Selling Zebras

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McEve
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Post by McEve »

post a link to your auction under "sales and wants" smithrc, there won't be a discussion about your fish :) we appreciate people being able to find the sale.
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Post by smithrc »

Thanks McEve... I'll sort something out when the time comes... we've been putting off selling them at all for ages now :D
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Post by stang1 »

Good luck with whatever you decide to do. If I had the money to buy more then I'd be more than happy to take them! :wink:
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sam
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Post by sam »

I am in the same situation as Smithrc, I have three kids and am going to sell my zebra fry in the near future. I would rather sell them to someone on the Website as I know they will be going to good homes, but at the same time want to get a good price for them as it helps to fund my hobby!

Whats the answer? :?
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John
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Post by John »

I think the answer would or should be in the middle, find a fellow hobbyist which you feel comfortable with and sell for a midrange price.
I wouldn't feel comfortable by selling to the highest bidder and wouldn't know if they would go to a good home.......
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Post by smithrc »

no-one is going to drop £140 on a 1" fish if they didnt really want them or feel they can offer a good home for them...

Its not like walking into a store and paying £3 for a common that they dont know how big they are going to get....
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Caesars
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Post by Caesars »

John wrote:I think the answer would or should be in the middle, find a fellow hobbyist which you feel comfortable with and sell for a midrange price.
I wouldn't feel comfortable by selling to the highest bidder and wouldn't know if they would go to a good home.......
Things are not that simple in our opinion. The amount of money somebody is willing to pay may also be an indication of how much they want the fish, which in turn could be an indication of how much they appreciate and value it. We are all familiar with the poor treatment some fish get because they are "cheap" and easily replacable. We are not saying that this is always the case and we have ourselves been able to get some zebras for a very good price, for which we are really grateful. But we just wanted to point out that there are always two sides to a coin.

On the other hand, the prices that are nowadays commanded for L46s are more often than not extremely high. The idea of making the species available in the market via small breeders was and it is of particular importance to us. We have had hard times trying to build up our colony (to the extent we lost money to a conman and so on) and we really feel that it is worth supporting other hobbyists not to go through this when building theirs up.

Whether we like it or not, a hobbyist's ability to keep - and keep well - all the fish his/her colonies produce is limited. At the end of the day none of us owns the Amazon. So regardless of anything else, there will come the day we will all have to sell. This is reality and has nothing to do with ethical considerations, likes or dislikes.

We have long come to the conclusion that the question to who and for how much is up to each seller to decide. We can't expect everybody to share our own views or principles - and we can't condemn them not doing so. In addition, people have different strategies for ensuring their fry go to a decent home - and asking for a higher price is one of these (you wouldn't expect somebody who has paid $40000 for a red arrowana to mistreat it, or not take good care of it). At the point of sale, regrettably, we can't know the intentions of the buyer, except if we know them personally. Otherwise we will only find that out later - or in some cases never. Finally, as pointed out by smithrc above, people's circumstances change and everybody must also take into account their own - we are not sure what we would do if our choice was to sell some fry for a higher price or have to close down one of our tanks and give away the fish in it. We just hope things will not come to this.

To us there is only one more thing to consider, and that is the well being of the fry. We bring them up, we do care about them and we all appreciate that despite technically treated as a "commodity" they are animals, have rights, and need to be treated with respect, love and care. We believe nobody would sell their fry to a person who would make it known he would use them as feeders, for example, even if this person was willing to pay triple the asking price.

Regrettably there is only so much a genuine seller can do to ensure the fry they sell go to "good homes". To be more precise, we can only take some steps to prevent our fry going to clearly bad homes by avoiding suspicious buyers - but there is a difference between not going to a bad home and going to a good home. Similarly, going to a good home is not a guarrantee that the fry will have a good life either - accidents do happen.

A final remark: having had the fortune (or misfortune) to also keep very prolific tank busters (Paratilapia sp. andapa, P. dovii, P. managuensis, P. fenestratus etc) we also had the experience of trying to find homes for some 400 - 500 fry at a time and being unable to do so. This is a hard lesson because it makes you face the facts: you either try (and fail) to save everybody or you try to give at least some a fighting chance. We can't see any difference between these fry and the zebbie fry (probably the wrong forum to say this but all fry to us are equal and equally adorable) which in turn means that we feel nobody is in a position to instruct or pressurize others what to do when it comes to selling their fry. There are too many things to take into account in making a sound decision - and different priorities for different people, even for the same person at different times in their life. We can point at things to consider or suggest possible ideas, but the decision ultimately lies with the seller and this decision must be respected.

