My Gourami Tank

[ocmsolidsnake]

I have a 25 gallon high tank with an eclipse tank hood and filter. I have 1 betta, 2 gold gouramis and 2 dwarfs. I was wondering if my tank is stocked to the max and if not what you would suggest getting. Im looking for something in a new color, i have ablue betta blue and oragne dwarfs and yellow golds. Ill try to get picture as i have a very good digital camera and one of my dwarfs has realy great color. Also if you have any other general suggestions there always appreciated.

 

[sylvia]

You don't have room for any more top-dwelling fish - certainly not gouramies anyway.

Bettas do not do well with gouramies long-term and gold (three-spot) gouramies become very aggressive with age. If you don't think about finding new homes for the betta and golds soon, you're going to have serious problems - probably deaths.

Because gouramies are territorial by nature, each should have around 10 gallons of territory. That means 2-3 gouramies max. in a 25 gallon. This guideline can be applied to most of the common gouramies - such as your dwarfs and golds. Bettas also need a good amount of territory if you want to keep them with other fish - but they shouldn't ever realy be kept with other gouramies.

What I would suggest is for you to get your betta his own 2.5-5 gallon tank. Use mature filter media or gravel from your existing (and hopefuly cycled) tank to avoid ammonia spikes occuring when you add him.

Then return the gold gouramies to your LFS. Though you have not mentioned what sexes they are, I'd be extremely worried about them becoming significantly mroe aggressive in future and, in these crowded conditions, killing (directly or indirectly) their tankmates.

The dwarf gouramies would be fine left in this tank but you shouldn't add any other gouramies at all. What you can consider is small-ish mid-dwelling schooling fish such as harlequin rasboras or black phantom tetras and a handful of bottom-dwellers such as cories. A trio of some kind of smaller livebearer - such as platies, guppies or endler's - would also make a fine addition.

 

[ocmsolidsnake]

The betta has actualy had no problem at all with any fishes that i have had. He has his own plant he hides in until he goes to breathe. Hes actualy rather docile even when feeding. The only aggresion issues i have had is between the two golds who seem to change roles chasing each other. I belive that all the golds are male and there is a chance one of my dwarfs is ale and the other female as teh color differance is dramatic

 

[Miss Dib Dabs]

Your betta may well be spending alot of time hiding because of being surrounded by aggressive gouramies!! And if you have two gold males in a tall 25g one will end up dead very soon. How long have you had them like that? If it's just a few months then chances are the gourami are still quite young and that is why you have not had any serious trouble so far. I would never recommend anything but the smallest gourami breeds for a tall tank of any kind. It simply isn't suitable for them. Sorry.
Hugs,
P.

 

[sylvia]

It's not the betta attacking the others that's the main worry - it's the others attacking it. Once the golds are mature, they WILL go for your betta (and dwarfs) and each other. At the very least, return the two golds. No gourami likes to be crowded and you will have problems in time. You are already seeing the first stage - the aggression between your golds that is.