What Fish Can Go In 5.3G

[OldMan47]

I keep plenty of pygmy cories but they like room to swim in. My smallest tank with a pygmy size cory is a 10 gallon,and that is small, for my tastes, as a place for them. This C. habrosus is located in a 29 gallon with a few of his friends and some endlers livebearers.

This group of C. hastatus is shown in a fairly new setup in a 20H. It is a colony of 13 of them in that tank.

Finally this C. pygmaeus is shown along side a Heterandria formosa and is part of the only group that I have in a tank as small as a 10 gallon. A Heterandria formosa is a much smaller fish than a betta so that part of the comparison is not really valid. The 6 cories in the tank work well with the Heterandria though.

 

[Curiosity101]

With that footprint it is half of what I'd feel comfortable putting pygmys in.

I agree with OM that 10gal is the min I'd put them in volume wise as often it is the smallest tank that would have a footprint I would feel comfortable with.

 

[Lucky5tar5]

Its certainly a nice idea in theory. I do think that the khulis would go out of their minds though. I kept some in a 5 gallon when I was just starting out, and was assured by the LFS they would love it in there. They literally swam in circles constantly hitting both sides of the tank. I left them like this for a fortnight to see if they would calm down, but this behaviour continued until I moved them into a larger tank. (A lot of pocket money back then!) Its down to you if you want to try it out, but in my personal opinion it won't be giving them the quality of life they deserve. Same with the corys I'm sure. I'd be much more tempted to keep some snails and shrimp in there. =)

 

[aly_starh]

So how is it then, in many posts that people have sent on What To Stock a 5G, i have seen Pygmy Cories?



Really wanted some more fish in there (bottom dwellers)

 

[Curiosity101]

I can't speak for anyone else, but I doubt you'll find any posts on stocking a 5g by me that have pygmy cories listed as suitable.

In a 5g my opinion is always...
Shrimp tank

Betta + Shrimp + Snails

Dwarf Puffer

And that's about it really...obviously they're fine for most small community fish as quarentine/hospital tank, or for them to spawn in. But long term there aren't any other fish I can think of that I'd be happy putting in there.

 

[GuppyGoddess]

I think pygmy cories *might* be fine in a 5-gallon. . .however, I have one in my 5-gallon (the others died) and I think that amount of space may be too small for them. They're very active and I think they'd probably be best suited for a 10 or more gallon.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi betta_246

So how is it then, in many posts that people have sent on What To Stock a 5G, i have seen Pygmy Cories?

It's not just the amount of water, it's the fact that they would be in a tank shared by other fish that puts me off a bit. Five gallons can be a suitable home for some of these little fish if the other conditions are right. Being small they tend to be somewhat delicate and shy. If you are setting it up to cater to the needs of the betta, with warm and still water, their needs are not as well met as they might be. That would be my main concern.

 

[aly_starh]

Ok, i found over 15 links,Bare in mind i could only add a few because if i copied them here i would be 'advertising' other forums.


Click
Click

 

[Curiosity101]

Well I don't want this to sound the wrong way, cause I don't mean it how it might come out.

But if you're so sure they're fine in that sort of footprint...then why are you still trying to convince us?

 

[aly_starh]

So then when i buy them, certain members on here don't start complaining etc!!!!!

 

[Lucky5tar5]

I don't think anyone would complain, after all you're asking for an opinion, and that is what people are responding with. I still can't imagine myself coming round to the idea, wouldn't it look a little odd as well? But hey, it sounds like you've made your decision already. Make sure to post some pics if you can, I'm intrigued to see how it turns out. =)