Hobbyists who keep and breed L46s are still lucky to have a choice as to where their fry go because this fish is still very much wanted. But just ask yourselves what you will do with your fry if the market changes, nobody wants them and you know you can't keep them because you reached capacity .....

Caesars and Polleni
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Post by discusbabe »

Wow, what a response Caeser! :lol: Very well said though and I can understand where you are coming from.

SmithRC really sorry to hear you are going to have to sell your zebras, I know how difficult that must be for you! :( I can certainly vouch for your plecs, we've still got the starlight bristlenoses that we got from you last year! I will keep an eye out for your auction!
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Post by smithrc »

Dont panic - We're keeping the adults.... :D :D - its just the 2 biggest fry :)
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Post by bonsai »

Hi Dawn here, I was on the lookout for a male zeb and I thought I'd just have a look on the famous e-bay. Didn't think I'd be able to find them there, but to my amazement I found an advert which was selling some babies. We got in touch with the seller who said he'd sell me a male privately, so we went ahead and brought 1 (well, I thought mom and dad were only getting 1 but came home with 2. :shock: ) So really, you shouldn't dismiss e-bay altogether. You might get lucky like me :D
These are beautiful little babes!
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Hi again

Post by dave »

Hi this thread started off in general terms.

Caesars raised numerous situations which I have encountered regarding the number of fry.

Then the situation of a specific pending sale arose.

While criticism of sales is prohibited, it is my opinion that justification placed in another thread can be just as inflammatory and inviting comments.

I trust McEve and Kingfisher will protect prospective vendors as much as possible.

For the record, wherever I can I exchange (These may be sold on to people I don't know. I have no control). People I know, then people I vet as much as possible then finally to retail outlets. So not limited to L46.

Take care

Dave
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Re: Hi again

Post by McEve »

dave wrote: I trust McEve and Kingfisher will protect prospective vendors as much as possible.
This site will aim at giving buyers and sellers alike the opportunity to trade, sell and buy Zebras. The site cannot however be held responsible concerning sales and wants. Still, information will be provided concerning some common things to look out for.

I feel it's appropriate to bring forward a reminder that Rob is the owner of this site, and the moderators are: kingfisher, Adam, Plastic mac, Barbie and myself, and we will all do the best we can for the site, members and the Zebra. Just for the record ;)
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Post by Jo's Zebs »

Well I have not seen any zebs in my lfs at all and the ones I have seen for sale in various Uk shops have been on sale for more than £200 in some cases. So whos to say that because you care for your fish that you have to sell them on cheaply. When I started out with zebs I had no offers of "cheap" zebs from anyone yeh I asked about loads. With the exception of the babies I have bred myself I have paid full whack for all I have bought. Having a child is a drain on your time and money to be fair to yourself your situation is if you don't sell your fish for the going rate someone else will. I am selling some of my babies at the moment need the tank space there is no way i will be giving these away to the first person who says they are going to keep them and breed them.
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Hi again

Post by dave »

"Well I have not seen any zebs in my lfs at all and the ones I have seen for sale in various Uk shops have been on sale for more than £200 in some cases."

There were some for sale at Pier at the beginning of the year for £95.

"So whos to say that because you care for your fish that you have to sell them on cheaply."

I don't think anybody has said this in this thread, John has mentioned his approach and I have also.


"When I started out with zebs I had no offers of "cheap" zebs from anyone yeh I asked about loads. With the exception of the babies I have bred myself I have paid full whack for all I have bought."

I paid full whack for my Zebras up until this year, now I exchange and was fortunate enough to be loaned 2.

I would hazard a guess that many people who own this fish paid the asking price so many of us are in the same situation.

"if you don't sell your fish for the going rate someone else will."

Cynical indeed, as far as I am aware none of the fish I have let go have been sold on for profit.

As far as I am concerned a fish, a house a car is worth what somebody will pay for it.

Take care

Dave




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Post by Jo's Zebs »

Hi
I am so sorry that my own opinion doesn't settle with you but I was reffering to smithrc situation for him it is a hard choice. And no peir is not at all local to me.
Maidenhead prices?
Yes my point these fish are not cheap for anyone.
Cynical yes I am in some cases maybe a little too realistic but I don't make personal comments.
But one point you have made that is bang on anything is only worth what someone is prepared to pay.
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