Oh, one more thing. While I was there they received a new shipment of fish & were unloading the bags. Several bags enclosed something I'd never seen before - a "______ Dragon Fish" (can't recall the prefix to the name). I looked it up on the internet, & believe it's what is also known as a violet goby, perhaps?

Anyway - scary looking. Sort of like a cross between an American Eel/Arowana/Snakehead. These bagged ones were already about 8-10" long, & the sign said they reach about 20-24" when mature. Yikes.

Our local Petsmart is also a great place that takes care of their fish and the associates know what they are doing. The Petco is another story and IMHO about 10 points below Wally World in their fish care and quality...........PITYFULL!

They also had those Dragon fish in th elocal Petsmart here, too bad they won't work out in a natural pond........be like having Loche Ness monster in it ;-)

Yes - I agree. Actually, from what I read about them, they're fairly peaceful, non-agressive fish, feeding primarily at the lower levels - but, like any fish of this size & type, can't be kept with anything small enough to be consumed. And obviously need a large tank. Which is all just common sense. At least PetSmart was honest enough to post the ultimate size they would reach.

Actually, the PetSmart that's about 45 minutes from me always has absolutely lousy fish, yet the PetCo that's a half-mile down the road from it, while not as good as the PetSmart where I got my fish today, more often than not has clean tanks & very healthy fish honestly represented.

Like I said, I think it has a LOT to do with whoever is hired to take care of that department.

It definitely depends upon management!! Some chain stores are pitiful!!! And the people working there haven't a clue! Others are great because the managers appropriately place their employees where they'll do best (and by interest).

One time I went to one of the chain stores and was APPALLED at how the guy was chasing down the fish I wanted. Finally I told him no thanks (after I saw he nearly squished one and was putting it in the bin to bag up for me!! ack!!)

Yeah...or the guy at a local Petland that dropped my African Clawed Frog on the ground then tried to make like he didn't.

Ugh...

-andy

I've got a pair of violet gobies. They ultimately need to be kept brackish. They will survive in hard akaline water for some time though. They are wild caught so they can be a pain to acclimate. A full grown adult can maybe manage a newborn guppy. The thing I find most interesting is that. Their mouths open about as big as their heads but they only eat little things. I very rarely see them out swimming. Even when they are you'd be suprised how far away they can see you with those beady little eyes.

South American Dragonfish is the name they're using (but they live off the coast of north american coast too). It brings up a lot of results on arrowanas though.

I'm building an 8x2x2 tank for them and my pair of marbled gobies.

Adrea

I actually work at a PetsMart in VA. It is located in Richmond, and has some pretty knowledgeable people also.

South American Dragonfish are very interesting, and almost always must be kept in a Brackish Water tank. They are considered semi-aggressive fish and get big enough to eat small fish. I have one and he is about 5" long. He is doing great in my African Cichlid tank and is one of my favorite fish. If anyone is thinking about buying one, don't hesitate, they are great to have. Also, the dragon fish are mostly nocturnal, however, they will become more active during the day after they are used to all schedules, such as feeding, when the lights go on/off, and even water change times.