Please note: The Aquarium Stores of Vancouver Canada Part XIII: The coast of British Columbia to the north of Vancouver is only reachable by water; there is no road access from Vancouver. A scenic 45 minute ferry ride brings one to the small town of Gibsons, population 4000, and this is where George Stew operates Oscar's Aquatics.
Gibsons is the largest town on the south "Sunshine Coast." There are three smaller villages spread along an 86 km. stretch of road, and the population of the whole area totals just 26,000. There is one other pet store, in Sechelt, that sells some fish, but George is the main specialist so his customers come from the whole area. George has been keeping fish since 1951, when he was 10 years old. He spent most of his working life as a purchasing agent, but eventually started to sell fish from his double garage at home. On August 6, 2002, Oscar's Aquatics was opened in its own premises.
George's main interest as a hobbyist was breeding larger fish, and angelfish and oscars were his favourites. He also likes large tanks, as is evident by the 12' display tank that dominates his shop window. This impressive 500 gallon aquarium was built in 1982, originally for an exhibition. It spent some time in another pet store and then was privately owned before George got it. It is made of 1/2" plate glass and would be hard to make again since this glass is now normally sold only in 10' size. The tank was kept as a saltwater aquarium in George's garage. It weighs 900 lbs. empty, and when he was ready to move it to the new store, George wondered how he would lift it. Luckily a visiting junior baseball team was in Gibsons at the time, and George said that they could camp in his backyard as long as they helped him with his big move. Many hands made light work!
The large tank contains a 28" silver arowana, parrot fish, oscars, leporinus, tinfoil barbs, and a dozen convict cichlids. The younger convicts were born in the tank and somehow managed to evade their not too community-minded tankmates. George has tried adding large (12") plecos, but they don't survive - they like to try to clamp on to the arowana's sides, whereupon the arowana grabs them and shakes them, and they sink injured to the bottom and become prey to the other fish. These large fish are all "store pets" and are not for sale. Many of them were donated to the store after they had outgrown their owners' tanks. That is how "Bud" the arowana arrived. He was sold as an 18" fish, but grew too rapidly and was returned a year later. How did "Bud" get his name? Well.... Some kids were in the store and asked "What kind of fish is that?" George said "It's an arowana fish." They laughed and said "A marowana fish?!" So George, unfazed, shot back with "Yeah, and we call him 'Bud'"!
Oscar's is a small general pet store, selling birds, reptiles and small mammals, but fish take up a large part of the space:
The tanks are grouped according to the water quality (especially pH) required for the fish stocked in them. Each group has its own filtration system, custom-built by George. Most of the fish are common community fish, suitable as "pets" for local families and their children. There are not many serious aquarists on the Sunshine Coast: George tried to start an aquarium club, but only two people were interested. Some other out-of-town aquarists thought it was too far to drive.
George regularly tours Vancouver wholesalers and dealers looking for stock. He tries to ensure that his prices are in line with those in Vancouver. He gets a few fish from local breeders: someone supplies him with angelfish and another breeds guppies and mollies. As I have been told by other general pet store owners, George finds little demand for African cichlids, with their special water requirements.
George also sells birds - mostly budgies and cockatiels. A store pet is "Leroy" the cockatiel. Recently a female cockatiel was brought in to be sold, but when Leroy met her he had other ideas. At the time of my visit Leroy and his mate were raising four new chicks! (Which were hidden in their nesting box so I couldn't photograph them).
George is very knowledgeable about our hobby, and shares his knowledge by regularly contributing to the local BCAquaria forum. (Needless to say, under the name "Oscar"). He has developed a website for his store which explains his policies as a responsible and fair dealer. Should you visit the Sunshine Coast, be sure to drop in to Oscar's Aquatics. The 500 gallon aquarium is worth a visit for its own sake. Oscar's Aquatics own web site is at: http://www.oscarsaquatics.com/oscarsaquatics/index.html
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