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Please note:
These articles, written 2003-4, were intended not just for the benefit of local aquarists and visitors to Vancouver. Rather, they were written as part of the Travel section of Aquarticles, to show people from other cities and countries what the retail aquarium scene was like in Vancouver at that time. The articles will not necessarily be updated and things will inevitably change, so use caution if actually using the articles as a guide.

The Aquarium Stores of Vancouver Canada
by Howard Norfolk
Original to Aquarticles.com

Part XII:
North America Pet Store Inc.
2627 Kingsway, Vancouver. 604-438-7166
Has e-mail?, but did not reply to mine.
For location go to MAP

Ten years ago, in 1993, Qiang Chen and his wife Lisa Liao emigrated from mainland China to Vancouver. Qiang's brother owns three large goldfish farms back in China, and so he suggested that  they open a shop in Vancouver to import and sell his fish. Qiang and Lisa thought about this for a long time, and finally opened "North America Pet Store" in April 2003.

The shop is in a part of Vancouver where many Chinese and Asian immigrants live, and it particularly caters to their aquarium tastes and needs.

   The shop is bilingual English/Chinese, as the storefront shows.

   Lisa showed me around, and was very helpful.

   There is a selection of fish foods and medications, and some accessories for other pets. Not much technical equipment is stocked yet.

     
The bare-bottomed tanks are laid out in neat rows. They are filled with lots of goldfish and other colourful fish.

Goldfish and koi come directly from Qiang's brother, and tropical fish come from other breeders in China. Qiang and Lisa wholesale the fish they import, to pet dealers as far away as Calgary.

Let's look at the goldfish first!-

  
Many varieties of goldfish are available in different sizes, and priced accordingly. These are red cap orandas, in small and larger sizes.
Less expensive fish are priced "buy one, get one free," so the small orandas are "$3.99 - buy one, get one free," and the larger ones are, similarly, $14.99 for two.

  
This cheeky young fellow looks proud of his smart red cap!

         
Orandas, calico orandas, and red celestials

  
Pearlscales, and 'velvet with red pompom'

  
More expensive fish are priced individually, with a discount for pairs. Thus these large lionhead ranchus were $45 each, or two for $80.

     
Red butterfly tails and blue butterfly tails

  
On the left is a black ranchu, $35, or $60 for two. The similarly coloured panda is $50, or $90 for two.

  
More dark fish - black butterfly moors, and small black ranchus

Impressive black lionhead ranchus

Western aquarists fall into three groups:  a) Hobbyists who study and keep fish and aquariums because of a natural interest, and who may have one or many tanks,   b) People who want a decorative aquarium in their home or workplace, and c)  People who want "pet fish," often for their children.
But the Chinese have another reason to keep fish - Feng-Shui!

Feng-Shui is an ancient philosophy which revolves around the understanding of the importance of the Five Elements: Earth, Metal, Water, Fire, and Wood. These are considered the building blocks of life, and have to be kept in balance. An aquarium can represent many of these elements - the Earth element is the rectangular tank and the pebbles in it, the Metal element is the fish (goldfish, arowana etc.), the Water element is of course the water in the tank, and the Fire element is again the red coloured goldfish or the tank lighting. Wood is represented by aquarium plants or a potted plant nearby.

There's lots more to it than this, and there is also controversy over what is traditional Feng-Shui and what is modern superstition. I did some reading (from references kindly supplied by Ken, of the BCAquaria group), and discovered the following miscellaneous examples of fish in relation to Feng-Shui:
- The Chinese word for fish ("yu") means affluence or abundance, and placing an aquarium prominently and correctly positioned in the home (along the north wall is best) is believed to bring good fortune and expel evil.
- Different species of fish suit different people's characteristics - this idea has been developed so that, for instance, gold arowanas (dragonfish) suit some people better than silver arowanas. Some people should not keep fish at all!
- Arowanas became popular from 1984 on, but the next Feng-Shui year begins in 2004, and flowerhorn fish would appear to be taking over the "throne of the aquarium."  The flowerhorn's high forehead symbolises mountain - meaning cool, calm and stable.
- It is believed that a tank of black fish (e.g. goldfish) placed in an inconspicuous place will ward off bad influences.
- Water is considered Yin, and is represented by even numbers. Odd numbers represent Yang, so to keep in balance it is best to keep odd numbers of fish. (But on the other hand, a pair of  fish symbolises marital harmony, and 8 is a lucky number. Number 9 represents longevity).
- Chinese temple roofs often have fish motifs to ward off fire.
- If the fish are not strong enough to represent the Fire element, some people paste a red packet containing an even amount of money (e.g. $2) to the front of the tank to increase it.
- Tanks should be rectangular. 'Pyramid shaped tanks are inauspicious.'

What it all comes down to is that many Chinese people keep fish and aquariums not for their interest in fish as such, but because they believe they will bring them good luck and wealth, or will balance unevenness in their lives, or will ward off negative influences.

Lisa is well aware of her customers' needs with regard to Feng-Shui, and many of the fish species stocked at North America Pet Store have special significance to Chinese people. Others would appear to have been selected for their beautiful appearance, and many of them are species that have been selectively bred for colour and style. If you're looking for ugly old catfish or plain little cichlids don't expect to find them here! I didn't notice any aquatic plants either.

  
8" silver arowanas, $60, or three for $150; and a spotted arowana, $180

     
Oscars are also significant to believers in Feng-Shui...

     
...and so are discus, good buys at two for $45 or $50...

...and angelfish.

     
Pretty fish for sale included lots of iridescent sharks, neon tetras, and clown loaches.

  
The red blood parrot fish and lyretail red swordtails are Fire element fish.

     
Pearl gouramis have special significance in Feng-Shui.

Lisa told me that these gouramis are also considered "lucky fish."  The fish themselves are not so lucky though - they have been crudely injected with rows of pink spots, presumably in an effort to improve on nature. It didn't work in my opinion - and as far as I'm concerned whoever did it deserves quite a lot of bad luck!

Qiang and Lisa also import koi from China:

  
My visit was in November, which is not the season for koi, so only a few were on display....

...But many more koi were over-wintering in these holding tanks in a side room.This is where wholesale customers come to buy their koi. Next summer a pond will be built in the front part of the shop for displaying koi.

North America Pet Store is particularly aimed at serving a traditional Chinese clientele, but Lisa was friendly and co-operative, and anybody who wants goldfish, koi, or nice display fish can find them here. Lisa claimed that the store's prices are the "lowest in Vancouver."