LFS in Richmond

Azelea....I think Keith is a decent guy, overall he cares more about the livestock and their wellbeing more than anything. They do have the best FW livestock in the Richmond area hands down. For the most part, as long as you know what you are talking about, and are knowledgeable about your setup and what you have, Keith is pretty easy to get along with. He is not the guy that a new hobbyist should go and talk to.

I did get a beautiful flowerhorn from him about 4 months ago though....he had a tank of FH fry he was selling for $10, and now it is growing out with some awesome coloration.

I was upset to see PetClub on Hugenot go....I used to frequent that store when I lived in Southside Richmond. They had great stock there also, but the cats walking around always creeped me out.

 

I did have a positive experience with Keith at Azalea when searching for Altums.

He ordered Altums and they were Peruvian Scalares... He sold them as what they are and not what he got which was a mis-identification by those catching them and his distributor verified it.

Nice he did not carry the "rip-off" to his customers. Points back for him on my list!

 

That is interesting, because I had a scalare/altum discussion with him not too long ago and based on his assurances about it, I was planning on having him order me some wild scalares. He said he wanted to keep them for me for several weeks to Q them for parasites. I thought that was pretty cool.

Like has been said, if you know what you are talking about and know what you want, he's fine to deal with.

 

I think that is the batch I was looking at... He also told me that he had been treating them and getting the finnage back to health before sale....

 

Did you get the scalares or are you holding out for altums?

 

I am holding out for the Altums but I would buy the Scalares if need be and I will get them from him!

 

I went by there today and snagged 3 of the scalares. Sometime in January I was talking to him about whether or not he could get wild angels, and today he was acting like these were the fish he had ordered for me, and what took me so long to come in and pick them up! He had them for 10 weeks, he said, and cured them of ich, got their fins to grow back, etc., after the ammonia burn in the bags en route from Peru. They are certainly good looking fish, though.

I have them in quarantine now in my 40g, and talk about shy and skittish! I've upped the temp in the tank for them and hopefully they will settle in. You can definitely tell they are wild caught, and this whole thing about glass boxes, people and lights are new to them.

I'd been wanting some wild type angels, which are impossible to find in most shops (even the silvers look overbred) so I am pleased to get these guys. Hopefully they will get used to life in the aquarium and be safely transferred to the 150 at some point. I have got so many Endler's in there now that I need a good predator ASAP - crowd control, please!

 

Yeah I think he did get them for you... he told me the same story that he bought them for someone else... But they never came in to get them.... They were really good looking fish....

He also told me that the fish had bad looking fins and did not have good color and that he was treating them for several illnesses but they got their color back and were ready to go!

 

I will have to be careful what I say to Keith in the future - in January I was nowhere near ready to order fish - I was picking his brain to see if he could get me what I might want, not thinking he'd actually place an order. I was just wondering if he had the resources. There was no agreement at that time, so I was surprised today that he considered our previous conversation to be an actual order, though it worked out pretty well in the end.

I wish I could have gotten a few more, but at $29.95 that is at the high end of what I have paid for any fish. I've gotten some very specifically bred Tang Africans for similar prices, but it's been a while since I've spent this much for fish. I know he has put some money into them, and I do not feel ripped off. This is an investment, and hopefully I can integrate them slowly into my community setup as showcase fish.

Hubby thinks I've lost my mind, btw....

 

I thought myself that was a bit high for what they were.... Hey I guess he figured they would sell so why not get them

And it did work out well for you.... kind of kills the backup plan though of getting them if all fails on the Altums

Enjoy them though! For that price reason I have not been quite yet ready to order either.... BUT I may put a hold on my 55 for right now again to buy some Wild Heckel Discus from Animal Jungle this Sunday They are like $34 a piece which is a great price!

If someone wants my Red Sunset Discus I may get rid of them to get a tank of Heckels.... Although I am still not sure about that.... still thinking that out?

 

Could I keep discus in a community setup with these angels? I have only 3 of those scalares. It is a pretty heavily planted 150 with pressurized CO2. I am not interested in breeding anything, just a show tank.

 

No, I would not.... You CAN but I would not recommend it at all!

Being the fact they ARE wilds, the Angels will be MUCH more aggressive than the domesticated counterparts.... Also illness are VERY common in wilds and Angelfish are immune to some diseases that will WIPE OUT EVERY DISCUS IN THE SAME ROOM! (Discus Plague)

I would not risk it myself

 

Good advice. I have the angels in Q right now and will keep them there for a good while until I'm confident about them. I know Keith has been treating them for a couple of months but I need to see for myself. I've never kept wild fish. These guys are still hiding, and the slightest thing makes them spook. It will take them a while to get comfortable.

I was impressed with how they looked, though, compared to most any angel you see at your average LFS. My husband, however, is not so sure. He asked everyone he saw yesterday the same question: "What's the difference between wild Peruvian scalare angelfish and the angels you see at PetsMart? Twenty-five dollars.." ha ha ha, yuk it up, hubby. There is no comparison! I think once these get settled in and start growing, he'll be able to tell the difference.

 

No there is not comparison! Those Peruvians are BEAUTIFUL!!! Standard Scalares are just plain.... and Silvers Scalares are REALLY BLAH

Then there is the extra $25

 

Lemon, went to Perfect Pets tonight and some guy came in there today and dropped off some of the prettiest Discus and Angels i've ever seen. If you get a chance you should go check them out. He traded them all in on a bunch of saltwater stuff. There must be at least 10 of them and the colors on these fish are awesome!!!

 

Will Do! Thanks! What color were they... I am trying to make some changes on my tank...???

 

They were all kinds of colors. Some were red, some were blue, and a lot of them had cool stripes and markings on them. Good luck getting them to sell any of them.

 

Sorry to open up an old thread but any updates on this? Any new stores I should be checking out? I was just in Fin & Feather this afternoon and was disappointed. I was looking for plants and fish ideas. They were helpful and willing to answer questions. However, there were dead fish in the tanks and the plants didn't look very good.

Best looking stuff I have seen lately has been the PetSmart over in Mechanicsville. Limited supply on plants though.

Petco on Staples Mill is horrible. I walked out of there with flea bites on my ankles earlier this summer.

 

Cichlid Solutions is an up and coming place in the Richmond area and is well worth a visit.

 

I saw something on the internet about them. Do they only sell African Cichlids?