Bad Fish Choice

[Simmo1]

Hello all.

A few weeks ago went to LFS and the wife spotted a betta!

Juwel Rio 125 with Dwarf guarami M&F, BN Plec, Plattie, 3x M Guppies, 1x Cory cat.

She liked the Male and Female Betta!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I asked the LFS man and he said they would be fine in my tank!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When i posted a thread on this sight i found out that they should not be kept together and certanly not in a community tank!!!!!

Any way i have a friend who is happy to take the male betta off me and put them into his new tank

Now to the Questions.....
1) Can any of my other fish live with my Male Betta?
2) Will the female be OK in my community tank.
3) And what can be in the same tank as a Male Betta.

Thankyou all

Simmo

 

[Ilya]

Tell us the exact species. Or if you don't know, look in the fish species index on the forums and it will say if it is compatible. Most likely it is.

Here you go. http/www.fishforums.net/Labyrinth-f39.html

 

[Squishiebabe]

try the betta forum, I'm pretty sure the females can be in a community tank, but the males tend to either get beaten up by the other fish, or beat up the other fish lol, and its most likely too big for him, the males usually live on their own

 

[Simmo1]

Tell us the exact species. Or if you don't know, look in the fish species index on the forums and it will say if it is compatible. Most likely it is.

Here you go. http/www.fishforums.net/Labyrinth-f39.html

Its a Siammes fighting fish

 

[Ilya]

Quote by OhFeeshy

Just thought I'd add a bit about tankmates.

Mainly, it depends on your betta's temperment. One of my guys is usually fine, but gets protective over his bubblenest. The other is just not very friendly, to say the least. Try before you think about it- prehaps releasing into a prospective tank before making it permanent. Suitable tankmates are, to be honest, few, however you should be safe with...
Most bottomfeeders (although be wary of aggressive/ brightly coloured ones
Slow moving, non- nippy tetras
WCMM
African Dwarf Frogs (make sure they are dwarf!)
Shrimp (although one day the betta may fancy a snack...)

As with all tankmates, have a spare tank ready in case it doesn't work out.

STAY AWAY FROM-
Crabs
Guppies
Platies (in fact, most livebearers)
Nippy fish
Aggressive fish
Fry
Anything with long fins

The overall message is-
BE CAREFULL!

 

[celaeno]

bettas and gouramis shouldn't go together.

 

[Simmo1]

bettas and gouramis shouldn't go together.

What about keeping the F betta and Guarami pair together?
Or is it better to have M&F betta together

what is my best option?

 

[dc3]

I find that the gourami will pick on the betta and rip up their fins... we've had male bettas live with other fish with no adverse consequences - just never with gouramis. Depending on the size of your guppies - they may become a snack or get their tails pulled by the male...

It all comes down to which fish you like the most - the easiest solution is to say separate the male and watch the female (some are agressive) - but if you had a docile male with larger guppies, I'd eliminate the gouramis as the bettas are a lot more fun to watch, have more personality and will actually interact with you

 

[CathyGo]

Or is it better to have M&F betta together

what is my best option?

Please get this into your head.

MALE AND FEMALE BETTAS CANNOT LIVE TOGETHER!!!!

They will kill each other. Now that that's out of the way your female should be fine in a normal community tank but since gouramis are related to bettas I'd worry about pecking order issues. Maybe try putting the female in a vented floating breeder and see what kind of reaction you get. If somebody with gouramis would post whether they have a pecking order like bettas do that would help. If they do letting a dominant female betta in could cause hell to break loose in your tank. If they don't then it'd probaly just be a release and then watch her and her fins thing.

Never listen to your LFS guy about fish compatibility again. If he doesn't know that male and female bettas will tear each other apart I wouldn't trust him with anything.

 

[mark.w.jones]

Bettas are and never will be "good" community fish. They really limit your stocking options in a community tank and to be honest I feel there are far more interesting fish you can buy out there than an extremely common 10 a penny betta. There will always be someone out there who say that their betta is fine with gouramis, guppies etc. but there will always be another 9 who have had problems. You'll have to decide for yourself what you aim to do. I would advice not to bother keeping one just because theyre about as original as owning a tank of neons.