Do Hobbiests Still Raise Fry?

[SNap0283]

Since the forum rule change about a year ago aimed at making money over building a community does anyone even bother to raise fry and sell them off to other hobbiests or is that just completely shut down now?

[brady]

I'm not sure what you mean. What rule are referring to? I buy my
young fish from a somewhat local breeder to me, in western Mass.
And, the FS thread seems to always have fish from hobbyists for sale.
Jay

[SNap0283]

A year ago they made a change that only people who donate to the site can post in the for sale sections. The Hobbiests Fry FS thread used to get 3 or 4 new threads a month. Since the change 13 months ago only 7 threads in total have been started. A play for money which to me has killed the community.

Purchasing from other hobbiests through simply to me was great. You could search their post history and see what kind of commitment they had and it would give you a pretty good idea of how well the fry had been raised. You could get some unique crosses that you would never see from a breeder and wouldn't want to pay breeder prices for. It was one of the most rewarding parts of the hobby and of these forums, but for a few bucks in someones pocket they put an end to it.

[RogueDiscus]

I assume he's referring to the forum rule requiring you to have a Premium Membership, $25/year, to use the forum's Marketplace. The forum does cost money to operate. Many folks contribute just to support the information available here. I think the rule change was an effort to ask the folks who get some financial benefit from the form to contribute.

I am a hobbyist myself who enjoys breeding and raising fry. When I have a good group available, I offer them for sale here on Simply Discus.

Steve

[SNap0283]

I understand there is a cost to running the forums, but this clearly has not increased donations seeing as only a handful of threads were started in an entire year since this policy went in place. And of those 7 threads it seems all of the people who started them have donated for many years and did not donate because of this rule change. In the meantime its hurt hobbiests trying to recoup the cost of breeding discus, and hurt hobbiests who just enjoy growing out healthy fish from other hobbiests.

In any case this thread was not to bash the forums. Just an general question seeing if people are still breeding and what they do with them since clearly selling them on here is no longer a thing.

[RogueDiscus]

No problem, good observations. Although I'm a moderator, it wasn't my decision, but I'll try to be sure folks see your comments.

I wonder if the increased availability of quality retail fish at reasonable prices has cut down on the number of hobby breeders? Or water issues, or money, or politics :), ...For me, breeding and trying to raise your own nice fish is what it means to be a discus hobbyist, rather than a fish keeper.

[pastry]

SNap I like your thought process and although I have no proof my gut tells me that's not the correlation. Seeing how crazy all of us discus lovers are it seems to be nothing at all to contribute a little bit to the site. Otherwise I would go crazy not learning new things without this site! I totally agree that I wish more would post home bred discus!

[brewmaster15]

Since the forum rule change about a year ago aimed at making money over building a community does anyone even bother to raise fry and sell them off to other hobbiests or is that just completely shut down now?

I know you said latter in this thread that this thread wasnt about bashing forums but honestly your first post does exactly that. MAKING MONEY over building a community? Thats a pretty bold assumption and incredibly wrong! This forum has always been about building a community. Thats why I dont charge a membership to participate and why I dont charge groups to use the board on my dime to pursue developing communities in their area. Its also why I allow groups like NADA to use the forum, run auctions etc here and why I allow all the community activities surrounding members and personal tragedies. Seriously I have a major issue with this.Instead of looking at all the positive this forum does, That you need to be a premium member
at a cost of $25 to make money off the forum is an issue? Seriously? I wonder how many people in the discus community this forum helped over the years?


I don't need to justify how I run SimplyDiscus but The policy change was not done to make money.. it was done because I got tired of asking for members selling fish and stuff here to contribute something if they sold any...it was a volunteer amount...anything. Sadly few did but guess who.did? The ones that that were already premium members which really didnt seem fair.

If more members actually used the donation button, that change and others including the Premium Memberships would never have happened.
People love free..People like posting, they love reading all our information that goes back decades and love looking at all the pics here. The sad fact is only a small number donate. The premium memberships program helps keep the forum going.

I apologize for the tone of my post but not my content here. I rarely get this worked up anymore but this hits a raw nerve on me.More often than not the forum supports the community while the community takes the forum for granted.

I whole heartedly.support the discus community as does this forum and always have. It would be nice if that was recognized instead of disparaging the forum and its owner(ME) as so often happens when someone does not like or understand why something was done.

