Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)
Hi,
John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.
I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.
With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.
I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.
If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.
I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.
I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.
Thank you
Darragh Sherwin
Old Bawn fishshop
- gerryberry (Jeff Daly)
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- Orca (Eoin Walsh)
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- stevieg (ALAN FLYNN)
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- gerryberry (Jeff Daly)
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- gerryberry (Jeff Daly)
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GB
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- gerryberry (Jeff Daly)
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I was like a kid in a candy shop and came out with so many ideas and a must get list the lenght of my arm:laugh:

GB
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- tm2204 (Thomas Maguire)
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Went into AV2 today and had a nose about, not a bad shop, done a bit more skipping of work and went up to AV1 and boy what a brillant shop and great staff. Definitely the best fish shop i had the pleasure to visit.
I was like a kid in a candy shop and came out with so many ideas and a must get list the lenght of my arm:laugh:
GB
Agree it's a nice shop but the fish are very expensive.
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- pointer28 (Noel Lambert)
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OR to put it another way
You pay peanuts, you get Monkeys
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- tm2204 (Thomas Maguire)
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What price quality?
OR to put it another way
You pay peanuts, you get Monkeys
I'm 20+ years keeping fish and i know that selecting fish involves looking for specific conditions they are being kept in as well as looking for certain signs in the fish themselves.
This does not always have to do with the price paid. I bought my sons fish in a shop that offers 2 for 1 on all fish and the majority of all this guys fish are excellent. It's about knowing what to look for.
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- Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
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Business is business,if you are paying more for a small shop than a big shop then you need to make your money some way or another. But certainly some shops are cheaper than others. I know a City centre shop also that does fish v v cheaply, however my experience of same has been mixed. (Have bought schools of neons that got wiped in a week and likewise with rummys).Then bought other fish from there that have thrived!
As Tm said, its about knowing what to look for.
Gavin
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- Puggy (Fergus Cooke)
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Getting back to AV, it might or might not be more expensive on fish, though they do have 3 for 2 offers and also have a loyalty card system. I still rate it as the best around, just look at the state of their tanks and fish.
Oh and by the way I just got a RIO 300 thereB)
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- Orca (Eoin Walsh)
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What are your plans for the rio300.It is a great tank with loads of space.
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- Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
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- Puggy (Fergus Cooke)
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What are your plans for the rio300.It is a great tank with loads of space.
Well, just got the cabinet assembled. Leaving the tank in the shed just till I decide what to do. Have been following LBs thread. Will be looking for help later on.
At the moment Im just admiring the tank, looks big enough to get into:cheer:
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- tm2204 (Thomas Maguire)
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I'm just saying that a lot of places sell 'bread and butter' fish at quite excessive prices and that if you know what to look for both in tank conditions and fish condition you can pick up your fish at much reduced prices.
Take for example the stocking of my sons new Lido 120 to date:
- 3 * Black Widow Tetra
- 3 * Priscilla Tetra
- 3 * Red Eye Tetra
- 6 * Small Congo Tetra (1.25" size)
- 3 * Zebra Danio
- 2 * Corydoras Aneus
- 1 * Red Tail Black Shark
All fish are in superb condition and thriving in the tank. The Congo's and Zebra's were feeding seconds after being introduced (was feeding the other fish to distract them).
Anyone hazard a guess as to how much in total this collection of 21 fish cost? Answers on a postcard please.
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- Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
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- tm2204 (Thomas Maguire)
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OK, paid €32.80 for the lot.... Don't think that can be beaten

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- cardinal (Lar Savage)
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surly it means more to you then money as to weather or not your getting a good service,prices are one thing ...but in my LFS i've seen fish being netted out and on occasion they look like they have been damaged IE - on one occasion i had to step in and ask the person netting the fish (for someone else..!) not to do it as they were literally grinding the fish into the gravel...cue Broken backs ..ect So now I Travel to a fish shop 40 miles away because I know they treat their fish properly and they are also ready to give advice when needed.....
Lar
PS...LFS before christmas...I pointed out that a tank full of oscars and Asstd Chiclids was covered in White Spot,only to be told by a manager....well the person who deals with the Fish is off today...!!!!I then gave instructions as to how it should be dealt with....but to be honest I think I was Ignored....Cue one more shop I won't be dealing with again...!!!!
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- tm2204 (Thomas Maguire)
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Of course it means more to me than money that I get good fish; but your missing my point.
When I go into a LFS I don't need anyones advice about the fish I need for a community tank (if I was setting up a species tank or some specialized setup then obv I would seek advice) as after 20+ years keeping fish I know what can be kept together and the exact condition of the fish I will only buy. I also know what to look for in the tank conditions the fish are being kept in.
The place I buy my fish:
- Let me net my own fish so I can pick the exact ones i want
- The majority of their tanks contain fish in top condition. Any tanks not up to scratch are ignored and I will not take fish from them even if they are ones i'm looking for
- Have a buy 2 get 3 offer on all fish all the time
Given all this and given the price can't be beat why would I go elsewhere for the fish I want? If you see petrol for 99c a litre and the same petrol of the same superb quality is 89c in a garage close by which will you buy?
And I did mention that all the fish I bought are thriving and in pristine condition. Given this the price is the deciding factor and this place cannot be beaten.
Cheers,

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- cardinal (Lar Savage)
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I suppose I have to say your lucky that you have a LFS that gives you Good fish and prices together,whereas in my case I have to travel.......just the way of the world I suppose
.....

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- tm2204 (Thomas Maguire)
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Yeah I am lucky. It's my sons tank and he's getting some cracking fish & value for his Christmas money.
Getting six young healthy Congo Tetra for €12 is exceptional. Looking forward to them maturing and coloring up; they are an amazing fish and one of my favorites.
Just shows that in these recessionary times you can still get great value without having to compromise on quality in any way.
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