dwarf gouramis or other options for office community tank?

[BeckyCats]

I did a filter rinsing and went ahead and took out about 4 gallons of water during a mini-vacuuming while I was at it. I know it isn't ideal but this is something I can do once a week in addition to the regular monthly water change. I may bring the current residents home with me because the suggestion of a betta has gone over quite well.

If we did get a betta, would one male and two females be possible or is it best just to get the one male? Or maybe just a few females? We want to keep populations low for both aggression purposes and hygiene.

Another thought was pea puffers because they are small and spunky. Any opinions on pea puffers? One male and one or two females, perhaps? (This would be instead of, not in addition to the bettas, of course! We are looking at species-only tank options at this point).

Regarding pearl gouramis, I have had them before and found them to be extremely shy. Probably the most beautiful fish I've ever had, but very shy. But I also had 5 of them and they all turned out to be male and fought constantly, so that could have contributed to the shyness. Would just one be okay? I would be scared to get more than one because they all look alike when young in the stores.

 

[Essjay]

If we did get a betta, would one male and two females be possible or is it best just to get the one male? Or maybe just a few females?

Males and females should never be kept in the same tank except briefly during spawning.
Multiple females can be kept together but the tank needs to have lots of decor to break up line of sight. Females are still aggressive. There needs to be at least 4 females, and 30 gallons is big enough for more than that. The females should all be added at the same time so they can sort out a pecking order; adding more females to an already established pecking order causes problems.

But betta sororities, while possible, are not the easiest of fish. You need to be vigilant in case one female turns out to be super-aggressive, and as mentioned already there must be a lot of decor preferably live plants but fake would be OK.

 

[CryptFan]

Pearl Gouramis will be less shy in a trio, you could go to a store that you can return fish and get 3 wait a bit and return excess males and eventually get a male and 2 females, or go to an experienced LFS who can give you a male and two females.

 

[dennis r]

My recommendation is to find a home for the neon, even give it to a pet store. Get some active bullet proof fish like zebra danios. Serpae tetras would go also. Get a school of at least six. Forget guppies unless they are in a tank by themselves and cories. Active fish like your tetras will shred their tails. Livebearers like platies usually don't do well with tetras because of different water requirements. If the water isn't to their liking, they start to shimmy and may ich out.

 

[BeckyCats]

I can bring the skirt tetras and the neon home with me if needed. I have a 55 gallon long that is planted and currently understocked. I have about a dozen small fish (brass tetras, espe rasboras, cories) and one bamboo shrimp. All are on the older side of their lifespans, as are the fish in the work tank. The neon at work might be happier with others of its own shape and size in my tank -- do you think? I notice that the different species in my tank at home swim all together, despite being different species.

I'm not sure I really want to add additional neons (besides the one from the work tank) in my own tank for two main reasons. One is that I don't like to buy fish that are known to be overbred and sickly. It doesn't seem humane to support an industry that treats animals like widgets to be mass-produced as quickly and cheaply as possible. I'm sure they're all treated like that to some extent, but the neons seem to be particularly afflicted. The other reason is that I am waiting for my current home-tank citizens to swim under the rainbow bridge in their own time. When they are all gone, I am considering turning the tank into a brackish fiddler crab environment. Adding brand new young fish will push me several years away from this. The work fish and my home fish are all old.

My main concern with moving the neon or the skirt tetras is the trauma to them. Would the trauma alone be enough to kill them?

 

[BeckyCats]

Males and females should never be kept in the same tank except briefly during spawning.
Multiple females can be kept together but the tank needs to have lots of decor to break up line of sight. Females are still aggressive. There needs to be at least 4 females, and 30 gallons is big enough for more than that. The females should all be added at the same time so they can sort out a pecking order; adding more females to an already established pecking order causes problems.

But betta sororities, while possible, are not the easiest of fish. You need to be vigilant in case one female turns out to be super-aggressive, and as mentioned already there must be a lot of decor preferably live plants but fake would be OK.

Okay, this is good to know. If we go with a betta, it will be just one. The decision maker only has one in her mind at present, and I will not mention the possibility of more. We would not be able to monitor the behavior enough (it is at work, after all) to make sure everyone was getting along. And then, if they weren't, where would the aggressor go?

So, if a betta, then only one, as originally planned.

 

[BeckyCats]

Pearl Gouramis will be less shy in a trio, you could go to a store that you can return fish and get 3 wait a bit and return excess males and eventually get a male and 2 females, or go to an experienced LFS who can give you a male and two females.

My luck has been bad with these guys. I got 5 and all 5 were males. I always feel so terrible about moving or giving away fish, that I try to avoid it if at all possible. So, this makes me nervous about trying them again. Also, people come and look at the fish in the lobby, which I'm afraid would be too much for the pearls. But aren't they beautiful? The way they shimmer is something to behold!

 

[BeckyCats]

My recommendation is to find a home for the neon, even give it to a pet store. Get some active bullet proof fish like zebra danios. Serpae tetras would go also. Get a school of at least six. Forget guppies unless they are in a tank by themselves and cories. Active fish like your tetras will shred their tails. Livebearers like platies usually don't do well with tetras because of different water requirements. If the water isn't to their liking, they start to shimmy and may ich out.

Agreed. Also, I've done some additional reading on this site regarding other people's experiences with all male groups of platys and it does sound like aggression can be an issue.

 

[BeckyCats]

I think the 2 main options at this point are: 1. a single betta; 2. pea puffer(s). If anyone has good advice regarding the selection of either, I would appreciate your input. If we did get puffers, how many should there be in this tank (30 gallons, planted, driftwood ornament that breaks line of site and creates hiding/exploring spaces). I've read that one male is the max. Would one male and 2 females be too many?

 

[seangee]

I would not get pea puffers. These are carnivores and need a constant supply of live food. Many will not take food that is not alive and will starve to death before eating commercially prepared fish food. This also means that they should be fed every day - so what we said about not feeding on weekends or for a week at a time over holidays is not really an option

 

[JuiceBox52]

I would not get pea puffers. These are carnivores and need a constant supply of live food. Many will not take food that is not alive and will starve to death before eating commercially prepared fish food. This also means that they should be fed every day - so what we said about not feeding on weekends or for a week at a time over holidays is not really an option

Puffers are messy eaters as well and would require weekly LARGE water changes which is not possible in this scenario

 

[betta fish]

How about a single angelfish perhaps?

 

[JuiceBox52]

How about a single angelfish perhaps?

Angel fish should be in groups of at least 5

 

[BeckyCats]

So good to know regarding the puffers! This is why I ask! So, scratch them off the list.

Regarding a single angelfish, I believe that would be an option but, would it be happy all by itself? My understanding was that they needed to be either paired or in large groups in a very large tank. Am I mistaken?

 

[BeckyCats]

Angel fish should be in groups of at least 5

We posted at the same time. This was just what I was wondering about.