Regards,
Al

ps.. To all the forum members that do try and help out the forum thru premium memberships and donations, I can tell you honestly that were it not for you I would have closed Simply Years ago and moved on....my thanks to you all on behalf of the discus community.

[Keith Perkins]

The problem with home breeders posting fry for sale on Simply is two fold IMO/E. First most home breeders don't ship, as it negates a lot of the savings of buying from one. So the second problem relates directly to the first, when you post fish for sale here you aren't reaching a lot of local people like you do with Craigslist or local fish clubs. I sold several hundred juvies when I was breeding and I'm not sure I ever sold any to Simply members...though many became Simply members afterward.

[nc0gnet0]

The problem with home breeders posting fry for sale on Simply is two fold IMO/E. First most home breeders don't ship, as it negates a lot of the savings of buying from one. So the second problem relates directly to the first, when you post fish for sale here you aren't reaching a lot of local people like you do with Craigslist or local fish clubs. I sold several hundred juvies when I was breeding and I'm not sure I ever sold any to Simply members...though many became Simply members afterward.

Exactly what Keith wrote, I have sold thousands of fry and juvies over the years, and the only reason I never posted them to Simply was because of shipping rates, which negated any possible savings to the buyer. Not sure what your beef is, but it is terribly misguided. Oh, and by the way, shipping rates have skyrocketed over the last year and a half. Would you like to buy 5-10 young fish and then pay $150.00-$200.00 shipping?

[Altum Nut]

I don't need to justify how I run SimplyDiscus but The policy change was not done to make money.. it was done because I got tired of asking for members selling fish and stuff here to contribute something if they sold any...it was a volunteer amount...anything. Sadly few did but guess who.did? The ones that that were already premium members which really didnt seem fair.

If more members actually used the donation button, that change and others including the Premium Memberships would never have happened.
People love free..People like posting, they love reading all our information that goes back decades and love looking at all the pics here. The sad fact is only a small number donate. The premium memberships program helps keep the forum going.

ps.. To all the forum members that do try and help out the forum thru premium memberships and donations, I can tell you honestly that were it not for you I would have closed Simply Years ago and moved on....my thanks to you all on behalf of the discus community.

Many thanks Al for keeping the Discus community alive.

...Ralph

[gunnerschh2]

I've saved more money from this site just by the advice & help i have gotten since i have been a member. Gee my fish are living longer & look alot better. Think i'll keep my membership up to date.

[Second Hand Pat]

I've saved more money from this site just by the advice & help i have gotten since i have been a member. Gee my fish are living longer & look alot better. Think i'll keep my membership up to date.

This is true for me too Harry!!
Pat

[Pices]

I owe so much to Al and so many others here. I found this site when my discus kept getting sick. Then I learned why by so many kind people here. Now I have 9 beautiful thriving fish from Kenny and 1 that’s on the mend thanks to you Al. Maybe we don’t thank you enough for all you do, so a heartfelt thanks from me. I LOVE THESE FISH and it’s because of you!

[Pices]

We could start another “me too” movement here...

[Second Hand Pat]

We could start another “me too” movement here...

I think that is a great idea. :D
Pat

[fishbubbles]

I've saved more money from this site just by the advice & help i have gotten since i have been a member. Gee my fish are living longer & look alot better. Think i'll keep my membership up to date.

This is exactly why I bought a membership. The money for the membership is pennies compared to the amount of information I received from this forum. If it wasn't for Al and his introduction video, I would have never even started this hobby. Plus it also puts me in touch with fantastic sponsors whom all of my fish have come from. Thanks Al.

[Pices]

Well Pat, this could also be a “You too” movement because you were one of those kind people I was talking about! ��

[Second Hand Pat]

Well Pat, this could also be a “You too” movement because you were one of those kind people I was talking about! ��

Why thank you Patty, I try and help when I can. I have been dealing with parents issues similar to Al's so have been rather quiet. :)
Pat

[Jandiscus]

I second the positive comments here. I think it should be a natural instinct to financially support something that provides great benefit to us. For many years I thought I knew how to handle discus. Only after I read this wealth of information on here, engaged with some of the longtime members and received critical advice on how to treat/prevent diseases, I realized how little I knew about these fish and how valuable this forum is. Keep it going, and those that can afford it, donate or buy a premium membership. $25?!