Male Betta Fighter with Neon Blue Dwarf Gouramis?

[jomix]

Hi all!

So I have had my 80 Litre (roughly 17.5 Gallon) tank for a few weeks now and my first fish; 5 cardinal tetras (which I added after waiting 2 weeks), and 2 Neon Blue Dwarf Gourami (one male and one female, another 2 weeks after the tetras), as well as an Albino Bristlenose Pleco, everything has been going well! They all get along, they’ve all been eating well, are very active and of course no fighting or fin nipping...

I was at my local pet shop the other day picking up supplies when I saw a beautiful new addition! The most beautiful Male Betta Fighter I had ever seen! Incredibly colourful and flashy flowing fins, I won’t go into too much detail but I fell in love with him. So I asked Gary (the owner and knowledgeable in aquatics at least compared to me lol) if he would be a good addition on his own in my community tank and he said that he should be, he said the tetras would not bother him and as long as my gouramis are dwarf gouramis then they will not fight for territory, as he said normal gouramis will fight with bettas usually. This of course put my hopes up but I want a second (or third) opinion on the matter.

Is he right and is there very little risk of them fighting or bullying? I would hate to disrupt the very peaceful nature of my tank atm but I would really love to have him in my tank! What do you guys think?

 

[Retired Viking]

I would not add a Betta to your tank, they are not community fish, I wish they were but there is a reason why they are referred to as "fighting fish" In a small tank chances are high you will have some serious issues with your fish and a betta.

 

[Colin_T]

Never keep more than 1 species of labyrinth fish per tank. Labyrinth fishes are Bettas and gouramis.

These fish are all extremely territorial and will fight with each other.

 

[vanalisa]

No Betta, no cry.

 

[CassCats]

I'd get a larger tank, 30 gallons at least. Move the tetras, gouramis, and pleco to that one.

Put the betta alone in the 17 gallon.

Few reasons.

1, bettas and gouramis cannot coexist.

2, dwarf gouramis can still be aggressive with one another, even male and female. Its recommended to have more space than you have to house a pair to allow room for the female to get away.

3, bristlenose plecos have very high bioloads and will overwhelm your parameters in a tank less than 25 gallons.

Your bioload limit is already way above capacity in the current tank.

 

[Willbacon23]

I'd get a larger tank, 30 gallons at least. Move the tetras, gouramis, and pleco to that one.

Put the betta alone in the 17 gallon.

Few reasons.

1, bettas and gouramis cannot coexist.

2, dwarf gouramis can still be aggressive with one another, even male and female. Its recommended to have more space than you have to house a pair to allow room for the female to get away.

3, bristlenose plecos have very high bioloads and will overwhelm your parameters in a tank less than 25 gallons.

Your bioload limit is already way above capacity in the current tank.

80 litre is around a 22 gallon- he’s not overloaded yet a BN pleco is suffice in 22-25gallon the gallon he used was UK not US

 

[CassCats]

80 litre is around a 22 gallon- he’s not overloaded yet a BN pleco is suffice in 22-25gallon the gallon he used was UK not US

still too small for a *pair* of dwarf gourami. Single, fine, but a pair its a bit small IMO

 

[Willbacon23]

still too small for a *pair* of dwarf gourami. Single, fine, but a pair its a bit small IMO

I do agree

 

[FishFinatic77]

I agree with everyone else here. A betta with gouramis is an absolute no no. If you want the betta, you would have to set up a separate tank for him.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I agree with everything above.

If you want a Better, get a 5g or a 10g tank. (I prefer 10g)

Plecos have a large bio load, and are not suitable for your size of tank.

Edit: Also, Bettas aren't necessarily "Fighters". Some people do fight them, but it is cruel, and often illegal.

 

[Essjay]

The fish we buy were originally bred in the far east for fighting. They were selectively bred for aggression, so they tend to be more aggressive than wild Betta splendens. Nowadays they are bred for colour and fins but they still have the aggressiveness that was deliberately bred into them.