Why Fish Breeders are Destroying the Hobby 

As things stand, the video was not negative. The video pointed out a real concern, and you addressed it in a professional manner. You also offered a solution: transact business with customers the way you’d want to be treated as a customer. Bravo!

Great message Nick. You can tell when a breeder/wholesaler cares more about money when the animals quality and health aren't where they should be.

Amen to that brother! I have had this happen to me several times. I am 57 years old and just got back into the hobby a couple of years ago. No matter how old you are it is still heartbreaking when it happens. I sell fish but just to pay for my hobby, not that there is anything wrong with making a profit. But I will add 3-4 extra fish to make sure the buyer is happy (mix of males/females). I raise rare goodeids and want fellow hobbyists to love these fish as I do and keep a larger base and gene pool for them. This is one of the most important fish hobbyists videos that I have seen in a long time. P.S. I love your videos, enthusiasm and appreciation for this hobby. Thank you so much, Paul Hutchinson

I love this message so much. As an amateur breeder, my reason for getting into it is poor supply in my area. I spent so long looking for bristlenose plecos, local stores were always sold out and charging ridiculous prices. When I finally overpaid for an adult male, I decided to overpay for an adult female too so that I can breed healthy plecos and sell them for reasonable prices to other hobbyists in my area. I'm getting ready to try with dwarf cichlids next. Let's make this hobby enjoyable for each other!

Heyy, I am 16 years old and have been breeding fish for abt 3 years now. And I wanna start a fish store to be different from the others. I've got big ideas and have started implementing them into daily work. I've just finished my O levels and have started on the road to being a marine biologist. I completely agree to what you're saying and I'm thankful for you adressing these topics and as a creator i believe that you really influence people globally. Again thank you for saying this and keep up the wonderful work!

I have watched you grow up on this channel and at the risk of sounding condescending, I have to say I am so proud of the man you have become. This speaks to the values and character you learned from your folks. Cheers to you and cheers to them. As for the losers that you were referencing, I have been around this hobby since slate bottom, metal frame tanks, they don't last. You do you with love and pride. You won't make the most money in a week but you will earn a living doing what you love and you will be around long after these leaches are gone.

This has happened to me multiple times with GOODEIDS. They're critically endangered and it is essential to breed them in captivity if you keep them, and yet, I will be sold only females at my local online auction.

I agree, especially with how it is with Zebra plecos in Australia, the breeders that are selling only males are trying to keep the value of their breeders high and it’s unethical. Bunch of lemons.

This is an excellent point. I have had major issues trying to get local guppies (pairs) of many different types or purposely being sent the incorrect female to dirty the genetics. It is sad and unfortunate but seems to span half way around the world here in Michigan US. I feel you friend

I got into the hobby a few years back because it literally saved my life due to a big life event. I know exactly what you are saying. I have gotten so mad about people only selling one sex. I love breading fish and shrimp. I have never sold a single fish or shrimp. I give everything away for the sheer enjoyment of giving others joy of the hobby. I could have made hundreds of dollars of what I have given away. I have a very fertile pair of long fin bristle nose plecos. I have given away hundreds of them. What also makes me mad is when I post free fish. People say they want them all because they have a bunch of tanks. After a couple of times. I was told these people were getting them free from me and selling them off to others. There has been people selling what I gave away for free. I now limit 3 to 4 fish per person because of these type of people. Thanks for the video.

i know people who have cracked the code of breeding pea puffers en masse and refuse to share the knowledge, then get bored of breeding them and move on to other things and that information gets lost. We really need to share more as australian fisheries keep cracking down on things that we may never be able to get in again and the animal gets lost forever from selling culls, too much inbreeding etc

It turns out its not only in Australia. All over the world breeders seem to have picked up that trick. They do it either to prevent the buyer from breeding them & maintain a monopoly or to then sell the more colorful males later at a premium price. I went to a local fish shop to buy some equipment and decided to buy some guppies & guess what all the guppies in their tank were females. Not a single male. I therefore bought the females and chose the ones that looked pregnant and luckily two out of six of them did give me a good number of fry. I will however, still need to get some males at some point from another source in order to breed them and avoid genetic defects due to inbreeding.

