The flame dwarf gourami is simply a red colour mutation of the normal dwarf gourami and will have the same diseases.
Regardless of what the shops say, all dwarf gouramis bred in Asia are a risk and potentially have the Iridovirus and or TB. The shops will say their fish are good and they might be, but they can't guarantee the fish don't have those problems.
In Australia gouramis have to be quarantined for 1 month and have documentation from a vet saying they are free of the Iridovirus before they are allowed to be sold. In fact we can't even bring them in unless they have the documentation. Even tho we have these safe guards in place, most dwarf gouramis die within 6 months of being brought in, and those that die and are tested usually have the Iridovirus or TB.
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Some of the Aphyosemium & Epiplaty Killifish will be fine with dwarf gouramis but they only live for 1-2 years.
Blue or gold Ramirezi dwarf cichlid (rams) should be fine too.
A common bristlenose catfish should be fine in the tank but don't any catfish until the tank has been set up for a month or more, so the filters can establish properly. And if you have suckermouth catfish make sure you have a bit of driftwood in the tank for them.
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It's disappointing to hear about your teacher's pleco in the little tank
Regardless of what the shops say, all dwarf gouramis bred in Asia are a risk and potentially have the Iridovirus and or TB. The shops will say their fish are good and they might be, but they can't guarantee the fish don't have those problems.
In Australia gouramis have to be quarantined for 1 month and have documentation from a vet saying they are free of the Iridovirus before they are allowed to be sold. In fact we can't even bring them in unless they have the documentation. Even tho we have these safe guards in place, most dwarf gouramis die within 6 months of being brought in, and those that die and are tested usually have the Iridovirus or TB.
----------------------
Some of the Aphyosemium & Epiplaty Killifish will be fine with dwarf gouramis but they only live for 1-2 years.
Blue or gold Ramirezi dwarf cichlid (rams) should be fine too.
A common bristlenose catfish should be fine in the tank but don't any catfish until the tank has been set up for a month or more, so the filters can establish properly. And if you have suckermouth catfish make sure you have a bit of driftwood in the tank for them.
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It's disappointing to hear about your teacher's pleco in the little tank