Reply from The iFISH StoreAug 18, 2020
Hello Jim;
We are very sorry this was your experience with us. We genuinely appreciate your experience with your established aquarium. At the same time, we need to speak to our 20 years of experience in dealing with hundreds of customers ever single week and the vast range of situations we have seen over the years. We have amassed quite a body of knowledge from this because we honestly have seen "one" of everything that can possibly happen with these delicate fish. We truly try to assist every single customer that reports a problem with our fish and their aquarium. In support of your own statement, yes....you do really need to read ALL of our reviews. It is proof that we in fact stand by our word on helping our customers. 90% of our reviews report a very positive experience with us. Are there some "horrible" reviews as you stated? Yes...6% out of over 2700+ reviews. And when there is a problem, our first action is to do a thorough review of all the parameters and tank environment so we can begin to understand what could have possibly gone wrong. As an experienced fish keeper, you can not fault us for asking legitimate questions that you yourself would ask if the roles were reversed. We also take exception to your accusation that we delivered a "canned" response to your email and that we can not be trusted. We treat each situation separately and address the issues at hand. We do not have canned responses and continually bend our own policies in order to have a happy, returning customer.
In your situation you reported no visible disease with the Discus...just gradual weakness and then death. You lost 2 of the six Discus you purchased from us and we have issued you a refund for those perished fish. We're very sorry about the 3 fully mature, grown Discus/Angels you already had in your tank. Realistically, we can not compensate you for those and we were trying to work with you via email on how this happened at all. We also can not send a replacement for the perished fish you received from us and take on the cost of shipping because that cost covered the 4 small Discus you received from us that are currently in your aquarium. We bent the rules a bit as we usually require a photo of the perished fish for a refund or credit but we let that pass with you to try and get at the problem.
Your situation is one we see on occasion... new fish introduced into an established tank with either some of the new fish perishing and/or some the established fish perishing. We can not underscore the role stress plays in these delicate fish. We have worked through this situation with many customers and, again, if you read the reviews, we have assumed a very involved and communicative relationship with the customer with them working with us to bring their tank back up to speed and stocked as they had originally intended.
If you wish to make your shopping decisions based on 6% negative reviews out of 2700+, it is certainly your right. We might suggest that any company that does not have a minimal amount of negative reviews are those that should not be trusted. Nevertheless, we simply tried to work with you and address your situation. Again, we're very sorry you are walking away from this feeling like an "unlucky" customer. We have issued you a refund on the two perished Discus and wish you luck in your aquarium hobby.