I can totally relate to this video and I’m in the USA. I got back into this hobby for therapeutic reasons. It’s also a ton easier now that there is internet, online forums, fish swaps, etc. But since I’m back to being a hobbiest, I’ve encountered these types of people and it really pushes you away from things you enjoy. However, then there are people like you, incredibly encouraging and just being a wonderful soul. Thanks to you and your videos I have successfully had a corydora spawn and was able to sell some! It totally made my day that I got to share my fish, that I helped create and raise, into the community. I was so excited that I told my dog who promptly knocked my phone into the water dish. It was comical. Anyway, I’m thankful for people like you that produce these great and honest videos and you share your enthusiasm with the world ❤

I agree - my hobby is only based around guppies - but it happens even for them! I have no intention on selling on any scale it’s only ever going to be hobby but my local fish chain stores only sell males. I found a female last week amongst some male dumbos and thought I’d won the lottery. How bad is it when you can’t even get female guppies. I believe they are the gateway fish for kids in this hobby - being how pretty, easy and cheap they are - so yes totally agree with you! Because of this I gave my last batch to my local independent fish shop for free!

I can agree with you, as someone who doesn't have much money it annoys me when there's a really pretty fish that I need to saved up for to breed just for my enjoyment and im given a sick fish on purpose or just males. Otherwise I do enjoy your videos and I watch them to learn how to breed certain fish and you were definitely one of the first channels I started watching when I wanted to learn how to breed zebra danios!

It wasn't a common practices years ago. Now selling only male seems to be too often the norm. In the US the big pet store chains started selling only males across all the live barriers. Then I started seeing that practices in many of the tropical fish stores too. I assume this is coming from the large scale breeders trying to limit the spread of fish from non commercial breeders. So it is all about the $ and your right. It hurts the hobby. I try to buy from local breeders if I can.

It’s not just that. Removing eggs and artificially hatching cichlid eggs has totally bred out the parental instinct in fish like Angels! Finding a pair that will look after the young these days is almost impossible

this is so true, Im from the philippines 17 years old and I want to quit this hobby because of this kind of people which happened to me when i first started breeding. and also i recently bought fishes from a breeder and instead of a all female or male. he sent me fish w velvet disease which quickly spread through out the tank. It is also my fault that i didnt quarantine them but i did observe them all for only a day for diseases and behavior but due to me being unfamiliar w velvet disease i didnt notice it. and last week while i was away for college enrollment some ppl stole all my breeder at our backyard. me and my family were not home only grandma was home. she sleep early etc etc. so i dont blame her. some kids also ruined my aquascape while i was away, I am tired and i am slowly selling all my fish very cheap. i spend lots of my time and my money. i am currently battling w the disease and i think my fishes are getting better tho lots died. i enjoyed the journey tho but i think ill stop for now. ill continue my hobby once done w college and have a job lol

I have seen the same thing happen in the saltwater hobby with coral. It used to be that hobbyist would share coral with each other or trade, maybe you might take some money if the person didn't have anything, but a lot of the time the more experienced reefers would give coral to a newbie just to help them out. I still do that today because to me I want to promote the hobby. There are groups that are actively trying to shut our hobbies down. We need to stand together and share more than ever to ensure that this hobby stays strong and not divided.

Great message and great video. I completely agree. Thank you for your candor and courage. Continue to call it out and push back.

For me, a great part of this hobby is about community. It is awesome to see so many people willing to share there experience, plants, shrimps, fish to foster fishkeeping. Unfortunately, there are selfish people too that simply don't care about others at all.

