Buying Tropical Fish on the Internet

By Douglas DuHamel

An age-old problem has seemed to escalate in the tropical fish hobby and that is buying tropical fish online. It has raised several questions as well as potentially ruining many legitimate businesses by the actions of a few.

What rules govern Internet transactions, what do we look for, why should the buyer give the seller money up front? Do we buy these fish sight unseen or, what happens if they send me something I didn’t want? What happens if I don’t like the condition the fish are in? These are a few of the many things that should be taken into consideration before buying tropical fish on line.

I think the first and foremost rule in any Internet company would be not to defraud or hurt the customer. When looking for fish online, check around several sites to look at the prices. Who gives out free shipping boxes or heat packs for transporting fish in? What kind of guarantee is offered, has the company been around for a long time? What do other people say about this company? Is the company using a secure way of doing money transactions?

You should even ask for references. If they are a sound company they should have lots of happy customers around that would not hesitate to give them a good word. A good web site should have pictures of their stock and fish and their setups. If I ordered fish from one company, and that company had pictures on their site and the fish I received did not look close to what the pictures were, I would be the first to get back in contact with them. If the vendor gave me a problem, I would not hesitate to report them to the proper authorities and, yes, even your local police department can get things rolling for you that way!

Any business that sells on the Internet should replace the merchandise without question or make some type of restitution if something is not right. Vendors should have the fish in stock and, if not, remove them from their stock list!

Many times I’ve had this happen to me. It’s not right and I do not tolerate it very well. If a vendor doesn’t have what people order, they should, at least let them know that they don’t, and refund that portion of their purchase. Lots of times you may not want what they are sending you as the replacement. In the fish business, this is crucial because you may have ordered an exotic fish and received a lower-priced fish as a substitute.

I have noticed over the past year that vendors will ship something and the prices have changed. Is that the customer’s problem? No it's not.

What a lot of sellers don’t realize is, without a happy customer, there is no free advertising by word of mouth. An unhappy customer will spread the word and next time they will try someplace else. Sooner or later, the business dies from lack of customers, and then the owner asks, “What did I do?”

Customers need to stand up for what is right, and not be afraid of the bad sellers on the Internet. Yes, there are good sellers out there; you just have to find them. Weed the bad ones out and help the good ones promote the hobby. Then, at least one day, the Internet tropical fish trade will involve only the cream of the crop and honest sellers. Hopefully, all the dishonest ones will go “belly up”!

I have been an Internet seller for about 5 years and, yes, I even buy fish online. I have been lucky on the most part. I do check around and compare prices, and ask questions about the seller. In my own business, the customer comes first and I don’t hesitate to replace fish if the customer is not happy. In my experience as both a buyer and seller, Internet transactions can be problematic to both the seller and the buyer if one party is dishonest.

I hope, in all honesty, that in some way, my advice will save you a few dollars and a lot of heartache.

I hope you continue to enjoy the hobby and good luck with your purchases!

About the Author:

I have been in the tropical fish/aquarium hobby for the past 44 years. Over the years, I have bred over 300 species of tropical fish ranging from the common guppy to the most exotic African cichlids.

Over the past 15 years, I've raised and tamed various breeds of birds from tiny finches to large parrots. Just like a new parent, I've been up all hours of the night hand-feeding baby birds.

It gives me great pleasure to educate up and coming young people in the hobby. Of course, any age can reap the benefits of the aquatic atmosphere!

I would say that the most fulfilling aspect of raising birds is to take very tame birds to hospitals and let the patients interact with these fascinating creatures.

I live on the west coast of Canada with my collection of tanks, 3 cats, a dog and a fine lady. Besides my aquarium hobby, I enjoy playing chess and browsing the Internet to keep myself updated on "fishy" things.

Douglas may be contacted by email at Doug@lovethemfins.com.

Article courtesy of Suite101.com.