Tip of the Day – 2/22/2012

Aquarium store owners and employees, beware of the “customers” with the Big Gulp cups! It’s hard to imagine people stealing corals and other aquatic livestock from a fish store. After all, it’s not like this kind of merchandise can be shoved down the front of the pants being worn by the shameless thieves. The shady individuals know this, and resort to more creative ways to sneak animals out of the aquarium store. From stories we’ve heard over the years, a popular method for stealing corals has been through the use of large drinking cups. The styrofoam cups can hold a large volume of water and are somewhat insulated, and who would guess to look in a cup for stolen goods? We don’t bring this up so that store owners will inspect the cups of every patron or gives them a pat down, but we do want to help store owners be aware of these techniques so they don’t get ripped off. If you own a store, simply ask the person to leave the drink outside, or tell them that it’s against store policy to have outside food or drinks.