5 Gallon Stocking - Would This Be Alright?

[starlitsunrise]

Hey guys, 
 
I have a 5 gallon tank that I am currently cycling. It is heated to 78F, has a homemade sponge and ceramic media filter, is going to be moderately planted and has a lid and a small LED light. I was wondering if the following would be alright?
 
Stocking I want:
-2 Ghost Shrimp
-1 Mystery Snail
-A few dozen tiny pond snails (I find them interesting xD)
- 2 Guppys of the same gender. 
 
For sure I want to add the first 3, really I want to know if I could add 2 guppys into the mix. The fish tank at my work has guppys and when ever I see them I'm reminded of how cute they are. 
 
Thanks!

 

[biggerfish]

i would skip the guppies they need at-least a 10g as they are quite feisty for their size, you can add like 5 more ghost shrimp though or do cherry shrimp instead if you want some color, but yeah a bunch of shrimp and snails is ideal for a 5g.

 

[noobgamers]

a substitute to guppy is endlers you could probably keep round 5 with the rest of the things in the tank

 

[starlitsunrise]

That was the answer I was expecting haha. I'll probably just up the amount of shrimp... would having ghosts and cherries together be any problem?

 

[biggerfish]

depends, some ghost shrimp will actually kill and eat smaller cherries, but as long as the cherries you get are close in size it should be perfectly fine so i would go for. make sure you have some plants for the shrimp to hide on.

 

[Ch4rlie]

In fact I would not consider Endlers for a 5 gal either to be honest.

I had Endlers in a 6.5 gal tank, they did ok but when I moved them to my 10 gal tank, huge difference in behaviour, they roam much more in the 10 gal and swim everywhere, active little fish

The only fish I would be happy in a 5 gal is basically a Betta, but with shrimps, can be hit or miss with Bettas if compatible with shrimps.

And FYI guppies should not be kept in a group of only 2, one will likely bully the other, no less than 3 guppies but obviously the more, the better

 

[JustinGatCat]

Bettas are perfect for 5 Gallons. It sure is a far cry from the tiny half gallon "cups" people market them to live in. I've had Bettas with both shrimp and snails with successful results. Just make sure the shrimp and snails are large enough not to be eaten. For most Bettas, this isn't that big but you want to be more safe than sorry. Shrimps are typically fast enough to evade even the most pugnacious betta.