Has anyone noticed that in the last year how much Livestock has had a price increase ? I am certainly not complaining about our LFS , they are in business like every other business and I appreciate them and frequent them weekly. It just seems the whole industry has had a price leap on certain Livestock, not to mention some of these crazy $500 coral frags. $ 1500 protein skimmers etc etc....
I just went today and bought my clean up crew, 2 basic fish, 3 Shrimp,and 1 filter sock. I spent $200. Wow, that added up fast ! I went to 2 different stores, and did some pricing online. Prices were fairly close when compared. When I changed from Freshwater to Saltwater 2 years ago, I bought my first Cleaner Shrimp for $9.99 .
Maybe I live in the dark, but what happened ? Did the oil spill contribute to these costs ? I would think that with all the captive breading, prices would go down ? I Don't want this to turn into a ***** session, obviously this is an expensive hobby, but I guess I was a little shocked.
When the gas $ went to the high, the Airlines shipping went to a high and then gas went down but the airlines stayed at the high. really sucks when the shipping is 3 times the cost of the shipment it self some times.
Isn't it crazy how the "All Mighty Gallon of Oil " can affect every single thing in our lives, from Milk to Blue legged hermit crab's ! haha , it makes you want to laugh and cry at the same time. LOL
One would think 20 years ago 1 Cleaner Shrimp would cost $30 because of supply and demand and various problems with harvesting them from the ocean. But with modern technology and breeding it should be more like $5 each , but it's not that way at all. Actually today I purchased 3 baby Cleaner Shrimp and it cost me $70
Last edited by streetrodder007; 08-05-2010 at 05:16 PM.
The hobby is going nuts. I just got a great deal from Mr. Coral. Anytime you can get 35 quality frags for less than $230, you are in good shape. And most of the stuff he sent me had WAY more polyps on it than he advertised. There are still some deals out there, you just need to hunt. But overall, I completely agree. I guess it is up to us as hobbyist to keep trading and then maybe the dealers will get the idea :D
Just an FYI, I just bought a supplemental clean up crew from reefcleaners.org and man oh man are his prices good. I'm hoping that it helps me. Should be shipping Monday.
yeah. i thought my cleaner shrimp was $26 the other day as if that wasnt bad enough, it was really $29! lol
i havnt seen much cheaper even from the sites where stuff is really cheap. the lowest has been $19 i think.
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