# Anyone buy on Aquabid from overseas?



## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I live in Australia and am constantly surfing aquabid and dreaming of the fish I wish I could buy but I lack the confidence to buy from overseas having never shipped before. I was just wondering if anyone on here buys from Thailand etc and whether it was a good experience and worth it.......or not.

I would love to buy fish from Thailand over Aquabid but is it super expensive and do the fish you buy usually arrive in good health and settle in okay? I have read a few instances where when people have bought a fish the one they paid for suddenly becomes unavailable and so they have to take an alternative fish and not receive the one that they paid for. Please if you have bought on Aquabid from an overseas breeder share your experiences.............


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I have purchased fish from Aquabid in the past and never had any issues. 

However, before you even bid, you have to contact Jodi-Lea (Fishchick Aquatics). It is around $22-27 (per fish) on top of the purchase price to get your fish into the country. Any fish arriving has to stay 7 days in quarantine with her and then is sent out to you. So if you aren't able to pick up from her store that's usually an extra $15-20. 

All fish must be shipped from Preecha in Bangkok so if you buy a fish from Malaysia or Indonesia, it is generally $5 extra to get it there. 

I have purchased from Nice Bettas, Sutee, Interbettas, TMTBettas and Xtrembetta and never had any issues. Two of my fish were DOA when they arrived in Bangkok from Xtrembetta (he is in Indonesia) and he replaced them free of charge. 

Jodi-Lea is great to work with. If you are nervous about shipping fish in from overseas, but are after a particular colour or type, have you tried emailing her or checking out her Youtube channel? She gets some of the best bettas in Australia in through her store and if you are specific about what you want (not just what HM do you have in stock?) she can usually hook you up. 

Otherwise, as soon as I get the funds together again, I am definitely going to be ordering from Aquabid as the quality and selection of fish usually trumps anything we have here.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Gee thanks for the helpful info LittleBettaFish, I did look up some of her fish on Youtube but they were all sold and I could not find the ones that are currently for sale, is there anywhere in particular I can find the fish that she currently has for sale?


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

She has a lot of fish in store that don't get listed. I used to email her with things like "Do you have a blue marble female HMPK/HM in stock" and she usually lets you know whether she has one or something similar kicking around. 

http://www.youtube.com/user/Fishchick65?gl=AU&hl=en-GB

This is her channel, so if you find a video of a fish you like the look of, maybe send her an email asking if she has any like that available currently. I think she gets orders in from overseas every month or so, so not sure when the next one is due to land. 

Not sure what your tastes are, but I think this male is awesome. Would take him myself if I had the dosh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rdy35gHBSDM&list=UUADDH5lFQ70pTR9DB0b90Sg&index=21

She uploads new videos on Sunday night/Monday morning and then during the course of the day, so if you are quick you can get in before anyone else.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Wow he is beautiful! Dragon HM PK would have to be one of my faves but when it comes down to it I love most types. So I live in Queensland but too far away to pick up. Would it be the price of the fish and approx $20-$30 for postage?

Also can you pay with Paypal? 

If so once I get my new tanks set up I am going to be glued to YouTube browsing what fish she has for sale!!!!!!!! I think I want more tanks! lol. Also that it great that you can email her asking for certain colours etc. Sounds safer and cheaper than buying direct from overseas but once I have some confidence buying from Jodi I may work up the courage to buy from Thailand one day. Your advice has been wonderful, so THANK YOU


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I think it depends how much you actually purchase and what courier you go with, but my postage costs are generally around the $20 mark. I think she must be a master at tetris as I am amazed by how much she can fit into one satchel. 

I think you can pay with paypal, but you might just want to check first. I always do direct deposit so haven't had to use it. 

She gets some gorgeous fish in stock and they are always healthy. A couple of my wild pairs have spawned the same day they have arrived here at my house, and this was during the colder months as well. Can't get much better than that.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Oh wow that is amazing that they spawned the same day as they arrived!!!!!!!!!!!!! and so good that they are healthy. I could pay with direct deposit or paypal, either way is good. I emailed her about a couple of Plakats, does she usually reply pretty quickly or........


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

It depends. She can get very busy so she usually says if you don't get an email back in a couple of days, to send another. Sometimes they can get buried beneath other emails.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

oh okay then, thanks I see that quite a few of the male bettas that I want come with matching females so I'm thinking of starting a sorority up too, heck I have enough spare tanks!


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Haha that's how it began with me. Except I wanted the females and ended up with all the matching males as well. 

I am like an addict. Even though I am broke I have to watch what bettas she adds to her Youtube channel just in case haha.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

HA HA sounds just like me, I really need to be careful I don't send myself even more broke but I can't help keeping an eye out on what it for sale despite the fact that I get sooo frustrated if I can't afford it.

I sent Jodi an email yesterday but she hasn't got back yet, I guess she is really busy. I feel a bit disappointed because I really wanted a pair that she has for sale but with the floods the trucks from Brisbane cannot get through to deliver groceries which probably means that a courier delivering fish may also be unable to get through. I should probably wait until the weather settles down before I order any just to make sure that they get through.

Once you have paid for your fish and let Jodi know that you have does Jodi get back to you and tell you when it will be posted?


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Well I've always been sent an email saying my fish have been posted and then usually a tracking number as well so I can check on my fish. 

I've found if you title your email either with the name of the pair you want or something like "WTB: HMPK Marble Male" it tends to get a response faster than something that has a more ambiguous title.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Does WTB stand for Want To Buy? 

Oh that is good if you get an email and tracking number, I have never shipped fish before (I have only ever bought from local pet shops) and I just know I will be a bundle of nerves and soooooo worried until they arrive safe and sound. After I have bought a few and they all turn up okay I will get more confident but the first time is going to be stressful!


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Yeah, or at least I've always read it that way haha. 

Jodi-Lea packs fish extremely well. The only DOA I had was a CT male where the bottoms of both bags (the one the fish was in and then the one over that) had exploded out and he had been knocked out into the newspaper. 

I think she does have a DOA policy in place, you just don't get your shipping costs refunded. 

I've ordered bettas, killifish and schooling fish from Jodi-Lea and the CT male was the only one I ever had any issues with. I've had fish arrive alive and well in the dead of winter here in Melbourne, so I usually do not get too concerned nowadays.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Oh that's really good to know, thank you for all your advice by the way! shipping a fish feels rather daunting when you have never done it before but it is great to talk to someone who has ordered off the person that you are hoping to buy from


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