Is This Dwarf Gourami A Female

[piper]

Okay quick explanation, went to a different FS (40mins away) as I wanted some barbs they had. While I was there the GF convinced me to get a Gourami. I only wanted to get one male but the shop assistant said they were only sold as pairs. So I asked for a Male and female pair. The thing is that the male keeps chasing the female all the time and I'm think she might actually be a he. I think there is a neon Dwarf colour variant out there and that is what I have been given instead of a female.
Have included pics thanks all.

 

[Thunder Snow]

I think she is a female, i have one the same colour which i was going to spawn. The males are wife beaters lol

 

[annka5]

Totally agree with the above - I'd say definitely a female, and some males do chase the females all the time. Adding more plants / hidey holes for the lady might help her avoid him. Have also seen adding a second female recommended - however, he could well end up chasing both.

 

[sylvia]

Going by body shape, that's a girl. I would be weary of using the color because the pics are blurred. Anyway - the whole point of adding a second female is so that the male chases both. This devides his attention between two females so that neither is overly-stressed. It's the same principle as keeping guppies in a ratio of 2-3 females per male or crowding mbuna. Keeping dwarfs as pairs is actualy a realy bad idea and I hat how LFSs encourage this. I'd actualy suggest you return the female to them instead of buying any more - as you'd planned for just one anyway. Single males do fine on their own and, with fewer gouramies, there's less stress placed on any of the fish (plus you won't end up with a male aggressively guarding a bubblenest with eggs/fry in it). Of course, if you do want to breed, adding another female's ok - it's just that, now that these two have been in the tank, they may not exactly welcome the new addition with open fins

 

[piper]

Thanks for your help people, the male has allready made a bubble nest so I think im going to keep te female and see if they breed. Im going to add some more plants to give the female more places to hide.

 

[severina]

Everyone who wants to breed is always in another country! Blah! Good luck, though!