Female Betta Troubles

[shynryx3]

hi i curently have a tank,20 gallons i think=s, with 2 female betta, 2 goldfish and 2 tetras. latley my alpha female betta has been chassing my other female betta around the tank all the time and the one bein chased has torn fins and seems really depresed, is there anything i could do?id rather not have to seperate them.

 

[wolfdreamer]

sorry to tell you but you may have to seperate them. females will kill each other just like the males, and if you have a very aggerssive female she may not stop. give it a day and make sure there are a lot of hidding spots. o and you may what to put 2 more famales in there. its better to have more then 2. i started with 4 but had to take out one ,she was too aggerssive and then one got sick so now i only have 2 but they are very peacefuly. hope this hepls..

 

[Channti]

1: Goldfish shouldnt be kept in the same tank as Bettas/Tetras because of the amount of waste that goldfish produce, as well as the need for different temperature requirements. I suggest you return the goldfish to your LFS.

2: Female bettas need to be kept either alone, or in groups of 3+ to spread out aggression. The larger the number (without overstocking), the more spread out aggression will be, and the happier they'll be. Personally, I recommend a minimum group of 4.

3: Tetras are a schooling fish that require a group of 6 or more. Depending on the type of tetra, you may find them incompatible with the bettas as some tetras can be quite nippy.

4: Tanks with female bettas need to have a lot of hiding spots for them. 1 hiding spot per betta is a great rule of thumb on this, but a couple extra hiding spots is always a good idea. This way the fish can get "out of sight" from each other, allowing them to get away from the aggression and bullying.


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Edit: It is possible to keep females together peacefully in a tank. I have a 15 gallon female betta sorority tank with six female bettas (soon t be adding 2 more). They've been together for ~8 months, and while I had aggression in the beginning while they worked out a pecking order, they're all perfectly healthy and friendly now. They even swim around together and "play" together in the plants.

 

[mmjisawesome]

i agree with wolfdreamer.

 

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

1: Goldfish shouldnt be kept in the same tank as Bettas/Tetras because of the amount of waste that goldfish produce, as well as the need for different temperature requirements. I suggest you return the goldfish to your LFS.

2: Female bettas need to be kept either alone, or in groups of 3+ to spread out aggression. The larger the number (without overstocking), the more spread out aggression will be, and the happier they'll be. Personally, I recommend a minimum group of 4.

3: Tetras are a schooling fish that require a group of 6 or more. Depending on the type of tetra, you may find them incompatible with the bettas as some tetras can be quite nippy.

4: Tanks with female bettas need to have a lot of hiding spots for them. 1 hiding spot per betta is a great rule of thumb on this, but a couple extra hiding spots is always a good idea. This way the fish can get "out of sight" from each other, allowing them to get away from the aggression and bullying.


------
Edit: It is possible to keep females together peacefully in a tank. I have a 15 gallon female betta sorority tank with six female bettas (soon t be adding 2 more). They've been together for ~8 months, and while I had aggression in the beginning while they worked out a pecking order, they're all perfectly healthy and friendly now. They even swim around together and "play" together in the plants.

This advice is spot on. I have a sorority tank. To each other they aren't agressive but to something else I find they are (I tried apple snails with them but it didn't work out). You need to separate the females ASAP or get a few more to add in. The trick to female bettas is to watch them for ages before getting them and IF there is any sign of agression then leave the fish, I've done this and I have a very peaceful sorority (I haven't even had agression when adding anyone new to the tank).