Setting Up A Sorrority Tank

[kazc31]

Hi all I have a 15 gallon tank, which I plan to house 7 females once fully cycled! I have a fluval filter suitable for a 30 gallon which has a low flow setting or I have a Rena super clean 40 which is suitable for up to 40 litres! So I was wondering which would be best for the better girls? go larger or smaller!

 

[Wildbetta]

I would personally go with the 30 gallon filter.  Female bettas can be just as picky about current as their longer finned brothers so you don't want too much current in the tank.  
 
I personally would go with more than 7 girls in a 15 gallon--10 would be good.  They are one of the few fish that do better "crowded" when kept in groups.  It keeps the aggression leveled out between all the fish so that one fish doesn't get picked on too much. (most of the time)  You also need lots of places for them to hide and get away from each other.  Lots and lots of plants and decor that blocks as much line of sight as possible is the best way to do this.  
 
Even with everything you do , there are some females that are not made out to be together with others.  They will either be too aggressive or too easily stressed.  You need to have a backup plan for stuff like this.  Also understand that it is easier for the fish to get sick in a situation like this.  So you have to be extra careful to watch for any signs of a sick fish. 
 
Can't wait to see your setup.    

 

[kazc31]

I'm currently cycling a 25litre which is now to be my backup after my partner got given the 15 gallon! Am planning on purchasing more plants before the girls go in but currently have a large tree stump and a small one which I was going to suction to the back of the tank! Thanks for your advice I shall stick to the larger filter!

 

[snowflake311]

15 gal is not enough room for 7 females. I had 7 females in a 36 gal tank and I still had problem. They set up a pecking order and the lowest gets pick on a lot and will hide all the time. Mine even in the big tank stressed each other out and in the end all died. I had the tank set up for a year it works but did not make for a peaceful tank. It was a stressful tank. I has decor for them but not enough I think a very heavily planted tank that is over 30gal is the only to really make a sorority work out ok.

I don't recommend sorority tanks females can be mean too. They don't kill each other off right away but with time the stress each other out and this allows for illness because they have weaken immune systems due to the stress.

 

[kazc31]

I think luck has a part to take in weather ur lucky in getting fairly peaceful females or Unlucky enough to get aggressive ones as I many years ago had two females in a thirty litre with no problems and as u know only keeping 2 is very risky! But I'm intending to create enough hidey holes for each with much coverage and hope my lucks in!!

 

[Wildbetta]

15 gal is not enough room for 7 females. I had 7 females in a 36 gal tank and I still had problem. They set up a pecking order and the lowest gets pick on a lot and will hide all the time. Mine even in the big tank stressed each other out and in the end all died. I had the tank set up for a year it works but did not make for a peaceful tank. It was a stressful tank. I has decor for them but not enough I think a very heavily planted tank that is over 30gal is the only to really make a sorority work out ok.

I don't recommend sorority tanks females can be mean too. They don't kill each other off right away but with time the stress each other out and this allows for illness because they have weaken immune systems due to the stress.

 
15 gallons is plenty of room for more than 7 females and actually works out better with them being crowded VS having tons of room per female.  I am sorry that your sorority didn't work but I have had 2 that have worked successfully, one of them that ran for almost 2yrs with little to no issues.  I kept 17 females in a 20 gallon long tank  If you have enough hiding places and enough things to break up the line of sight, it works.  The thing to remember is the more females, the less each female takes any kind of punishment.  That is why slightly "over crowding" them works.  Once they have their pecking order set, then it normally will calm down and even be peaceful.  You do have to watch the tank like a hawk to make sure that everyone stays healthy but other than that sororities can be a wonderful and colorful tank.   Being able to spot the difference between pecking order aggression and "problem" aggression is important too because if you have a problem maker then that female will have to be removed.  
 
Just like with the males, there are some that can live in a community setting and others that can not be kept with any other living thing -- it all depends on the particular betta.