Oscar vs. Flowerhorn -- opinions please!

[Deadeye]

I had a guy at petsmart tell me that piranhas are saltwater fish. He relented when I said red bellied piranha, which is apparently the only fw species…

 

[Joshuakahan]

OH MY GOSH you just reminded me!!! In my teens (what some 22 years ago?) I applied for a job at Petsmart and got it (I was always a lover of animals). At orientation the manager looked at my shoes and said, "Are those the only sneakers you have?"
"Yes..." I said. Now mind you, these were some plain brown sneakers with white tread. Nothing really that unusual about them.
"Huh. You're going to need some different shoes. The bottoms have to be black."
I asked if Petsmart would pay for these shoes, to which he replied, no. I just put down all my paperwork I was filling out, said, "never mind" and walked out!

This has nothing to do with this topic but I had to share as I completely forgot. Something tells me they're more lax about these sorts of things these days. I mean I see what the kids are wearing now...! LOL

I’m guessing he was referring to nonskid shoes. I was a district manager for a chain 20 years ago and had to enforce that same stuff. I hated making a kid getting paid $6.15/hr go buy $35 work shoes

 

[punchiechip]

I have found that locally and only very recently the employees have begun to ask about my tank size when I buy fish/snails. They are hobbyists themselves which has been great to see. At the Petco, one employee has begun putting a handful of bettas in with compatible other fish for sale (like more mild mannered tetras, as an example, or in with the snails) so that at least a handful aren't doomed to die in the cups.

I do wish we had better stores though. I'm in central VA, all we have are those two options. Anything good (all the mom & pop shops) are about an hour away.

 

[punchiechip]

I’m guessing he was referring to nonskid shoes. I was a district manager for a chain 20 years ago and had to enforce that same stuff. I hated making a kid getting paid $6.15/hr go buy $35 work shoes

Not sure, he didn't specify that, only mentioned the color. I was wearing "skate" shoes at the time if memory serves...probably vans.
Yeah that's gotta be tough! But definitely something that makes sense, I'm sure the store doesn't want slip & fall workers comp cases, either. (And there is another industry I worked in for a few years)

 

[Joshuakahan]

I have talked to a few employees of the big box pet stores and found that the training they receive is very limited and incorrect in a lot of cases. Some go above and beyond and do research on the fish online, but as most know that is very often incorrect. I can't help but speak up when someone is buying 2 oscars, 2 jack dempsey and a gold fish for there new 55 setup. All the same day of course.

I think it depends on the particular store. There’s a Petco near me and the fish manager at that location is as knowledgeable as most of us here and runs a fish keeping facebook group. But I’m assuming that’s rare

 

[dmyersWv]

I paid for 2 or 3 petsmart employees to join a local aquarium society a few years ago. Within a couple months the change in the fish department was amazing. Over the years all of them left. Still se a few at the odd auction. Most of them are there because they appreciate the animals. If you kindly without making them look stupid in front of their customers educate them. In my experience they will soak up the info.

 

[SAGuy]

I wouldn't keep an Oscar solo. I've tried it, and the fish wasn't happy. It was very lethargic, lazy, bored. When I changed the setup to a mid-large SA community, his personality completely changed. He's extremely active now.

I've seen the same thing in other people's Oscars. Oscar as a solo fish is a very overrated concept. It's a great community fish (obviously not with small fish). Also, IMHO a 75g tank is not even big enough for a fish that can get to ~15".

 

[SAGuy]

You would probably be happier with something like one of the Texas cichlid varieties. The blue carpintis is beautiful, active, and aggressive.

 

[Matth05]

I’ve learned from past mistakes that a 75 won’t be enough for a Carpintis, at least IMO. Once my male hit the 6-6.5 inch mark it really became hard to imagine that same fish at 10 inches (or more) in the same 4ft tank. If I had the space for a 6ft tank, I’d try out a Carpintis again in a heartbeat.

That 75 now has my convict pair and they use every inch of the tank, no exaggeration. It’s quite nice seeing them utilize a large tank actually. I’ve just briefly skimmed through the thread so it’s possible someone mentioned looking into the Amatitlania genus. My male convict has just as much personality and is just as boisterous as that Carpintis I chose to rehome. Just a thought, good luck with whatever decision you make!

 

[Joshuakahan]

I’ve learned from past mistakes that a 75 won’t be enough for a Carpintis, at least IMO. Once my male hit the 6-6.5 inch mark it really became hard to imagine that same fish at 10 inches (or more) in the same 4ft tank. If I had the space for a 6ft tank, I’d try out a Carpintis again in a heartbeat.

That 75 now has my convict pair and they use every inch of the tank, no exaggeration. It’s quite nice seeing them utilize a large tank actually. I’ve just briefly skimmed through the thread so it’s possible someone mentioned looking into the Amatitlania genus. My male convict has just as much personality and is just as boisterous as that Carpintis I chose to rehome. Just a thought, good luck with whatever decision you make!

I think convicts are great , especially for someone new to the hobby