Neon Dwarf Gourami Fighting

[XPANDA]

i have two male neon dwarf gourami and they are fighting a lot. i bought them from a shop where the assistant said one was male and one female. i have learnt since that their both male and they fight. one hides behind the filter to avoid this. the shop wont take the fish back and im worried one will die of stress soon.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

You can trying rehoming one of the males on the forum in the buy/sell/swap section (although i do think it is irresponsable that the petshop sold you fish which they told you untruths about and now refuse to take them back, personally i would take my buisness elsewhere if i had any choice in the matter) .

 

[XPANDA]

yes the lfs is rubbish the problem is they have lots of good fish!

 

[Inchworm]

Hi XPANDA

You have a legitimate concern here. Male gouramis, even male dwarf gouramis, can be quite aggressive toward each other. Perhaps this might be a good excuse to get another tank?

Female dwarf gouramis have different coloration than the males. The person who waited on you in the lfs evidently doesn't even have a clue. It would be best if you do some research here on TFF before you buy any more fish at that store.

 

[bike_riding_cichlid]

You need to relocate the subordinate gourami, or it will die like mine did when I made the same mistake.

 

[benniebru]

one of my fish stores says that they are best kept in 3`s for this reason of aggression towards its own kind

 

[XPANDA]

You need to relocate the subordinate gourami, or it will die like mine did when I made the same mistake.

The gourami that has been hiding for a few days has been taken back to the LFS. They were ok about it. I felt sorry for the little fella but he was the one who picked on the larger one to start with and he must of gotten fed up of it. Hopefully he will go to a good home. I bought two baby german blue rams instead and they look lovely!

Thanks for your help

 

[Biulu]

It is possible to keep several male gouramis in one tank, provided that you have enough hiding spaces and plants, and that your tank is big enough (count on around 30 litre for one gourami). Another important point is that you introduce fish of about the same size.

If you introduce your gouramis in stages, then change your decor around so the second gouramis is not introduced in the territory of your existing gourami. in this way both have the same opportunities to establish a territory.

If you want to have males and females, make sure you have a ratio of 1 male to 2 females. In this way both females get a rest and are not constantly harrassed by the male.

Good luck with keeping gouramis!