Guppys / Fighter Fish

[Gr!m]

hi all me again i am wondering about guppys i was wondering if i would be able to get more males than females or is it a bad idea
fighter fish i was wondering and need facts on fighter fish coz they look nice and cool and i was wondering about how i would have to keep them because i have herd rumors that they arnt easy to keep and need some important facts on it

 

[dwarfgourami]

With guppies, if you get more males than females, you will need to get males only and then a fairly big group (at least 5) to spread aggression. Guppy males are very highly sexed, so a male would wear out a single female, particularly during pregnancy (and two males to a female doesn't really bear thinking of). This is why the recommended ratio is 2-3 females per male. Or an all male group (but no fewer than 5). Or, as I prefer it, an all female group.

Bettas (Siamese fighters) are not difficult as such, as long as you remember a few basic characteristics. The most important is that they are highly territorial. This means you can usually only keep one male per tank, and you can usually not keep a male with females. You also do not want to keep them with any fish they might mistake for another betta (such as a male guppy).

The second characteristic is that they have long flowing fins, so you don't want to keep them with any potential fin nippers (lemon tetras, serpas, tiger barbs etc).

The third is that they are slow movers and not very good swimmers, so a high current or very fast-moving companions can easily stress them out.

A male might actually be happiest in a smaller tank (but not a cup!) of his own, with a plant to rest in. Being slow movers and able to breathe air, they don't need quite as much swimming space as other fish. But you still need to keep water quality good, as with all fish.

You can keep several female bettas in a community tank, but you might want to watch them for aggression.

 

[Taridan]

Pretty much waht Dwarf said... I would recomend at least a 2.5 us gallon tank (not sure what that would be in liters or uk gallons) as it is easier to find heaters and filters. The Fighter fish will need a heater, as they are tropical and -NO- plastic plants. These will create tears and scratches in their fins... either go with silk or real plants. I've found the Whisper Filters are loved by my fish... they filter decent which can help cut back on water changes, but don't create a lot of current. Also, you can look on the Betta section of this forum
Betta section of FAQ

General Betta forum

For more information. As far as ease of keeping... it partially depends on what tank stats you planned on putting them in, partially depends on how often you do water changes... My cycled 30 gallon (HOB filter) gets about 50% water changes every two weeks or so, my ten gallon (HOB filter >.<) gets about a 75% water change every week and a half, my 5.5 divided has a whisper filter designed for 3-10 gallons and gets 25% water changes about once a week, and my two 1 gallon tanks get probably about 15-25% water changes every other day, then a 100% water change once a week, plus I use a turkey baster to suck out any uneaten food that settles on the bottom since I don't have gravel in the 1 gallons.

 

[jtnova13]

my buddy has a few guppies along with a betta fish. He has all male fancy guppies and they haven't had a problem.

 

[OohFeeshy]

my buddy has a few guppies along with a betta fish. He has all male fancy guppies and they haven't had a problem.

And some people have kept a goldfish in a bowl for years and 'they haven't had a problem.'. Doesn't make it right...

 

[red-devil0602]

my buddy has a few guppies along with a betta fish. He has all male fancy guppies and they haven't had a problem.

that is a ticking time bomb, some people don't deserve fish at all!!!

 

[Gr!m]

thanx for your replies i am all so wondering how many female betta's can you keep in one tank coz i was thinking of puttin 1 or if i can have more than one female into me 25 litre tank which i dont no how many galons or even if it is a gallon

 

[Taridan]

I think that 25 litres might be about the same as 6 US gallons? If you could type up the tank size in cm then this site can be used to convert cm to inches, and from there we can use the inches to get the US gallons.

calculator for tanks

However, if it is a 6 gallon tank, as far as females go thats pushing over stocking... I would reccomend getting something thats at least a 10 gallon... if you figure 1 inch per fish, then with three females you would be close to / almost/ maybe overstocking, and if you had just two females together it might be okay, but you would have to watch them very closely, as in my experience two females tend to 'duel' and the less dominant one ends up having constantly nipped fins.... and that was in a 30 gallon for me where the less dominant one has plenty of room to swim away. Best bet for a tank that size would be one male, and maybe some snails or african dwarf frogs. He'll appreciate the space, and you'll get to watch him swimming around in something that gives him some room to be territorial.

All this is of course, assuming that my calculations are correct and it is indeed a 6 gallon tank. If you use the calculator and find different, let us know.

O.O if its the tank in your signature that we're talking about, that is a 15 gallon tank.