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I just got Jellyfish How do I setup a saltwater aquarium?

Here's the phone call my aunt got at 5 minutes to closing (9 PM) at her second job at Petsmart yesterday.

"Hello?
I ordered a pair of jellyfish over the internet and they arrived sooner than I expected. So I have them here in their shipping baggie but how do I setup a saltwater aquarium to put them in?

Can I use a 1 gallon fishbowl? I had a couple goldfish once.

Do you sell Aquarium saltwater? How much longer are you open? Can I come in and have you tell me how to measure the salt and get setup for them?"



I figure those jellies are dead today. :(
 
Wow..............just...WOW.

We used to have "The Idiot Board" at the fish and reptile shop I worked at. We wrote all the most retarded questions down on a huge white board in the office. Unbelievable.
 
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All I can say is WOW.
 
Doesnt suprise me in the least.. during the super low tides here, parents would come into my Petco where I worked previously, with buckets full of starfish, jellyfish and other assorted creatures, and walk up to me with little plastic bowls or a 10gal tank and ask me how to take care of them.. just.. ugh.. "Uhh you dont. Not only is it illegal to take those without a permit, they're coldwater and require refrigeration to keep them alive.. " And Petco employees fail horribly too.. On one of my days off, had a couple that didnt really speak english come back with a dead clownfish and all of the stuff they bought the day before, livid that it had died.. They had been sold a fish bowl, and a little thing of salt.. nothing else. Yeah.. no wonder it died.. *face desk*
 
*facepalm*

seriously there should be licences required for some things
 
I am constantly amazed at the self-centered-ness of some people when it comes to their handling & caring of other life forms. :crazy:
Stupidity like this annoys me more than I can describe. :censor:
Not only shouldn't these people have animals (OR PLANTS!), they also shouldn't be passing on their learned behavior, examples nor genes onto others! :lac:

This person (& others like them) have no respect for their environment nor the other myriad forms of life that exist. While most youngsters will learn about creatures & caring for them by risking a goldfish, guppy or other common creature when growing up, to put/allow rare & unique animals in their care is just plain irresponsible. :thumbdown:

Other life forms that exist are NOT toys. They are NOT just "things". And most importantly, they are NOT here solely for our own pleasure & use. :nono:
While I don't expect a young kid to realize this, once they are of teen age, they should begin to understand & respect the rights & welfare of other life forms. And certainly their parents should. :glare:
But then, I have seen enough people do this sort of thing & have this attitude (even adults), to realize that this is the way most people are.

Sad, but not surprising.
:-(
 
I really dont even know what to say to this but the fact that all this just irritates me
 
That is horribly epic.

I saw this thread in the side bar and then saw that you created it, swords and my first thought was:

Seriously Swords doesn't already know or hasn't researched this already?? :scratch:
 
ignorance

is one reason we sold our petstore.
Folks are so dependant on others and blame others for their shortcomings.
We would stop selling creatures to certain folks as they never seemed to grasp the reality of caring for an exotic (or domestic) animal.
I have horror stories of people buying baby rabbits ,take them home and proceed to put them in a 10 gallon fish tank with a glass lid, set them in the sun so they could "enjoy it" while they went to the beach. The next day they brought in the little bodies and demanded their $ back!!!
Or the guy who purchased over $200 worth of reef animals, saying he was really into the hobby.....the next day all of his creatures have died. After the usuall 20 (200) questions, turns out he was using water softener salts as it was a bit cheaper than Instant Ocean. :-(
 
  • #10
I saw this thread in the side bar and then saw that you created it, swords and my first thought was:

Seriously Swords doesn't already know or hasn't researched this already?? :scratch:


I thought the same thing ! hahaha I was like............WTF happened to swords ? He wasn't retarded yesterday. hahaha
 
  • #11
I figure people like this just think of these animals as something to check off on a list of possessions:
Well I did the jellyfish, CHECK! I think I'll get a snake next. Off to the google! Look up "snakes for sale"...

It would be hard to work in a pet or plant shop and put up with customers' foolishness. I was happy my aunt didn't sugar coat it for the lady she told her: "You're probly gonna kill those jellyfish cos aquariums need to be setup and cycled before you put anything in them". Lady bought all the stuff anyway but no water test kits or hydrometer...

There are all sorts of critters I'd love to keep but after I do research online and join forums and ask questions I don't get 99% of them once I find out the realities of keeping the various things that "seem cool" at first. I think a whole lot more people would abandon their exotic pet fantasies if they did the proper research before they get the things, sadly they aren't required to do the learning first...
 
  • #12
Re: Box/Ignorance

Yea, one of my first jobs was in a small town petstore (right before starting at a plant shop!), and I learned a whole world of things there.

I quickly learned to dread when some parent brought their kid in to purchase some poor creature that you knew would be tortured & killed in no time.
And yes, for quite a few people, it was our fault or someone else's, but never an admittance of their own ignorance & stupidity!

Not to say I wasn't there once myself. Indeed I was like that once too. I realize we have to learn somewhere.
But for me I did realize rather quickly that I had better at least read & study up on how to care for the animal/plant & what it needs, BEFORE actually getting one!
Also, that I had better be committed to caring for it, as I was going to be the one responsible for its life & welfare. (Most people "want" a plant or animal, but forget that in acquiring one, that they are actually getting into a "relationship" whereby they in return are responsible for it & filling its needs & care.)

