are bettas suppose to be very individual?

[minh]

well i may have read that some bettas prefer to be alone, but i only have one tank and put it amongst other fishes... its only been here for 3 days and still stays in the plants. the same thing happened with my male swordtail where he would only stay in plants, but he now swim everywhere btw the lfs put the bettas in bags that u get wen u buy a fish and put them in the community tanks (guess to prevent them fighting other fish).
because he was in such small conditions does it mean that he now is use to it? he doesn't flare at all and may be suffering from stress but i am not sure.

so what should i do to improve his condition? i am thinking of buying a female for him, good idea?

 

[Alien Anna]

I don't know what tankmates you have for your betta, but generally community aquaria are not good places for very territorial fish with long, trailing fins that can look so much like a lure to the other fish.

Bettas can live with other fish, but generally people choose the betta first and then match him up with compatible tank-mates, not the other way around. It's a bit of an art finding a suitable community for a betta - I learnt that the hard way, with my first betta (a female) who was savaged and terrorised by her tank-mates.

Bettas generally don't like large tanks, don't get on with most tetras and are more often the victims of aggression, rather than the aggressors (despite the "Siamese Fighting Fish" name). A mated pair living together is also rather an art-form and certainly wouldn't help your current betta's situation. It would actually be an added stress on him, not a help.

Your betta may eventually come out from the weeds. OTOH, he may just be cowering from the rest of your fish and if he does come out he'll be attacked. My female almost starved to death in a similar situation.

Keep an eye on things as they are, particularly looking out for fin nipping. If it happens, you need to get your betta out of there. Fortunately, they can live quite well in a fish bowl without a filter or heater, as long as you are diligent about water changes.

 

[Kossy]

Not all tahts true...if you've done ur research and know there compatible tank mates their fine. you need about 4-5 females for a male as their gonna get stressed. Ok tetras also do fine with bettas