Me Want More! Me Want More!

[zophie]

Hi,

I WANT MORE BETTAS!

heheh

sorry for the oout break. It's just that I really want to get some more betta fish!! I went out to my LFS to check out some tanks, and I saw a beutiful 10 gallon. At first I wanted to split it in two and have two male's with a divider, but then I started seeing all these people talking about females. I *Drumroll Please* have never ever had a female betta before!!!! ahhhh!!
So, I want to get some. in a nutshell, I want to know about your guys experience with female bettas and if you like them at all. I also want to know if this tank would work:

10 gallon tank
Sera heater
Clip on power filter

Amazon Sword Fern
Cabomba
Bogwood
Rocks

...... Female betta's.

So, how many bettas do you think I should get? I was thinking six.... hmmm.....

Thanks a billion!

Zophie

 

[Katty]

I have one female betta and one male betta. While I do love my male betta, I do like my female more (don't tell him I said that). She seems to be more perky and involved. If I come over to her tank she'll swim right up to the glass and watch me move around the room and she'll check out stuff I put on my nightstand next to her tank. I find she's a lot more food motivated and even tries to jump up at my fingers if I don't put the food in fast enough. I also tested her with a mirror and she flares with as much zest as any male.

Of course, I have to take into account that the male is at least a year older, but even when we first got him he wasn't such an attention seeker as the female is. He's more of a swim-back-and-forth type. Maybe its his heavy tail, who knows.

It's all down to personality of the individual fish though. When I was picking her out at the store though I noticed she had a lot of "spunk" and just seemed like a really zesty fish, thats why I picked her (plus she looked gorgeous). My mom picked out the male just because he looked pretty.

Plus if you know where to look they're just as gorgeous as the boys.

I think amazon swords might need a little more light than usually comes with a 10g?

 

[BethK]

you could put 6-7 female bettas in there, keep the tank planted well and you will sail through. the trick is to break up the line of sight for fish

this is what my 60ltr looked like

and what my 30ltr looked like;

i've never had an issue with my girls fighting in either tank and i'd like to think that it was down to careful planning, with planting the tank and evaluating the girls prior to buying.

i would say that if you are buying girls from a lfs, to watch them for a good few mins and select the ones who are the lesser aggressive, it's a tactic that has helped me.

good luck on your venture and remember that we are here to help as much as we can x

 

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

I picked my first 4 girls because they were all together.

I've since added another two; I added them individually a week apart...I watched them in the shop for at least 30mins; I picked the ones that weren't aggressive or chasing others around the tank. My latest girl I got on Saturday was the only girl in the the tank without torn fins; she was quite quiet and kept to herself. She is perfect for a community.

Java fern are a low light plant. I have some in two tanks, one is fairly dark and the other gets a lot of natural light. The stuff in the darker tank is growing better I think (however it has been in there longer).

 

[zophie]

I have one female betta and one male betta. While I do love my male betta, I do like my female more (don't tell him I said that). She seems to be more perky and involved. If I come over to her tank she'll swim right up to the glass and watch me move around the room and she'll check out stuff I put on my nightstand next to her tank. I find she's a lot more food motivated and even tries to jump up at my fingers if I don't put the food in fast enough. I also tested her with a mirror and she flares with as much zest as any male.

Of course, I have to take into account that the male is at least a year older, but even when we first got him he wasn't such an attention seeker as the female is. He's more of a swim-back-and-forth type. Maybe its his heavy tail, who knows.

It's all down to personality of the individual fish though. When I was picking her out at the store though I noticed she had a lot of "spunk" and just seemed like a really zesty fish, thats why I picked her (plus she looked gorgeous). My mom picked out the male just because he looked pretty.

Plus if you know where to look they're just as gorgeous as the boys.

I think amazon swords might need a little more light than usually comes with a 10g?

yes, I think you are right about the Amazon Sword. Mabey I should get Java Fern like dipsy said.
I will follow all your advice and look at the fish for about 30 minutes to see aggresion.
I have to Q.
1. Are sister's less aggresive?
2. Any good methods for telling if a girl is a boy?

Thanks for all the help!
Zophie

 

[BethK]

sisters can be aggressive but because they have already lived together, there is less likely going to be spats. tbh, you gotta just let the girls fight it out, if they get into a dominance issue, yes there will be ripped fins, scales missing but once that issue is sorted, it will settled............well, unless you get a nasty betta who is constantly bullying.

males and females are totally different; A male betta is generally characterized by his long flowing fins, a male will often flare with his gills as an aggressive act towards other fish or activity outside of atank. His body is often longer and bigger than a female, with the exception of some pk females and giants.

female bettas will usually be smaller than a male, both in body and with shorter finnage. Females are just as bright and vibrant in coloration as the males are. There is a white spot on the undercarraige of a female, this is called an ovipositor.

be aware though, that juvvie males can have an ovi spot too.

 

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

Also with amazon swords they will grow huge. In with my girls I have Elodea and it grows really fast. It's ideal as I only bought a little bit; within 2 to 3 weeks it had doubled in length so my patches are getting thicker. I'm looking for a bigger tank now so it'll be good as it will fill it out.

Have a look at what plants you like and do research and see what you like the look of etc. There is also a planted section on the forum where you can ask. I have anubias too but it grows REALLY slowly and is fairly small. Get plants based on your tank requirements.

As beth said sisters are just as aggressive; however there will probably be less agression in your tank if you get sisters rather than unknown individuals (again as Beth said; because they've already sorted it out before you got them). All of my girls are very laid back; I just watch them in the tank for AGES and see which ones don't chase others or see which ones happily swim around; a bit of flaring is ok if it's a "woah you got too close" kind of way rather than a "hahahahah I'm in charge, get out of my way" kind of fashion.

 

[FBTgirl2]

I usually have about 6 in a soriority tank (not at the moment). I personally think the females have more personality then the males. lol, good luck. Your tank sounds good for about 5-7 of them.