I wish people new to it, would at least stick with the common animals (like goldfish) & common plants, that have been quickly & easily bred & raised specifically for them to try to care for & to "learn" from.
But then even when I see something "common" like a small green chameleon (common anole type) going into the care of some kid that can't even remember to wipe his backside, it still bothers me. Does he even know what that animal needs, and will he remeber to feed it or give it water? (Especially since "common" green chameleons are not so common as they once were.)

Which by the way, most "pets" are forced to live with an extreme lack of CLEAN/FRESH water (most common situation for pets is an owner too "busy" to give then FRESH water!) & many die a slow, horrible death from dehydration.
Rule of thumb, if you wouldn't drink the water, why do you expect them to? (You expect them to remain healthy drinking that sludge?!) :crazy: Could you? :lac:

I can feel for you with the petstore situation. I once thought of doing that sort of business when I was younger, but quickly realized I couldn't part with an animal if I cared for its life, and allow it to be sold to someone I knew wasn't responsible.

Sad situation.

Well said Swords!
All I can say is, it is better it was a pair of jellyfish, than something more rare & conscious of its surroundings.
 
  • #13
I thought the same thing ! hahaha I was like............WTF happened to swords ? He wasn't retarded yesterday. hahaha

Ditto, I did a "Oh man, really? Here we go again... but wait a sec... Swords? He's definitely a pro, what the...." I let out an audible sigh of relief when I read the context...


Here at college, a man comes by on the warmer days selling Betta fish and those little aquatic albino frogs, in little jars, to all the freshmen that walk by. I could never do his job, selling away these living creatures, when at least 75% of them wont last the week.

I've killed pets, and plants, like we all have. But it's amazing how little people can take away from such events...
 
  • #14
this is the reason i've stopped with pets. i have a mixed fish tank but all are rare species so i can't just trust them with a stranger, they'd probably die in a few weeks. however, i've stopped buying months ago.

it's the most selfish thing to keep an animal captive for one's own pleasure. thousands maybe millions of animals perish at the hands of people every day. heater blows up, hundreds of shrimps perish; he goes on a holiday, the fish starve to death...etc. it's just wrong. i am all about freedom but now i have trouble seeing this as a "hobby".
think about those jellyfish...they died. why ? because an idiot didn't have the common sense to make some research. what's sad is they'd probably die anyway even if he had a setup...it's all trial and error before one gets the hang of it and there's so much loss until then...it's just not fair.
 
  • #16
What's the big deal? When I lived in Australia I caught a Sea Dragon off the coast of Melbourne and stuck it in a fish bowl with a bit of epsom salt. Other than being insanely relaxed as it floated at the top of the bowl, it was fine.
 
  • #17
Mato,
If that was a joke, I didn't really think it was too funny... :blush:
(And if it wasn't a joke, it is just plain sad!)

People do that sort of thing all the time,
and it's sickening.
Sea Dragons of all things! Why not shove a N.Edwardsiana in the bowl too for good measure? :lac:

Maxima,
Glad to hear you developed empathy for others (including what many consider "lower species) and couldn't agree more. Beyond animal rescue, ...taking a fellow life form & putting it into a cage & then barely tending to it & providing for its needs to even survive, is a real testament to just how "superior" humans really are.

I "inherited" an iguana years ago from someone who no longer wanted it, and gave it the best home I could. It lived for around 20 years. During that time I talked to a few people I knew who worked for the local zoos, and they told me I was providing a better home for it than they could! (They said the ones in the zoo often fight & get injured, living in fear because of having too many of them in too small a space... apparently they fight for territory & such, or that the ones who are by themselves are often in small cages where neglect often still goes on.)
They also said that in the wild the lifespan is about 7 years if that, as they are usually hurt or hunted, and die.
But even with that reassurance that I was doing pretty good, I still felt terrible. I feel that 7 years in the wild beats 20 years in a cage.

I even feel bad for most plants, when I see the neglect & poor environments people subject them to. But as far as animals are concerned, it is just plain cruelty.

Like you Maxima I had a number of "pets" when I was younger, as most people who are interested in nature/animals do. But like a few of us who do wake up, my opinion has changed. If nothing else, I now hope that people at least read up about things & provide for their needs for survival.

And yes, $499 for 3 jellyfish & 6 months of food is such a deal. Especially for them!
(They only give you 6 months of food, for you likely won't be needing it longer than that!)
This subject is depressing. I think I will be looking around at other posts now.... :-(
 
  • #18
Mato,
If that was a joke, I didn't really think it was too funny... :blush:
(And if it wasn't a joke, it is just plain sad!)

People do that sort of thing all the time,
and it's sickening.
Sea Dragons of all things! Why not shove a N.Edwardsiana in the bowl too for good measure? :lac:



haha nice to see you've got a sense of humor.
 
  • #19
Oh, I do, Mato!
(More than I should usually!)

But having loved those Sea Dragons as I do,
I can picture people doing just that, and it drives me crazy*! :rant:

Now if you had mentioned having roasted Koala bear with Sea Dragon soup while you were there,
THAT I woulda understood! But to waste good Sea Dragons by shoving them in a fish bowl...
well, that is just absurd!

*But then, compared to my normal state of mind,
crazy ain't all that bad! :-D

I know, still not funny...
But then what can you expect from a world where we actually have to buy water?
(We used to joke about the day that would ever happen, and yet here it is!) :lac:
 
  • #20
haha, ok, ok, I lied. I actually needed something to feed the wild cephalotus I poached. Wasn't really trying to relieve the Sea Dragon's constipation with epsom salt.

Glad we could clear this up like respectable gentlemen.
 
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