Compatibility

[Gilli]

Hi

I have never kept a betta before and would love a single male but im worried how it would get on with tankmates? I have a male dwarf gourami, 2 x German blue rams, zebra danios, a male guppy, 2 male platies a bristlenose plec , black phantom tetras and 3 x amano shrimp.Would this cause problems?All tank mates get on great and the guppy that ive had for 6 months now has a huge flowing fancy tail and ive not had any problem with other fish nipping it.

Also how hardy are they as ive not had much luck with guppies. So far ive bought 3 and only one has survived even though all other fish are fine and water stats are perfect.

 

[bronzecat]

Hi

Basically, unless you want to get rid of the majority of fish you already have, a betta wouldn't be a good idea

 

[liz2]

Not a good idea to put a betta in with those

 

[Gilli]

Whoa! What fish do they get along with then?

 

[lilfishie]

mainly bottom dwellers like plecos cories ottos

 

[tibby25731]

It is best to keep bettas by themselves. Guppies are bad as their long colourful tails look similar to a bettas, and the betta may become aggressive. Tetras can be nippy. Most other fish will spook a betta, they tend to prefer being king of the castle! I have 2 african dwarf frogs in with one of my bettas, and he ignores them, but one of my other bettas i am sure would terrorise them! Some people report success i keeping a betta with cories or otos, and occasionally with mountain minnows. However, it is altogether down to the temperament of the individual betta. if you want a betta, get a seperate tank! And if you decide to try tankmates, make sure you will be OK to add them to your current tank if they don't work out with the betta!
All of this makes bettas sound difficult, but they really aren't. They are friendly, fun fish, and each has its own personality. If you decide to get a new tank for a betta, let us know and we can advise you on size, equipment etc!

 

[Gilli]

Thank you all for all your replies. I dont have room for another tank so I guess I will just have to admire them from afar. Its great that there are forums like this where you can get advise rather than just buying and causing suffering!

 

[5teady_2012]

How big is your tank?

Could be a possibility of getting a divider and sectioning off 4-6" for him if yiou want one.

 

[Gilli]

How big is your tank?

Could be a possibility of getting a divider and sectioning off 4-6" for him if yiou want one.

Nice thought but its only a 3ft tank, and if I did keep one I would want tons of room for him so he could had a good life!

 

[5teady_2012]

How big is your tank?

Could be a possibility of getting a divider and sectioning off 4-6" for him if yiou want one.

Nice thought but its only a 3ft tank, and if I did keep one I would want tons of room for him so he could had a good life!

I see where your coming from as its nice to have plenty of room for fish, but bettas actually do better in smaller spaces (obvioulsy not very tiny)

I use to keep my males in 2ft tank divided in to 4 sections and they was very happy and did really well.

 

[Gilli]

Im sure they were fine but I find it unacceptable to keep fish in a small space. My way of thinking is in the wild they would be able to roam free, so if I am going to keep anything captive its up to me to give them as much space and as natural an environment as possible.

Just my opinion.