Spot on Nick. Big stores have upped the prices on so much of their stock that you are starting to see it online as well. A peacock cichlid 3cm should not cost $40 each, but you see that at shops. Like other big stores some costs have gone up and you do need to react accordingly but for someone who knows what fish cost 10-20 years ago, it's nearly robbery for some fish. Sustainable and affordable too. Rare stuff will have a higher price like your plecos, but stuff like community fish shouldn't be near $20 a fish. Makes it hard for kids to buy anything more than guppies or neons.

I've gotten lucky, am not a "professional" by any stretch. I offer all of them out in pairs, and sell in lots for trade to local stores. You got me interested in rams. With the right environment, they do the work, and I reap the rewards :) Thank you for what you do. Don't get discouraged. There are still some of us who are honest out here........

Good job. I noticed many years ago in the pet shops that they were carrying only male guppies and mixing varieties. If they had females, they would be mixed in their own tank, but it would be almost impossible to know which females to pair with which males. Just yesterday, I decided to look at Endlers for sale online, and many breeders were offering six-packs of males, no females. When they offered a mixture of sexes, they were always also mixtures of varieties. None of the desirable pure strains of carefully bred color varieties were available as a mix of male and female. So, for a very long time, I have been aware of and frustrated by this proprietary practice. Your perspective matches mine perfectly. Fortunately, there are breeders and retailers with more generous spirits who want to perpetuate the hobby through sharing and encouraging young people to take it up. Thank you for this thoughtful video.

Watched to the end and was rewarded with your childhood photo. Such a beaming smile!! Fishkeeping truly is one of your passions.

I now own a pet shop but for me breeding was always about giving back to the hobby (I used to get rare wild/F1pairs/groups and breed them and sell on to other breeders. Another problem I have found is hybridisation. A lot of people especially with Malawi's just let anything breed together and try to pass them off as one of the original species. I have an OCD when it comes to fish and I try to keep them pure. Great video.

Personally, I'm a school kid, and I'm in Jr High. We're there is not a lot of opertunity to do things you love. So I took it fish, keeping it entranced me and kept me engaged. So I grow plants. I get plants from the fish store and then propagate and sell them so I can buy fish to grow breed and sell. But if I didn't love this hobby, then I would not be doing this. All in all, I agree with this video and think it needs to spread to more people.

Couldn't agree more. We set up GBee Shrimp to grow the hobby and share our findings and information. For us, it is not only a small business but primarily about the hobby. The UK shrimp scene of old was very cloak and dagger, and we want to destroy that mentality and create a community of shared knowledge. Yes we need to make a profit but as long as we can cover costs and not lose money, that will be enough. Those that are obviously all about the money stand out like a sore thumb. What you said was not negative, just the truth. Let's build etiquette in our hobbies and support small businesses as they are the backbone of our hobby communities.

Hi nick I am 13 and you inspired me to get into the hobby I have been saving up money to buy fish and I have recently bought a colony of brislenose from a breeder which all but one died and when I talked to the breeder he said that I must just be inexperienced with plecos, however when I told him that I had breed peppermint brislenose he just left me on read. Unfortunately as you have discussed in this video there are just bad breeders who only care about money and are incredibly greedy.

You're one of the 2-3 people who really got me into fish keeping and you mindset is exactly why I love it so much. I don't sub to many fish youtubers because I think they're too much into the money side but you were an instant sub because your love for fish really came across.

Very well said man. But also, it’s awesome to see how much you love doing what you do. A lot of people can learn more from you. Keep doing what you do.

As a breeder in the US, I give options. All males, all females or Pairs/Trios. However mistakes do happen and I try very hard not to take it personally, especially if I just ordered a group of fish and didn’t specify that I was looking for a breeding group. My suggestion for anyone looking to breed a certain fish is to shop around and specifically look for a breeding group.

I agree. Transparency in the listing is essential. If the breeder intends to ship only males it must be disclosed prior to the sale.

Well said my man I'm from Ireland 🇮🇪 and the same is happening here it's sad to see...love what u do stay strong and keep doing what u love

You're a good kid, son. Don't let this world ever change you and keep doing what you love. We all see the shine in your eyes and heart about this hobby and its people like you that have kept this hobby alive for so many people in the world.

