education would be the best course of action. Everyone started uneducated at some point. Few will take the time necessary to pass on what they've learned.

 

[Amphilophus88]

Sounds like less sarcasm and laughter and more education would be the best course of action. Everyone started uneducated at some point. Few will take the time necessary to pass on what they've learned.

Completely agree with that.

To the op: I bodybuild, and I saw a topic in the lounge about working out, and well.. the advice given there was terrible sometimes. And on a bodybuilding forum they don't know **** about fish. You can't expect everyone to know a lot about fish.

 

[dent20]

Sounds like less sarcasm and laughter and more education would be the best course of action. Everyone started uneducated at some point. Few will take the time necessary to pass on what they've learned.

Absolutely agree. To those laughing, do you really think people expect to keep a hammerhead shark in an aquarium? Or to buy a pterodactyl? I think it's dumb to assume they're that dumb. They're just getting names confused and it's not surprising. Common names in the fish hobby can be that way when you're new to it. Think about it. There are cichlids called Zebras, Red Tigers, Yellow Labs, Daffodils. The list goes on and on. Instead of laughing, maybe try and guess at what kind of fish they're looking for and help them out.

 

[Horiyoshi III]

This is probably literally one of the only times this common phrase can be taken literally...

"If I had a dime for every oscar/bonehead owner/operator story on MFK I'd be rich by now."
It's bad out there man.If I go into places now with just what I've learned off here alone, I have to almost ignore the other customers.I'd never be able to leave!
Full of lol's though for sure.Hey, we all don't start packed with knowledge, but some people really are questionable to say the least.

Get used to it...

EDIT: I didn't even see that Mo had already said this!Ha!GMTA!

Sounds like less sarcasm and laughter and more education would be the best course of action. Everyone started uneducated at some point. Few will take the time necessary to pass on what they've learned.

 

[Younglin]

Even when I didn't have a lot of knowledge about fish, I still knew that a pterodactyl was an extinct flying reptile.

 

[Gruff Master]

Sounds like less sarcasm and laughter and more education would be the best course of action. Everyone started uneducated at some point. Few will take the time necessary to pass on what they've learned.

Ditto. I'm sure many people walk the isles of LFS just to look, with no intent on buying anything. They may be happier just to yank the chain of the workers with silly questions. Everyone that keeps fish are not serious hobbyist. Some people just like to have a few colorful fish in a tank. Then there are some that are simply new to keeping fish. In any case, these people will not always know the correct terms and pronunciations that come with referring and researching fish. I've been keeping fish for a while and I still butcher plenty of scientific names. I admit that sometimes the things they say can be funny when you know better. I hear my fair share of comical notions on this site and I'm sure that I have contributed some myself. A good laugh is wonderful, even more so when it is at yourself. But to insult people by calling them idiots and dummies is counter productive. It actually says a lot more about the experienced keeper's character than it does about the ridiculed novice. No matter how smart we think we are, there is always another person that is more versed on a another topic that can make us look like plain fools if he or she chose to do so.