MY Local LFS avertises nemo at his store

[leykis1o1]

thats right on the radio all day my local LFS is advertising if you bring in your ticket stub you get a free Goldfish and you get a free Nemo movie poster..he also says come in a meet the stars of nemo including nemo himself a clownfish....

this really erked me to hear this..its like he is advertising and exploiting people who watch the movie to come in a buy a "nemo" clownfish and or any other nemo movie fish for the unexperienced salt water aquarium person impulse movie buyer...

who really watches Nemo..Kids...can a kid take care of a salt water fish..probably no...do they reallly know what they are getting into ..no

this is different if somone saw a talk and wanted it to be there next hobby fullt time...and not just cause of impulse cause of a movie

what do you think of this?

[Rock Anemone]

At least he's giving away goldfish instead of clownfish. Hopefully he has some knowledgable employees to stop costumers who don't know anything about the reef aquaria hobby.

Sad to see LFS's promoting themselves with Finding Nemo advertisments.

Rock Anemone

[godlyme]

i say who cares!...let them bring more people to this hobby by exploiting a movie....did you forget that we were all once newbees and we didnt know everything... if i ever had kids and they wanted a "nemo" i would be happy and help them with their interests...im sure most adults in this world are not dumb and know that a saltwater fish may be a little harder to keep than a goldfish, just the same as if a child wanted a puppy, not all adults run out and buy one... I went and saw this movie and was very pleased how they portayed "saltwater aqaurium life". they surely didnt glamorize living in a glass box, and showed simpathy for these creatures who were shown as being locked up in glass cage. I wish my parents gave me a clown fish when i was a child....it would have opened my eyes to the wonderful ocean alot sooner. and if it died because of my neglect than that would have been an even bigger lesson.

[Rock Anemone]

godlyme, the only problem is people may be placing the little movie stars in large bowls or even small 1 gallon aquariums. Most won't bother to read up on the cycle process or the whole saltwater aspect. They will just throw flake food in the tank, change all the water at once, etc etc...

This is why LFS employees need to act quick and provide customers with care sheets, IMO.

Rock Anemone:D

[Andru881]

I was at a LFS today and I overheard the owner tell a mother and child, that you could keep 2 "nemo" fish and a blue hippo tang in a 10G tank and they would be happy there!

[naesco]

Picket the place, sign a petition, phone the SPCA, unionize his employees but don't just do nothing.

What a sicko.

[Rock Anemone]

:sad1:

I don't know what to say about that....

Picket the place, sign a petition, phone the SPCA, unionize his employees but don't just do nothing.

I agree. So far this has worked for various places.

Rock Anemone

[Andru881]

I talked to the mother after the owner walked off...I told her of a better place to go where people are a lot smarter, and would tell her the truth about what she could keep in a 10g tank. I also told here how hard it would be to take care of a 10g tank, and how much it would cost. I talked her out of even trying to start a SW tank for her 5-6 year old to take care of.

[naesco]

Originally posted by Andru881
I talked to the mother after the owner walked off...I told her of a better place to go where people are a lot smarter, and would tell her the truth about what she could keep in a 10g tank. I also told here how hard it would be to take care of a 10g tank, and how much it would cost. I talked her out of even trying to start a SW tank for her 5-6 year old to take care of.

:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[godlyme]

now a fish store employee telling a parent to keep 3 fish in a 10gal is certainly in the wrong... but then again we all know this already and those type of stores should not be in business anyway... i do on the other hand totally disagree with people trying to talk parents out of getting something educational/entertaining for their child!...if i was that kid and heard u tell my mom not to buy that fish for me i would have been "very upset" to say the least... u should have told them how much fun a fish tank can be and that despite simply watching the fish there is a little work involved. WHY didnt u point them to reefcentral or try and educate them yourself? im kinda disapointed in some people...did we all start keeping fish knowing everything there is to know? if it wasnt for the sales person at the petstore when i was a kid, trying to get me to buy stuff, i would have missed out on something i now enjoy more than anything else in life. how would u feel if that poor kid never has a fish the rest of his life now and doesnt know what it means to "pod watch" at 3am

[arkman]

good for you godlyme to offer a strong counterpoint.

As long as the LFS sets up the parent theright way, I think its good for a younger child to take care of a fishtank...now 2 clowns and a TANG(!OMG!) in a 10 gal is obviouly a fairly quick lesson in death for the kid - and the LFS should be "corrected".

As for Nemo - went to see it with our little one last night - in NO way did they glamortize keeping fish in a tank, infact is was quite the opposite and all the fish wanted to be "free"...

There is a moorish idol who says "liviing in a tank does things to ya kid --- as a tang (?) is fasinated by the bubbling treasure chest.

good movie - not really a bad thing for the hobby if its not overcapitolized...

[Andru881]

godlyme
If you were there you would have understood why I told them what I did. You have have to understand where I was at at. Plus the kid didn't even hear me, it was at the other end of the row checking out "mickey" mouse...

[HarvyClam]

I agree with telling the parent what you did. It definitely saved a few fish... I have three kids of my own & I would never put the responsibility of a SW tank on a 6 year old (they don't even bathe without being ordered to). This is NOT a hobby for a toddler! The kid won't even know who Nemo is next week! Let's promote to people who can & will do what it takes to keep the fish alive.

[ChasingPuck]

I think that explaining that the parent needed to take the active role in the care of the tank, instead of just being the bank roll, would have been better. Then the parent would have had a great thing to do; spend time with their child.