Your enthusiasm and love of fish is what keeps me watching. Sadly people can be greedy, stupid or naive. IDK the details of your transactions that went south, but I do know you have to clarify everything with people, especially the sketchy types! I breed horses and everything clearly spelled out regarding the transaction (I actually write a contract so we both are clear!). But I know when I've bought other things I do clarify if I plan to breed or not, as it's expensive and disappointing to not get what you perceived you were getting. I know if I was selling fish and people were buying a bunch or didn't specify, I'd ask what they wanted them for? It's a simple question that can avoid misunderstandings. Word of mouth is gold. Some people don't realize it.

A very manly addressing of the problem, way to go! And without exposing people, this was very well done in genuine love.

I actually just ran into that here in the States, where the breeder has a beautiful strain of guppies, but will only sell the males. I thought it was strange, but the shop keeper told me that the breeder is very gate keepy about his fish. Good onya for bringing this up, because yeah, it's bull and discouraging for people who are new and want to get into the hobby

Finally, someone with a voice is standing up against these issues! I've been scammed and taken for many times, and it's disheartening and really ruins the experience of owning and trying to breed fish, especially as a kid. Lots and lots of money wasted on one sex and it's always the males. I get the whole keeping females to breed more fish, but most the time, depending on the type of fish, the female and male pair and won't usually go to other males and females to breed. Thanks Nick! Hopefully, those who need to see this video and comments see them and change the way they do business.

Nick, your passion for these fish shines through. I keep frogs, not fish, but I love to watch your videos. I also collect coins, have done so for 20 years. The current prevailing attitude seems to be that if you can screw someone else out of a lot of money, then fine. It is NOT fine. Naked greed is slipping into ordinary people's lives everywhere we turn. Nasty. Please hold onto your passion. The next generation of fish keepers, and the fish themselves, need you.

you said what needed to be said, the idea of only doing it for money isn't good and I agree we should do it for enjoyment and not gatekeep everything amazing about this hobby.

As a guy who has half of his fish room for native fish, and the other half was me by me sending messages to the reputable sellers to make sure I get some males and females. Seems like you're not doing your research, and/or not buying from reputable sellers. And instead look for the cheaper deals for the fish in particular. I've spent thousands on ordering fish and never had this issue. And whenever I've head fish DOA, I got replacements with a simple message. And the only time I came close to this problem you mentioned, was when I bought my shrimp and didn't get many good looking males. They sent me 10 prime grade males they specifically picked out for me. That said, I did have to spam 1 star reviews and call them out on deleting the review on their site. But it got me my shrimp and a reputation with the dealer as a guy not to mess with.

I got recently into this hobby and I checked around lot of local fish stores for fish. It just breaks my heart seeing fish in such bad conditions, cramped quarters, bad filtration.

Fantastic message, completely agree! I think we need to put the conservation back into the hobby, and part of that is not just source ethicacy but also creating a good community for newbies to come in and learn from all the experience of the seasoned fishkeepers-so we can all do what's best for our hobby and the fish.

I agree 100% with your views as a breeder of Medaka Japanese Ricefish

You are so right. It’s lovely to set up conditions to provide a home to our fish friends. Then being able to hit the parameters to get and keep babies. It’s magic. So sad that others aren’t into spreading the joy of this fascinating hobby.

Awesome video, when we buy our breeding stock we do a tonne of research on the breeder. Whether that be their Facebook page, Instagram, RU-vid or just asking certain questions to find out if we trust them. If we have a bad feeling about someone we wont buy from them. Think of it like shopping for an insurance policy you would want value for money, quality, trust and customer service.

I work in a pet shop in Ireland and I found a new love for breeding fish, when I found a little guppy in a tank. I wanted to do it correctly so I didn’t take a female from the same batch as they might have been related and I hate the concept of inbreeding. We started only getting in males and I have checked our orders and we SPECIFICALLY order in both females and males. We used to have loads of people come in and want to breed them but now we just don’t receive the female guppies. It’s been a good few months since this has started now.

