Does anyone know anyhting about this? I read a short piece about it in Pet Age that interested me. I looked on there webpage, but the information was pretty thin. There are two PDF files that I found; one was the same as the Pet Age article, the other was a brochure. Neither really went into the specifics of the criteria. I know AMDA tried something like this several years ago and it went nowhere.
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PIJAC Canada Certified Retailer
- Thread starter StevenPro
- Start date
I know that PIJAC US has things I think they call "certification". Like Avian Certification, Reptile Certification, etc... Basically, you attend a seminar and take a test and get a certificate. I did the Avian one when I owned my pet store back in the early-mid '90s. Which Pet Age are you looking at? I have the most recent copy here at home with me.
Mary is right. Last year at the PIDA show I took their freshwater seminar... I have yet to write the test and send it in *g* then I have to complete the home study module. If I pass, I earn the moniker, "CFFS" or "Certified Freshwater Fish Specialist".. :roll:
Kinda cheesy, yes, but the information presented at the seminar was excellent, and it surprised me how many people who already sell freshwater fish, did not know much of it. At that time I was still in the planning stages of my store expansion, and had not yet begun to stock freshies. I kept freshies as a hobbyist, many years ago, but "purged" much of the knowledge as I moved to marines. I found the seminar to be a good refresher for some of the concerns of freshwater husbandry - disease identification and treatment, species identitifaction and compatibility, water quality, filtration etc. Plants were covered a bit too - something I never got into as a hobbyist, so it was an all-around good seminar to attend.
The certification only determines how much you absorbed from their seminar... not how a store operates, and since it's an "open book" test, there's no guarantee that a person doesn't cheat when they take it...
I wouldn't take a certification to the bank but I do think that the course material was definitely useful.
HTH
Jenn
Kinda cheesy, yes, but the information presented at the seminar was excellent, and it surprised me how many people who already sell freshwater fish, did not know much of it. At that time I was still in the planning stages of my store expansion, and had not yet begun to stock freshies. I kept freshies as a hobbyist, many years ago, but "purged" much of the knowledge as I moved to marines. I found the seminar to be a good refresher for some of the concerns of freshwater husbandry - disease identification and treatment, species identitifaction and compatibility, water quality, filtration etc. Plants were covered a bit too - something I never got into as a hobbyist, so it was an all-around good seminar to attend.
The certification only determines how much you absorbed from their seminar... not how a store operates, and since it's an "open book" test, there's no guarantee that a person doesn't cheat when they take it...
I wouldn't take a certification to the bank but I do think that the course material was definitely useful.
HTH
Jenn
Mary, it is in the September 2004 issue on page 14.
For those of you who don't have that issue or magazine, a very similar article can be found here,
http://www.pijaccanada.com/English/PDF/ ... nglish.pdf
It is a PDF file, so you will have to have Adobe Acrobat to view.
Jenn, thanks for the information.
For those of you who don't have that issue or magazine, a very similar article can be found here,
http://www.pijaccanada.com/English/PDF/ ... nglish.pdf
It is a PDF file, so you will have to have Adobe Acrobat to view.
Jenn, thanks for the information.
It would be interesting to get the specifics.
It appears to me that mandatory training of industry types at all levels and comprehensive examinations would be part of the certification process.
After all, how could a LFS worker sell fish or coral to a hobbyist without know the care requirements in terms of size of tank, it buddies, food, lighting and temperature.
Dealing with gonis, dendro, red scallops, cleaner wrasse, moorish idol, cleaner wrasse, most butterflys, etc will be a thing of the past with the USL in place.
It appears to me that mandatory training of industry types at all levels and comprehensive examinations would be part of the certification process.
After all, how could a LFS worker sell fish or coral to a hobbyist without know the care requirements in terms of size of tank, it buddies, food, lighting and temperature.
Dealing with gonis, dendro, red scallops, cleaner wrasse, moorish idol, cleaner wrasse, most butterflys, etc will be a thing of the past with the USL in place.
It appears to me that mandatory training of industry types at all levels and comprehensive examinations would be part of the certification process.
As I see it, PIJAC certification looks very similar to MAC certification. To oversimplify things, create an operating manual and here you go...congratulations you're certified.
After all, how could a LFS worker sell fish or coral to a hobbyist without know the care requirements in terms of size of tank, it buddies, food, lighting and temperature.
Somehow, I don't think that this is a requirement for certification.
Dealing with gonis, dendro, red scallops, cleaner wrasse, moorish idol, cleaner wrasse, most butterflys, etc will be a thing of the past with the USL in place
Again, I don't think this is the intent, or ever will be, of this certification. Wayne, I'll see Loius McCann in a couple of weeks so I can raise these issues with him on your behalf.
kylen":sndats9e said:Here...not real hard to find. It's on PIJAC Canada's website.
http://www.pijaccanada.com/English/PDF/ ... %20ENG.pdf
Yeah, I know. I already saw that file. It is the brochure that I mentioned in my original post. There are no a lot of specifics mentioned within. Only three points:
1.) It costs money.
2.) You will be sent a manual explaining their standards.
3.) You will be examined to see if you measure up to those standards.
But, there is no mention that I could find as to what these standards are.
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