Thanks for the replies!
The hatcheries I talked with do sell SMB, maybe they just wanted to sell me more?
I know a hatchery in Michigan that does not sell regular bluegill, only hybrid bluegill, and they also sell LMB to stock in ponds. One pond that I was called to do a consultation on was stocked by that hatchery. The goal for that pond was to grow some 7# LMB. it was a 3 acre pond. That hatchery sold them 900 LMB to stock in the pond @ 5"-7" and sold them 3,000 HBG. They told the owners that they'd have to buy HBG every year to get the LMB to grow.
There are hatcheries that only look out for themselves, not the customers. H2Ofowler, you have come to the correct place to get advice.
The only issue I see with stocking small amounts of fish is that you will have to go pick them up or pay a delivery fee. With the price of fuel now, getting free delivery on small orders just won't happen. I see Jones Fish in Ohio now has a $400 minimum fish order for free delivery, we have a smaller minimum order for free delivery within 75 miles. We don't have the volume of sales that Jones does so we cannot offer that for people that are further away unless a few people get together to order, or the order is a big one. At $5 or more per gallon of diesel, at 10 mpg it gets pretty pricey to deliver fish any distance. It's not only the drive to the pond, but it's the return drive too.