No reason to be sorry Nick. You did the right thing. By word of mouth is the best way to spread the message about these selfish people. They in no way represent this hobby. 🐟🐠🐡

Great video Nick! unfortunately every hobby is the same you will find as you get older, I have to say it is refreshing being around you, I just wish I was 20 or 30 years younger as just watching you with your fish wares me out, you have a true passion for the hobby, I actually remember you coming over the other day and asking me why I bother with my tank of sword-tails and it is exactly for this reason, I have loved them since I was a kid and had fun catching them so I have a soft spot for them, as I've gotten older I've seen a lot of this type of thing in various hobbies, this is one of the reasons you will never really see me into the really high end stuff, I have in the past but I found I can have just as much fun with the low end stuff and you don't have to deal with people in the most part that are money hungry, this hobby should be enjoyed by all and as you said you have to think of your self as what you were like when you where younger and how excited you would get buying or catching that cheap fish and how happy it made you, a great video in my opinion, something for people to reflect on, Thanks for posting 🙂

That photo of little you is everything! The things we do for fish

Totally understand. As a fish keeper I wanted to have some guppies and get them bred. I couldn’t understand the complexity of this. Which I gave up.

Thank you for making this video. We need to start have more conversations about this.

Speaking up about something you're passionate about and seeing others within the hobby just being greedy isn't negative, in my opinion. I thought it was very well said, very diplomatic and courteous. Besides, if nobody speaks up, the behavior will just continue, so good for you for sharing your feelings about what you experience, and looking out for others.

I'm a hobbyist and sold 30 apistogramma gold fire reds to a local aquarium a few days ago. I picked out 15 males and 15 females.

Yeah, this happens in Canada too, and it's both disgusting and frustrating because were never going to create a vibrant, genetically diverse, captive bred population, with all these gatekeepers. I get it, they want to keep them rare to justify high prices, but it's still unethical and ultimately damaging to the hobby and the species.

Totally agree, thank you for saying it I’ve had the same issue. I breed fish just to see if I can do it and if I can sell them I only sell what I would want to receive

Thanks for the video, and for sharing a very sincere perspective. It's obvious you really care deeply about the hobby, it's unfortunate though that there are people in it simply out of greed. Keep up the great work though, and thanks for the inspiration!

Hello there from fishes hub I agree with you on this context this should be done openly and both males and females should be available to both hobbiest and sellers that will encourage the hobby and make it more fruitful ..

Totally agree with everything in this video. I think a big one for me is sellers writing ‘uncounted 2 pair 10 day spawn’ ‘its not my fault if the eggs melt’ sneakily written at the bottom of killifish egg listings where you’re literally getting a bag of peat. Seems to be happening a lot. Don’t know if it’s just a UK thing but it’s so frustrating to take that gamble. Even more frustrating when you see it listed on fish that clearly spawn better in a mop anyway.

Well said!! I’m glad you’re bringing attention to this issue I got all males and spent over 300 bucks for some fish I ordered online, when someone buys 8 of one species they expect at least one pair

KFS, thanks for your vids. I have watched a few of them and I believe that you are really a kind and interesting person who is enthusiastic about the fish hobby. Please keep up your work for us to see and hear, because this hobby teaches something important about the environment and biology.

Ive been reading the comments for over an hour and only got part way through. This is a good thing lots of good needed debate about a topic that affects us all and your video has done that. Well done indeed.

As the old adage says:..."do unto others as you would have done to you." I learned that in kindergarten. Good parenting thing. It speaks to ones own ethics, which if not taught to someone somehow, somewhere, it's usually not there.

Great to see someone speak up and say it how it's meant to be said. Sadly this is also happening in the bird side of things too, all about the money no longer about the hobby. Unfortunately everyone this days only thinks of greed and have lost there morals and sooner or latter will loss the respect of other breeders may it be fish / birds / dogs/ cats or any animal. To keep pets is to love them and also see others enjoy the same thing you did. Im a strong believer in treat others the way you would want them to treat you. Great video sometimes the truth needs to be said and in all hobbies there is always a dark side not just the good side.

