Petco and icthyocide

[Tom_Nev]

In the area I live there are 3 Petco's (and only 1 real LFS which isn't that local and of dubious quality at best). Here's my problem, I've been in each of the Petco's several times over the last few months. EVERY time I've been in, in each store, the marine fish are INFESTED with parasites and diseases. Additionally, they commonly have fish dying or dead in the tanks.

Yesterday, I went in to one of them and spoke with the attendant. They just received a shipment of fish that day (earlier in the day). A number of the newly arrived fish were already infested. I'm talking about 1 powder blue tang, a half dozen bursa triggers, 3 scopas tangs, some tomato clowns, 2 ocellaris clowns and a dozen varied damsels (At LEAST). I asked the attendant (short form), "what is going on with the fish, every time I'm in here they fish are infested and dying". She says, "I know it's very sad. Corporate won't even let us treat them, but sometimes we try to anyway. We just got some new ones today and they were really stressed out, some already had ich". This store is the best of the three with regard to the condition of their marine fish.

I went into another today. Half the tanks empty (I thought whew!). Then I see a volitan lion bloated and dead in the corner of one tank with a pair of niger triggers lying next to him panting.

This is despicable. Anyone else see anything like this at Petco? I'll be writing and calling them to complain LOUDLY, as well as suggesting they either get it right, or get out of the marine business. I had given it a few months to see if it was just an aberration, buts it's not, it appears as if this is business as usual. I have seen at least 4 shipments of fish, in each of the three stores (12 total), each end with similar results (once in awhile a particularly hardy specimen makes it a month).

If anyone else has seen this, I hope you'd also write, call, whatever (more voices is likey to make more of an impression)