Can vendors really sex 3 inch peacocks/haps?

[Omrit]

I ordered from snake river cichlids recently, and in hindsight I started thinking "wait can they even sex these fish at that size?" after ordering some 2.5-3 inch "males" with them. Am I being delusional thinking these are actually males?

I know in theory you can vent sex them ,but is your average vendor really doing that?

Btw I am not complaining about my order, the fish seem fine. Just curious if in the future I am better off ordering large fish(when my other fish are larger) or sticking with buying 4 unsexed juveniles and hoping for a male.

 

[PhishMon84]

i think tampa bay claims this too- i went down the rabbithole of reddit and reviews that most ppl felt it was BS

 

[tiger15]

Haplochromis peacock can be sexed around 2.5 inch. It’s easier to pick out males from a group than females as subordinate males look female until the dominant males are removed.

 

[danotaylor]

Snake River guarantees there stock if you buy a specific sex. I ordered 3 guaranteed males from them a few years back; 2.5-3”, 3-4” & 4”+.
The 2.5-3” turned out to be female. I sent them an email several months later that I was suspicious the smaller “male” was a female. They requested clear pics of the vent, which I supplied. They agreed it was a female and 2 days later the refund money was back on my credit card.
I was disappointed not to have received the male I was hoping for, but the process of verifying and receiving the refund was seamless.
Oh, and they do not require the return of any incorrectly sexed fish, but if want a replacement you do have to repurchase and pay the shipping costs

 

[Omrit]

Haplochromis peacock can be sexed around 2.5 inch. It’s easier to pick out males from a group than females as subordinate males look female until the dominant males are removed.

But if the vendor is shipping out several orders that day(as they often do) then this method is very shaky? For example if four sunshine peacocks were ordered that day then the 4th most colorful 2.5 inch specimen is definitely not a guaranteed male. I think it's a good method for picking fish at petco but seems a bit far-fetched for the vendors to use in my opinion.

 

[DJRansome]

They have a 50/50 chance anyway and nothing to lose. The buyer is the only loser because they have an unwanted fish and still have to pay shipping on the replacement. Good marketing.

I use their claims to be able to sex small fish as a way to evaluate the vendor.

 

[danotaylor]

But if the vendor is shipping out several orders that day(as they often do) then this method is very shaky? For example if four sunshine peacocks were ordered that day then the 4th most colorful 2.5 inch specimen is definitely not a guaranteed male. I think it's a good method for picking fish at petco but seems a bit far-fetched for the vendors to use in my opinion.

This is hearsay. Ask them what their process is and don’t just assume. I would think they put each order in its own holding tank before packaging

The ease that a vendor is able to be contacted & quickness to make things right things that happen as an out working of human error is what matters to me.

Simple solution for the OP; buy bigger fish. Their only about $15 more as you escalate through the size categories, which is less than shipping costs on replacements

 

[danotaylor]

They have a 50/50 chance anyway and nothing to lose. The buyer is the only loser …

I respectfully disagree. It’s not a good business practice to base a guarantee on a 50/50 guess. The business loses the sale, the future sale of the female fish that they have spent money to raise & now get nothing for, the time spent catching and bagging the fish, and a potentially losing a disappointed customer. I’d say that’s plenty something’s to lose

 

[Omrit]

I respectfully disagree. It’s not a good business practice to base a guarantee on a 50/50 guess. The business loses the sale, the future sale of the female fish that they have spent money to raise & now get nothing for, the time spent catching and bagging the fish, and a potentially losing a disappointed customer. I’d say that’s plenty something’s to lose

That makes sense logically but in practice that is not how it really goes. It's more like the "Try our crappy product or your money back" scams. You buy the item and hate it then you have to re-package it, request the refund, jump through whatever hoops they pull, and then mail it back to them. They know very few are willing to do that so the scam works.

As for these fish I think each "male" is around 40$ if you get the 3 inch ones at least from snake river. It will take months for me to be certain the fish is female, then I need to catch the fish which would be a huge hassle as peacocks/haps are not easy to net especially in the large tanks they are commonly placed in, then I would need to send snake river a picture of the vent. All for 40$ of I think store credit, which if I wanted to use I would need to pay for shipping again.

Luckily the peacocks I got do seem to be male. I also ordered a Sand Diver and a Lepturus which are supposed to be males, the Lepturus is 3 inches but has a lot of yellow so I feel pretty good about him. The sand diver I have no idea but lets hope they vented it...

 

[danotaylor]

That makes sense logically but in practice that is not how it really goes. * How do you know, have you asked them?? If you haven't, then you are simply making a generalized statement based on your opinion, and making out like what you're saying is the truth.

It's more like the "Try our crappy product or your money back" scams. You buy the item and hate it then you have to re-package it, request the refund, jump through whatever hoops they pull, and then mail it back to them. They know very few are willing to do that so the scam works. * This is true for company's that mass sell products, but small niche businesses, very unlikely. Are you seriously listening to yourself?? Try our crappy product! You sought them out & bought from them. If you thought their product was crappy, then why did you buy from them? If you read the policy you would know there is no re-packaging, no mailing back, just a simple process to confirm the error and then the money is refunded. So many fish keepers impulse buy, then cry about it later cause they didn't do their due diligence and look into the sellers policies. That is on you mate.

As for these fish I think each "male" is around 40$ if you get the 3 inch ones at least from snake river. It will take months for me to be certain the fish is female, then I need to catch the fish which would be a huge hassle as peacocks/haps are not easy to net especially in the large tanks they are commonly placed in, then I would need to send snake river a picture of the vent. All for 40$ of I think store credit, which if I wanted to use I would need to pay for shipping again.
* I have a 560gallon 10' long tank that had 60+ peacocks, haps & predators in it. It took 5 minutes to catch a fish with the appropriately sized net. TBH, you just sound like you're being dramatic. Buy bigger size brackets if you want more peace of mind that you're getting males. If you have no confidence in the process, why buy there in the first place?

Luckily the peacocks I got do seem to be male. I also ordered a Sand Diver and a Lepturus which are supposed to be males, the Lepturus is 3 inches but has a lot of yellow so I feel pretty good about him. The sand diver I have no idea but lets hope they vented it... * Female lepturus have a lot of yellow also. I bought 4 locally at 3". They all looked exactly the same until they hit 6.5"+, then the males color started to emerge slowly. He didn't show consistent full color until he was over 8". That one is gonna be a long wait. Fosso's show a bit earlier. Mine was full color at 6"

I apologize for the rant, but this kind of hearsay irritates me because you can actually damage a business's reputation based on mere opinion. Snake River is not a big corporation. They have a lot of info on their website about their practices & policies, how they do things, their commitment to the buyer, etc. People that buy without reading, and are then disgruntled about things that eventuate, that are outlined in the policies, then trash talk the business like they've been done wrong, when all along all the info was right there. Mistakes happen, we're all human. The main issue is how things are rectified. End of rant