Keeping it real Nick, I am very new to this hobby and of all the youtube channels out there on fish keeping, i always come back to yours, your enthusiasm and expertise are second to none, well done mate, you deserve all the credit for being upstanding and wanting to maintain etiquette within fish keeping.

This channel has inspired me so much in breeding and selling fish even though I haven't done much of the selling part I'll always make sure this doesn't happen to the few who do buy from me, and I hope more breeders out there do the same and give their customers the best quality fish and experience possible.

As a person, who was recently swindled on (I had to go to the police, the seller hasn't sent me ricefish, just kept saying they're going to be sent in a few days - this situation continued for over 3 months), I agree. I've bought few times from sellers, that buy themselves from a wholesaler, who do not know a bit about fish. Since I live far away from any fish store, the only option I have is to buy via internet. At first I thought that the only fish sellers were either hobbysts or pet shops. Now I know it's actually quite hard to find someone who's not a wholesale-buying dealer. As I sold my endlers through internet myself, I have encountered some buyers, who expressed exactly the same concerns. This branch is quite dirty, I must say.

Thank you for this. This is something I’ve been saying since I started in the hobby! I have started breeding and when I realized my acaras laid eggs I made a promise that I wouldn’t be that type of breeder! It’s not fair to anyone!

I totally agree. I breed and sell rare Mbunas, Endler's, angels and other africans to my local swaps and I always make sure I have a good mix of males and females in the bags. I'm not really in it for the money just to clear some of my overhead and pass fish off to other hobbyists who are interested in keeping or passing them along as well for a good price. And to me that is a huge part of what the hobby needs.

Yes! Lawrence Kansas has a shop wirh the only variety to be found for 100 miles and they gate keep anything that could be bred. They're insufferable in many other ways too but this is the one area I can't get past

It's also good to ask sex ratio from the breeder before the purchase. Sometimes we tend to be shy about asking, but it's our right as customers to ascertain what we are getting.

Love this kid! You keep influencing the world Nick! You give me hope for the future, thank you!

This has been going on forever as a kid remember buying a pair of fancy guppies and lovingly raising the fry only to have them turn out to be common guppies. As a store owner I had a supplier try pass off the cut off top of a pineapple as an aquatic plant not to many other completely terrestrial plants as aquatic. Some just want to take one shot at you and run with the money.🐟🐟

I agree with you one hundred percent. I did the same thing when I was a kid. Still have all the books I bought as well from back then. They are priceless.

This is the same situation in Canada. Thanks for the video. You are 100% correct and I am glad you spoke up.

The "only males" thing has happened to me so many times (even with easy to sex fish like Mollies!) that I stopped buying online. I even had someone in store tell me whiptail cats were schooling fish and you needed at least 6! The greed and gatekeeping is out of control, I only have 10 breeding tanks, I try to breed enough fish to pay for fish food and maybe some more upmarket fish. keep up the good work Nick.

You're such a cool dude! I agree with all your points. I think we all need to reevaluate or self examine sometimes and make sure we're being the most ethical, responsible and fair we can be, whether just a hobbyist or a breeder.✌️

I couldn't agree with you more on this topic. I am from south africa and it happens here, you would think a petshop would breed to keep it available. Every hobbyists wants try and breed , it raises there skills and takes things to the next level. You and the group of people you make videos about inspire pepole and are all passionate about what you do.

I truly appreciate this upload 🙌when you see something say something. This is how we make a change. Raising awareness is everything!👋Hello from Chicago Illinois

Great video, it would be nice if there was a central list of breeders with ratings. This way people could know before they face the disappointment. You keep doing you, love your videos and am wishing you the best from the USA. If I ever get to go to Australia I'd love to check out your store in person and meet you. Take care of yourself and keep your chin up.

