Bully Gourami

[dafrnhm]

I have 3 gouramis in my tank, they have got along fine for a month then all of a sudden 1 gourami will not leave the other 2 alone. He is constantly chasing them round the tank, I don't know if 'he' is infact a he but thats the only reason I can come up with?

Will this stress the other 2 gouramis out? what can I do to calm the little git down. He doesn't chase any other fish.

 

[This Old Spouse]

What kind of gouramis are they? Do you have photos of all three?

 

[dafrnhm]

I will take some photos now. Not sure but I may have just found out why. Still doesn't explain why he only chases the other gouramis but...

I have fry from a livebearer in the tank, they are in a breeding trap. The gourami hovers under the trap and when the other 2 go near him he goes mad, however he has started just chasing them for no reason aswell. I just let the fry go because they are getting a bit bigger now and the bully gourami went absolutely mental and tried eating all of them. Luckily enough I saved all the fry before he ate them but it was close.

I'll get photos though because if he is a male and the other 2 are female am I right in saying if I get another female he should calm down because he is outnumbered?

 

[dafrnhm]

this one is the bully...












and the other 2...

 

[Carlovel1]

The bully is a Pearl Gourami, the other is a Snakeskin Gourami ( ) and a Gold Gourami

How big is the tank?

 

[dafrnhm]

Righty ho.

The bully is a Pearl Gourami, the other is a Snakeskin Gourami ( ) and a Gold Gourami

How big is the tank?

The tank is 180l. I didn't think it mattered what type of gourami they was. They have been fine though, its only just started happening and the only thing that has changed in the tank is the fry. Would that cause him to behave like this or am I not suppose to mix types.

 

[daleboy]

I had the same problem with a Golden Gourami about a month ago.
We rescued it from someone that was keeping it in a cold water tank that was totally green to the point that you couldnt see the fish.
It was fine for around a month and a half then one day it started chasing everthing and taking chunks out of the other tank mates.
I rehomed it to a friends house who had a tank with larger fish and its ok.
They are known for being very terratorial especially when kept with other Gourami.

 

[OnlineFishTank]

I had a group of 4 Gourami's, 2 x Blue and 2 x Yellow, after a month of constant fighting, they eventually found their own territory in the tank and completely calmed down. Also, by adding plants that touch the surface of the water, they seemed to calm down more.

Hope this helps,

Chris

 

[~RaJ~]

You shouldn't really put male gouramis together as they will get terrotorial. Unless you have a big tank where they won't cross into others terrotories.

 

[Dezi]

I have exactly the same problem.... 4 Gouramis and one of them a complete bully!!!!