Need some advice please!

[disasterfullife]

Hi, I'm new to the forums. I have had a beta fish named "The Ralphanader" for a few months and I just got him a new 10 gallon tank cause the old one cracked. I really wanted to get some other fish in there so I looked all around on the net to see if beta's could be kept with other fish. I found different opinions, some say yes you can keep beta's with other fish, some say no. I went to my local pet store today and asked them, they said yes but only certain fish. I asked about a red tail shark and the guy said that would be great. I got him home, put him in the tank and they seemed to be ok. It's been a few hours and the beta is always chasing the red tail, biting at him and flaring his fins. Did I make a mistake??? If I put some more fish would it balance out the problem? Or do I just need to take out the beta or red tail? Will they get use to each other? Thank you very much for any advice you can give me!

 

[xXMrBonesXx]

i thought it wouldnt have been teh other way around , the guy at the pet store gave you teh wrong advice though, red tail's can be very aggressive so its kind of good the betta put him in his place but id take teh shark back and get something that isn't so aggressive and doesn't get too big, i have a couple cory cats in with my betta in a 10 gallon and there no problems at all

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Redtail Shark
(Epalzeorhynchos bicolor)

Minimum Tank Size: 50 gallons

Max. Size In Aquarium: Up to 4"

Color Form: Bright Red, Black

Temperament: Semi-aggressive


EDIT: forgot to mention teh Red Tail will get more and more aggressive as it gets older

 

[a1wonder]

I ten gal all to himself, you spoil that fish more than I spoil my puffer lol. I'd keep in a 5 gal with maybe a dwarf frog or maybe a couple of otos. It wont be long before that red tail grows up and gives that betta a run for it's money possibly resulting in death. In general LFS are out to make a profit and most will tell you anything to make sure you leave with a fish in your hand.

 

[disasterfullife]

So does this mean I am going to have to get a seperate tank for my beta? If so then that is no problem, I would rather spend the extra money to have both of them happy. Now that Bad A** Mother 5000 (the name of my red tail) is all alone I want to get him some homies. Any recommendations as to what other fish go well with red tails? I also had a question about gravel, is it mandatory or kinda a decorations or something to help with keeping to tank clean? What should I feed my red tail, I was told that the beta food was fine, but I find my self questioning that? Is there a good univerisal food that will feed several different types of fish? Thank you all for the help!!!!

 

[Ben]

why dont you just trade in the red tail to the lfs because unless you get a much bigger tank you csnt keep the shark so trade him in for a couple of cories

 

[squidlips]

too true . redtails need a fair bit of room. the food is ok . bettas need good food so its good for the shark too. alternate a bit of blood worm . did you know that the av betta lives for 2 and half yrs . obesity is thier demise and yet they need hi pro food . in a labority they have been knawn to live for7 and half yrs with strict diet and regular ecersise.
thought id ad some trivia for you.

 

[disasterfullife]

Thank you to everybody for the advice. I don't think I am going to take the red tail back, I'm going to find a new home for him with someone else. But now I have a ten gallon tank with nothing in it. I put the betta back in a 2.5 gallon tank. I'm going to go to a different pet store today and see what I can do about getting some new decoration and fish. Also, I've been reading about sinking food, is this good for different types of fish? Thank you again for the help!!