walmart fiasco!!!

My mom came to visit me about a month back now, anyways she lives in a small town with not too many stores to choose from .So i decided to take her to walmart to shop around. As always i went to there fish section just to have a look and see what they got. I saw a few fish that i liked (good price too) and they looked healthy from what i could see. So i went to costomer service to ask for help , so this guy comes and asks me what i wanted. I tell him i want 2 guarmis, they guy gets a measure cup fills it with water then puts the water in a bag and hangs the measure cup on the side of the tank and puts the bag of water in it. the guy catches the fish no problem and then has trouble tying the bag so he puts his mouth over the bag and breathes in it ...i stop the guy imediately and tell him the fish need oxygen. i grab the bag and tie it up myself. I tell him i want a couple of tetras also. He grabs another bag fills it up with water puts it in the cup on the side of the tank so on and so on. I pick the 2 i wanted , he gets them no problem then he tries to put them in the bag but has trouble getting them out of the net , instead of putting them in the bag he drops them on the floor (by this time im a mess just freaking out) i quickly pick one up and put him in the tank and the guy puts the other one in the bag. I said to this guy that i don't want that fish anymore hes stressed out and will most likely die of shock!! he said to me pick out another one and i can have it for free, so i did. this guy grabs the bag then trips!!! the fish go everywhere!! I was so frustrated and felt so bad for these fish that i told the guy i did'nt want any of these fish anymore. The thing that gets me is that this guy told me he works in the sporting goods section!! I hate walmart, they need someone in that section that knows a thing or two about fish!!! does anyone else have any similar experiances??? i would really like to here them. I will never again atempt to get fish from walmart again.

Some of their Phoenix stores have stopped selling live fish. Probably, it's just too much trouble for what they make on sales. Last week, I was moving some angelfish to a different aquarium, and one of them jumped out of the net. I picked him up from the carpeted floor and put him in the aquarium, but he died the next day. All that handling and laying on the carpet probably removed his slime coat. They say you should never handle a fish with your bare hands unless you plan on cooking it.

Have you noticed that some of the big chain stores have stopped selling the females of some fish species? Fish keeping has turned into a big money thing, so why bother with the relatively drab looking females of some species? Many smaller aquarium shops cater to hobbyists, but the big places have to be strictly business.

I agree, the big chain stores it is all about how much they can profit. I live in british columbia, all the lfs i have been too, still sell females, there easy get(but i can see why some places just like to sell the males). Your right about touching fish, it should never be done.I wont ever shop at big chain stores, you get better service and knowledgeable staff at most lfs

Your poor angel..sorry to here about that. It can happen unfortionatly. we learn through our mistakes, but, somethings are unavoidable.

I had a net full of angelfish when one jumped out. He wasn't on the carpet very long, but he flopped around and lost his slime coat on at least one side. The older i get the more mistakes I make.

I worked with a guy from British Columbia, and he said the place is absolutely beautiful. How cold does it get there? The middle of Phoenix seldom gets freezing temperatures.

it can get quite cold depending were in the province you live. i live in the Okanogan which is southern bc. in the summer time it gets to about mid 30's around 95 ferinheight in the winter it gets to arounnd -20 (just an estimate) around -4 ferinheight. we get quite alot of snow. Vancouver is more milder but very damp and rainy. BC is quite beautiful personaly i love Vancouver island, a must if you ever vacation here.

in all of my bigger stores that sell fish in ohio are always overstocked riped to shreds has ich/paracites ect. but we went to a petco today to check on some kittens that we fostered and i was looking at there bettas and they had like 5 delta males and on a sign said they sold like every type of betta inculding halfmoons(which i really want for breeding)but i dont remember seeing double tails on the sign....but so im going to go there again

but one thing good for walmart was that i got 2 double tail bettas for $4 each and there worth $20 or more and ones even a double tail/crown tail and he just bred and gave me a ton of fry with a crown tail female

The big stores stay in business because their prices are usually very good. However, when i buy fish in one of those places i pay very careful attention to their condition and the condition of fish in their other display tanks, especially if they're using a central filter system. Bettas may be safer because they are usually isolated in one of those too-small miniature bowls. Most of the big stores also sell plants that look good but cannot survive long completely submerged in water.

Sadly..what you have described here is all to familiar.
It isn't only Wal-Mart that thinks blowing carbon monoxide into a bag is giving them oxygen...geesh!!
Yes...most of the time they call someone from another department to come wait on a customer needing fish. And..as you said..those employees know NOTHING about fish!! In fact..even if they DO employ any that actually work in that particular department..they know nothing EITHER!!
I have ben there when they are telling a person something that is totally incorrect..and since I have a big mouth..usually say my piece. The customer ( and even the employee..LOL) usually thanks me afterwards though...so it is for the "fish"that I say anything!
I have worked in our local Pet/fish store...and have had so many people come in to complain about Wal-Mart. It has a BAD reputation for VERY UNHEALTHY fish!!
If you look at the tanks..most of them have dead fish..a huge algae problem...and if any of them "are" alive...they are usually very lethargic.
It saddens me that they have not just closed that department down completley. If they are not going to take proper care..then why have it? They throw away more dead fish than they sell.
Like I said..
I know it is probably wrong of me to do so..but if I see anyone looking to buy anything there..I would always direct them to our LFS...and tell them WHY!!
Have had many discussions with people there about fish maintenance..that is for sure !!

I can't change the way that anybody does business, but giving bad advice about aquarium keeping must discourage lots of people who are new to the hobby.