Advice? Livestock order from Petco.com?

Odds are its from Liveaquaria. Petco bought them out a couple years ago.

 

Iowa has peppermints by the dozen and keeps them hungry, they'll eat aptasia. I'd start with them.

 

I'd order them from Petco unless you want to pay a couple hundred bucks for that many. For that price if there's any deaths it won't bankrupt you.

 

Free shipping at 29 excludes fish.. Have to spend over 175

 

From my understanding petco bought them out, but the original owners still run it for petco.

 

Reeftopia is my "go to" place for peps (and clean up crew in general) although have ordered from Reeftopia as well and they are good but not as much variety of life to get (like peps & fish etc). They are dirt cheap on peps but seem to be out of stock right now but to order 10 with $40 shipping it would be $6.50/each ($25 + $40 shipping) so you would be better off with Petco if they indeed ship free (I've got to believe that is a system error). Having said that, for the small number you are after I agree with you that Seascapes etc would be a better local option.
Saltwater aquarium marine life from Reef Topia

The closest I've come to ordering from Petco is having the local store order things in - you could order without any shipping. I don't think they do that any more (ever since the fish manager Daniel left about 1-2 years ago).

 

Bought my peps from Iowa Seascapes, $6 each if you can sweet talk Tim into a discount, normally $9. Usually stock will show up Thursday around lunch time.
FWIW, of the three fish currently in my biocube, two are from Petco Jordan Creek (firefish and lawnmower) and the clown was bought from the short-lived Petland. I have probably bought 8 or so fish from other local (Des Moines) stores over the past 6 years and none of them made it longer than a couple months except for a six-line that was bomb-proof but not horrible house-sitter proof. I always make sure the fish have no visible signs or symptoms of problems and are active. The Petco fish will need a looooooong acclamation since the average salinity tends to be around 1.015.

 

Just be aware that if you buy peppermints from petco (live aquaria) that they will be SMALL. Always are. Some of the other sellers will have larger ones, thus the price difference. If you are ok with tiny peppermints, then save the bucks and buy from PetCo.

 

I have purchased online once from them before. It actually is not liveaquaria where they come from though. It is though the same place that their corals and fish in store come from. They are actually good quality in most cases before getting to the store.

I always stay local from my peppermint shrimp though and get them from Iowa Pet Foods and Seascapes.

 

Right, but PetCo and Live Aquaria are the same company with the same source as already mentioned. I've done a good number of large Live Aquaria group orders for the Cedar Rapids area in the past (with great success), and every time the peppermints were TINY, so being the same source, I would assume the same, thus my statement.

 

Soooo.... Pics?

 

Just wanted to warn you I have gotten pep from seascapes before and they didn't eat any aptasia at all... Actually one ate a $60 Rock flower... They will never enter my tank again lol I have also tried about 5 in a 90 gallon and they didn't eat a single aptasia