Haven't seen the movie, but as with 101 Dalmations, this is going to result in a lot of "Mommy I want one!". The cost of setting up and maintaining an adequate system should be enough to discourage many parents--though I can not agree the offering a goldfish instead of a clown fish is any better. After all, the gold fish is no more suited for a bowl than a clown.

[godlyme]

chasing puck i totally agree about the goldfish thing... whos life is more valuable the goldfish or the clown fish? how many goldfish die everyday so people can watch their eel or lion fish rip them to shreds..at least if a clown fish died maybe it would be a life lesson for the kid...i kinda forgot where i was going with this....lol either way i say good luck to EVERYONE and good luck to all the new nemos finding homes!! some fish prolly are better off in a 6 year olds tank than some of the fish stores ive seen.. 50 clowns in a tank 1' by 1'

[rrod1021]

How many clowns and tangs will die to inexperienced, band wagon, first time buyers just to make a buck? I would think twice about supporting any LFS who is stooping to these low levels.:mad:

[ChasingPuck]

Yeah, because an LFS isn't a business trying to make money. :rolleyes:

Instead, I would speak with the manager and ask if I could provide them with some setup and care information that they could provide their customers with, to assist in getting the tank setup. Not only would this address your concerns, but it would provide the store with a new customer--one who won't burn out in 6 months after replacing fish every month. Long term, a better deal all around.

Of course, there are not many LFS out here, so helping the stores do 'the right thing' is a better option for me than refusing to buy from them.

[thrlride]

Andru881, you have a PM. I would like to know what LFS you were at when this happened so I can avoid/watch them. Probably shouldn't say names here, that's why the PM.

[bookfish]

It all comes down to the ethics of the individual store owners, reflected by their employees.
The fact is that there will be a lot of gee whiz buying because of this movie but the responsibility of providing an appropriate environment for a new hobbyist' fish rests on the person selling the setup.
-Jim

[MPA]

godlyme, maybe you should keep your thoughts to yourself. They really do not sound like well thought out comments.

LFS need a profit to keep the doors open, but to exploit an unknowledgeable consumer and the life of any living creature is wrong.

As for the value of goldfish lives compared to clownfish lives remark; any life regardless of what type of life it is, is priceless.

maybe you should think up a name to replace "godlyme". You really can't say your god like, unless you are saying God made man in his image. But we all know that this is not your intent.

[MPA]

You know I just went back and read godlyme's posts again and they really are thoughtless comments. I can't believe this guys a repertory therapist. I know many, many people with salt tanks. Both reef & fish only. I have never heard of one of them letting a clown fish get ripped apart by an eel or lionfish. Whets the matter with this guy? He actually works in the medical field and says things like this. All the people I know care dearly about their tanks and wish no harm against anything in them. This is the first time I have read a reef central post that is like these. We all can say what we think but lets all put some thought into it.

[carlso63]

Actually, Godlyme said "...goldfish being ripped to shreds by an eel ..." not "clownfish being ripped..." (Referring to those of us who feed our carnivorous species live foods)

Maybe you guys took what he said out of context and are being a little rough on him for it...? :)

I think it all just boils down to the integrity of the LFS... does he want to make a quick buck selling "Nemo"s in 2 gal bowls, or does he take the 'high road' and tell the truth as far as how a true SW setup will take time, effort and $$$ but is well worth it (if the parents are willing to make these investments...)

He will make more sales if he chooses the first option; but he will gain more customers if he chooses the second... Hopefully, the vast majority of LFS in this country will choose to "do the right thing"... :thumbsup:


BTW - this is my first ever post here at RC :dance:

[Rock Anemone]

carlso63,
[welcome]

Rock Anemone:D

[Clownish]

i feel insulted that people consider kids ingnorant about the saltwater hobby.... i mean not all are ignorant about these things... i happen to be 16 and all my tanks are perfect in almost every aspect... granted i am not as fluent (sp) with latin as i would like to be (why don't they teach latin as a language class) anyways i have started a group of under 18 year old reefers in wichita Ks and i must say that our conversations are very thought provoking ... however our cash flow sucks :rollface: but other than that i really wish people would stop slinging mud at the younger reefers. but o well that is more like my 3 cents instead of 2

(ps) my clownfish breed like rabbits and my hippo tang is fat and sassy so that must say something

[SteveMH]

I'll tell ya what, don't underestimate the kids. Please don't confuse this to say that it's ok for ALL of the younger folks to run out and get their clownfish and hippo. But I gotta say, there's several young kids who come into our store on a regular basis with their parents and they're some of my favorite customers to work with. They do their research and they know what they're doing, and where they're going with their tanks. I'm 34 and been around the hobby a little while now, and I can talk shop with these guys all day long.

[gooch]

I have a son and daughter that are very much a part of my reefing pleasures. They are 7 and 10.

My wife is raising some clarkii fry at the moment. When they are big enough two of them are going to thier classroom in the fall. Do I think they are responsible enough to take care of the tank(no) but with my,my wifes and the teachers help they will be just fine. They are going into a 20 gallon tank. With an anemone. I will take the tank down in the spring. 90% of the inhabitants will be raised/aquacultured by us. The only exception will be the snails in the tank.


If we want to expand the hobby and really educate the masses. We need to start them young and what better place than in a school. And in an educated way.

gooch

[yachtboy14]

I am 15 and a half and know as much about the hobby as a 40 year old guy but sw tanks are not for every teen or kid I would not want my sister who is 14 or my cousin to have one sure the tank would look nice for a while but after a few weeks the fish would die and the tank would get put away it is up to the parents to Deicide wether or not thier kid is resp. enough to care for sw fish