Totally agree with you nick, the breeders definitely have to put themselves in to the buyers hands, when they press that button to purchase them fish they think they are gonna get a nice mixture of males and females but what they don't know is they will get a mix of different coloured males or females. If it was me I would be very upset to find out that I would not get what I was hoping for. This has to stop and hope it does for the future hobbiest. Thanks for sharing mate 😊

I fully agree im.from the UK and it happens over here I was gutted now I buy from a breeder in person instead of posting the fish now your video wasn't negative its a wake up call to people well done keep it up 🎉

I agree! when I go shopping and the seller says M or F only I skip them. But there is a saying here in the states buyer beware. So we both have learned to ask before we buy are we going to get a mix of M/F's. It is unfortunate that we have to ask but let it be known that you don't do that at your business. Tell people, teach them to ask, LEAD by example. Always looking forward.

Great video. It’s ok to rant once in a while and I think your critiques are fair. While we don’t deal with these problems too much in the US, I have experienced this type of behavior in other hobbies.

Totally agree. In the koi hobby people won’t pass on good bloodline. I get that they spent years to improve their lines but it could improve the koi lines in Australia since we can’t import koi and have new lines. But doing this slows down the progression in the lines.

Similar to happened here in the Philippines & other parts of Asia. Shops are selling this beautiful Albino Paradise Fish but they only sell males & I asked the shop owners they have the same answers "the supplier didn't send females & they refuse to sell it also". Which is kinda bummer.

That stinks about the gatekeeping. I hope through time the standards and attitudes can change when it comes to breeding in the hobby. Thanks for sharing your thoughts - it's an important conversation that needs to happen so that we can keep the spirit of fish keeping alive!

Man, I agree with this 💯💯💯! Scarlet and Tiger Badis are the latest fish that I’ve struggled to find females. And it’s 100% because breeders don’t want to sell them because they’re afraid they’ll lose money if hobbyists start breeding. I tell everyone, most of us are not making tons of money in our basements doing this and we’re DEFINITELY not putting large places out of business. It’s for fun! I can also speak to the “money ruins things” statement. I’m a wildlife biologist. My expertise is in the identification and biogeography of native fishes, herps, and small mammals of the eastern US. I used to LOVE this stuff, and still do, but doing it as a job where money is the main focus to survive just takes a ton of the joy from it. Good message man! Also, love your content and your story. Very inspiring.

I fully agree and good job calling it out but unfortunately its like asking a career criminal not to steel. Same kind of scams happen in other hobbies like dog and bird trade. Even coin collection has its similar kind of issues 😕

Well said, thank you so much for shearing your thoughts!

Great video! This is an issue in both fresh water and salt water fish.

I agree 💯 with you ....we need more people like you in the business .. keep up the great work...

I respect your honesty, and courage. It should be about the best interest and health of the animal first and last.

Awesome vid mate and well said, definitely not negative and much appreciated 👌

Your sticking up for ALL of us, good on you👍👍

I agree, as someone who has just recently entered the hobby, this thing that sellers do makes it harder to start, which may be the reason that they do it. I spent my life looking forward to being able to have a fish tank (I wasn't allowed to have one) where I could manage a mini ecosystem and watch fish grow because it is something that I find fascinating. When I finally got the opportunity, I was heavily disappointed. I still feel a little frustrated when I think back, and I feel like something should be done. Like you said in the beginning, there should be an etiquette.

Well said! I have had it happen more than I would like to think about. I have gone so far as to speak to the seller and ask if I can recieve a certain number of males and females. They agree and send a bag full of males. I have even talked to the owner of my local fish store and he even has a hard time to get males and females in species like guppies. Keep up the great videos!

It happens a lot here in Brazil too, it's so hard to get female Apistogramma, killifish... Sometimes we can get pairs, but in general, only males... It's really frustrating.

I have not had that experience. Here in Arizona the hobby is very welcoming and sharing. People regularly share coral frags and fish of various kinds that they may be breeding. It's a shame you have had that negative experience.