TFA101

I used to own three H. Brachysoma in a 20 gallon tank. The local PetSmart sold them to me as eclipse catfish that grow only up to a max of 8 inches. The min tank size given on the sign said 5 gallons. When I researched them, a total of 18 inches at the max was given to me. I dont have them anymore, but wouldnt giving improper size be illegal?

ps

my local dealer told me they were captive bred and would stay that small as a result of that. is that true?

Butterfly

No they won't stay small because they were captive bred, they may get bigger because they don't have predators in a tank that they would have in the wild.
Many pet stores only care about making a sale so you have to research your fish before you buy them. it makes good petstores look really bad.
Carol

Angela_96

I completly agree with her. I am reading a book on "Malawi Cichlids in Their Natural Habitat" and has mentioned them being bigger in the tank as compared to in the wild for the simple reason they don't have to hunt for food in the tanks, etc.

Neville

Do not listen to the pet stores, they just care about their business; a salesman once advised me to keep an Oscar in a fish jar! can u believe that?

sirdarksol

There is a point here. If they are giving false information about the "operating parameters" of a fish (not the stuff that's kind of subjective, like tank size, but the facts about a particular fish, such as how long it gets), they are deceiving their customers. I'm pretty sure that's quasi-legal at best.

I agree with what was said above. Don't trust fish stores to give you information about a fish. Petsmart says that glassfish need salt. They don't. They live in soft, acidic water. Petco says that bettas don't need filters or any more than two cups of water. They do. Better to do your own research before buying a fish.

Allie

I have that book. Isn't it great.