shop certification

[tank125]

Yeah, ID sharks, Paroons, Channel Cats, Gars, CK's for sure! Ban them!

Now, be completely honest with yourself, how many people do you know have the will AND the resources to care for a full grown RTC?

Look around on this site alone, everyday someone is re-homing a fish that is too large because: "I'm moving" "My parents say no more fish" "I am going in a different direction with my tanks" "I only bought it to SAVE it from the Pet Store"

I wish there were a solution, but unfortunately the only one I see is a ban. Dangerous for an already dieing hobby, but I think it is b.s. that a 12 year can walk into a PetCo and buy a TSN for 19.99 or a Channel Cat for 2.99.

I am focused on fish that are inexpensive, common, and break 2' in length with minimal care and effort.

 

[Fishes33]

Now, be completely honest with yourself, how many people do you know have the will AND the resources to care for a full grown RTC?

I thought I can, but I cant. I sold my TSNxRTC hybrid to a guy with a 300G tank

They are commerical fish (dirt cheap / for us to consumer), who knew half way around the world, they would be prized as a pet fish

 

[barry j]

I dont like the idea of a ban as, for people that know and love these gorgeous creations it would be a real shame, here in uk in my store, i have produced a bright yellow label saying "caution ask advise" which angers boss and also increased prices some stupidly to avoid sales to the wrong person. After a good chat and only then will a sell the fish and at proper price. I then advise customer that on there return they only talk to me as so i can continue to give proper advise on potential tank mates etc

 

[zennzzo]

Fish prohibition!?
It's all about the bottom line...

While you're banning fish you might as well ban BS fish chemicals that don't work,
and alcohol and firearms...

 

[Pyramid_Party]

perhaps the customer should have a certificate or license. Normal people could buy all the small and peaceful fish they want, but for those who want something big or something that requires more care, should maybe have some document that they can obtain, that is proof they have knowledge and are capable of owning the fish.

Theres another problem with fish keeping. You got people who have no regard for fish, they do cruel things, they dont take care of them right, they allow fish to die and then not really care. When a fish dies, some people think " oh well ", while others see a fish as an aminal just as much as a pet dog or pet cat. Peope sell fish to kids and then dont care what happens to the fish after that.

Alot of people buy piranhas or some other predator just to torment other smaller creatures. They abuse the predator and the prey when it comes to feeding time. I guess you cant do anything about that, theres always some jerkoff who has to spoil or abuse something nice.

 

[fishdance]

This is a topic that comes up repeatedly and even if WE here at MFK were able to agree on a solution, there is no real point since MFK can not enforce anything. There simply is no point in exerting a lot of effort to convince everyone what is best unfortunately. The only hope threads like these have is to help educate some people. With this in mind, I propose an "academic" discussion since the reality is quite tragic. Obviously we need to consider this from all sides, including the fish collectors, fish farms, distributors, retailers and consumers.

There is one solution which people do not seem to consider which I feel is quite effective and relatively easy to implement. The simplest and most effective solution IMO is to simply raise the price of problematic fish. Increasing the price at entry point to a country is the easiest to implement and simplest to police. Example - any invoice which shows certain species will attract a basic surcharge. The amount of surcharge will depend on the severity of problem fish (species) but several hundred dollars was what I had in mind. This surcharge like any other charge will be paid by the importer who will naturally pass the cost on down to the retailer who will then charge the customer accordingly. This immediately forces retail shops to consider their market much more carefully and may encourage custom ordering. Since the fish has a higher price tag, some shops will make the same margins with much less stock (reduced numbers) so shops will be willing to accept this scheme. Customers who pay several hundred dollars for a fish are much more likely to plan purchases more carefully (less impulse buying) and also house larger fish more appropriately. Naturally there will still be some illicit transportation, re-labelling of invoices, smuggling etc but despite this, the end result will still be a much higher market price for problem fish. If someone went to the trouble of avoiding the surcharge via illegal means, why would they sell it for several dollars instead of several hundred?. Most importantly, the incidence of dumping fish will dramatically decrease and the chance or re-homing unwanted fish will increase. Also quite importantly, this scheme allows serious hobbyists to continue buying and keeping the fish they really want.

I am not basing my ideas on pure fantasy but from many years in the commercial and international aquarium industry. The price of problematic fish such as RTC, arowana, Pacu, etc in Australia is usually around $500 each yet there are many people willing to pay these prices. This seems to solve any problems re-homing large unwanted fish, dumping in waterways, impulse buying, not upgrading tank sizes appropriately. The only losers in this scenario are the fish farmers since the numbers of these fish they sell will dramatically plummet. Hopefully these surchages can be used for consumer education, surcharge policing etc. For those of you currently paying a mere few dollars each for such problem　fish species, this post may help you re-evaluate priorities.

I welcome other thoughts and different opinions but I am not prepared to get into any heated discussion since there simply is no point.