Best place in calgary for saltwater livestock???

[clegault]

Hello i am new to saltwater and currently have a 35 gallon tank with 35lbs of live rock and 2 clowns, a hermit crab and a couple of snails. I was just wondering what stores are the best in Calgary for livestock.
thank you very much

[Madmak]

That's a tough question...

All the fish stores can have fair to good livestock at times and really bad at other times. There is no way to know unless you stop in often and see for yourself.

The best fish IMO come from other hobbyist's tanks. You still have to be able to recognize a healthy fish and a sick one.

IME Pisces and Big Al's have the largest selection but their health can be all over the place. The smaller stores generally have less fish but more knowledge and healthier livestock.

I don't really favor or avoid any store. I do try to look around and be picky with my choices. But as I said before, the best fish or corals come from other reefers.

[clegault]

thank you, are there alot of smaller stores. I really one know of golds, wais and riverfront. ??

[Coralgurl]

Golds, WAIS, ocean creations, concept, Pisces, big al's. I've never been to riverfront. I think a key part is getting to know the staff. Most are really helpful, you just need to do your research before you go to know what will work in your system.

Welcome to canreef!

[magikof7]

Concept Aquatics, Ocean creations are 2 good places. I find the big stores to be expensive for corals and if you really look at the tanks they are not the best kept.

Watch out for those telling you things are rare. Buy it because you like it or you won't have a long love affair with your tank. It will lead to problems and neglect and honestly you wont last long in the Hobby.
I'd advise going in on days that you have no intention of buying anything in the bigger stores and really Look at the livestock and tanks. When you go shopping with the intent of getting something for your tank I find it is easy to overlook red flags. It is also easy to end up with something you will regret later when you can't find something that really jumps out at you.


When buying Fish and Corals from ANY store or fellow reefer... NO ONE is safe from pests and disease. QT your fish, Dip and inspect your corals.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by magikof7

When buying Fish and Corals from ANY store or fellow reefer... NO ONE is safe from pests and disease. QT your fish, Dip and inspect your corals.

Bestest advice ever

[magikof7]

I have visited river front, and I used to know some of the staff when they were in their old location. (I used to breed Crested Geckos) They were good guys but honestly I never bought from them.
I was in their new location. I was not impressed with either locations. Others may have a better experience
as always buyer beware.

[madchild]

Concept & Ocean

Gotta go in often to see what they have, and buy when you are there cause it won't be there the next day or even later the same day.

[asylumdown]

Originally Posted by magikof7

Concept Aquatics, Ocean creations are 2 good places. I find the big stores to be expensive for corals and if you really look at the tanks they are not the best kept.

Watch out for those telling you things are rare. Buy it because you like it or you won't have a long love affair with your tank. It will lead to problems and neglect and honestly you wont last long in the Hobby.
I'd advise going in on days that you have no intention of buying anything in the bigger stores and really Look at the livestock and tanks. When you go shopping with the intent of getting something for your tank I find it is easy to overlook red flags. It is also easy to end up with something you will regret later when you can't find something that really jumps out at you.


When buying Fish and Corals from ANY store or fellow reefer... NO ONE is safe from pests and disease. QT your fish, Dip and inspect your corals.

+1 to this whole post. There's nothing worse than saying to yourself "today I'm going to buy something for the tank!", going out, not seeing anything that really catches your fancy, but buying the next best thing because you're there and it's what they happened to have, then going in to the store a week later to discover that one fish/coral/invert/etc. that you've always dreamed of having is there and available, but because of your earlier 'ho-hum' purchase you can't get it because of space/compatibility/logistical issues.

If there's something that you know you want, wait for it. Check often, and get to know when the stores are going to be getting in new orders. Sometimes that can take months of waiting for the right shipment from the right part of the world. If you develop a relationship with some of the smaller stores, they might be willing to request something you're after from their supplier the next time they order from that part of the world. If you're in to fancy LPS corals, don't settle for anything less than what takes your breath away. The difference in price between the "oh wow" corals and the "hmm, I guess" corals isn't nearly enough to justify wasting money on something you don't love, but the "oh wow" corals don't last long in the LFS tanks.

And on top of that, quarantine quarantine quarantine. In a controlled environment where you don't have to worry about live rock, corals, and sensitive invertebrates, most fish diseases are relatively easy to deal with. Getting something like a protozoan parasite that lives some part of it's life off of a fish out of a reef tank once it's been introduced is literally a months long herculean effort.

I just went to wais, ocean creation, concept, big als, pisces, riverfront and golds. All the stock looked sick with tons of dead fish. Concept was closed for the 3 time in a row during normal business hours. I'm not impressed with them.