Blue Gourami's

[FishNoob]

Is this normal? He doesn't nip her, just kinda pushes her with his nose. He chases her all around the tank, and when she stops he pushes her. Is he a bully? Do I need to separate them? I just don't want to find out later that this is the start of something major. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Ed

 

[wuvmybetta]

Naaah, don't seperate them, it's normal. If they don't have each other to nip at they'll pick on the other fish . The female will defend herself soon and then you'll notice her being the aggressor occasionally, they like it

 

[Morrgan]

Make sure she has places to hide and she should be fine. Still, keep an eye on them just in case. If she doesn't stand up for herself eventually, she might get too stressed by all the chasing. Stress in turn can cause all sorts of things, such as making the fish prone to disease.

EDIT: Hmm, I just noticed from your sig that the fish are kept in a 5g tank. This is much too small for blue gouramis, and in this size tank the female has little chance of getting away when needed. I hope you plan on moving them to the 29g? Though considering the adult size, territory requirements and possible nastiness of this particular gourami species, even that one is on the small side.

 

[wuvmybetta]

Good eye Morrgan, I missed that. I agree,that's much too small, why not put them in the 29?

 

[FishNoob]

The 29 is a new tank, just set it up yesterday, but it will be their new home. Also, do females ever lose their spots? When I got them they both had noticible spots, now his are darker and hers you can barely see them anymore. Also, a little bit ago, she started to chase him and gave him a nudge with her nose.

Ed

 

[Carolinesugar]

wen u say spots, what colour and where on their bodies ? if u cud post a pic we cud have a look and see what they are. if they are blue dwarf gouramis, but if they are just blue gouramis, then they cud just be 3spot gouramis!

 

[FishNoob]

They are 3-spot gourami's. Check out the photo in my profile, it's a pic of Girly. Her spots have even gotten lighter than what's in the picture.

Ed

 

[OscarCichlid]

Your sig says that they are in a 5 gallon tank. Thats crazy. The smallest tank for those fish should be at least a 20 gallon tank or they will kill each other over territory.