Fish Mixing And Bettas

[SMD]

Well i havn't put any fish in my tank yet as i am just allowing the tank to cycle, however i have been thinking on what type of fish to put in and i am concidering a few tetras or platies and a small algae eater (pleco) and my tank is roughly 8-15 gals. I am just wondering if a betta would be happy to be in a tank with these kind of fish and is there any prcaution and other additional care for the fish?? ...Thanks

 

[catxx]

bettas can be ok in community tanks you have to be very careful though.
each betta has his own personality, some are chilled, some will try and eat their tankmates!

tetras tend to be too nippy for bettas long tails, bettas aren't fast swimmers and find it hard to get away.
platys are very brightly coloured, bettas will react to that violently!

there's a vast difference between 8 gallons and 15 gallons. a plec can't go in anything under 10 gallons, and should be in 15 gallons plus.

 

[riverman444]

I keep a very large male VT Betta in my 20 Gallon planted. His tankmates consist of 4 Harlequin Rasboras, 1 Neon, 2 FancyTail Guppies, 2 Otto, 1 Cory, 3 Ghost Shrimp. He will have a go at the Guppies if they get too close to him but he never chases or tries to injure them. He just flares and the guppies get out of his way.

CatXX is right, though. All Bettas are different and have distinct personalities. My recommendation would be to add the Betta last in order for the other fish to get used to the tank and establish pecking order. Adding the Betta first will make him more territorial and more likely to act out against new additons. By adding him last, he gets used to the original members of his tank instead of fighting and flaring at new fish added after his arrival. Know what I mean?

If possible, stay away from really bright colored fish. If you do add them, play a close eye for the first few days to insure compatability with your Betta. If the Betta is going to have a go at them, he will usually do it right away as he may see them as a threat....AND, I beg to differ with CatXX on one thing. Bettas can swim fairly quickly when they want to....trust me.

 

[catxx]

only when there's food involved!