Should I Be Keeping These Tropical Fish Together?

[tommwest]

i have dwarf gourami x2 males
platys x5
neon rainbow fish x3
ram cichlids x2
tetra x4 (silver with red tail tips with abit of black running slightly into the body)
Siamese fighter

later i want a angle fish so is there any i should be looking to be getting rid of to make way for angle fish?
sorry im new to this and forgot to say i have a 4 foot 125ltr tank well planted a few bits of bog wod i there but willing to add other bits, at the moment the tetra are about 3cm long aswell a the platties. ive now been told i should have these fish mixed together so i spoke to the shop today and they will take back the chidlids and dwarf gourami and the other shop i brought the tetra and fghter from said i can take the fighter back so if i done that il be left with the rainbow fish neons and platties so where should i go from here? any ideas would be great looking for somthing unusual and or really colourful like the dwarf gourami

 

[razer121]

definatly not my friend! def get some of them fish back to the shops, the fighter should only be on his own, cichlids...well i have a guppy thats managed to survive but for how much longer who knows...cichlids should not be mix with guppys/platys and the likes. is your tank high? thats the only way you can have a angel fish, i think its like a ft from bottom to top nearly lol, oh and of course if you kept ya neons and such they would become food.....i think you should find out which fish you want first then go from there

 

[tommwest]

thanks so if i took them back and was left with platties x5 rainbow fish x 3 and neons x 4 and i got a angel fish or two (dont know whats better to do) do you reccomend anything im not really after anything i have in mind just maybe somthing different and unsual just for example my way of intresting are knifefish and cuckoo catfish im not actually set on angel fish just a idea if i had i rought idea on a few fish recommended to all get on then i would do that thanks tom,

 

[Gill]

ummmmmmm i see no reason for not keeping the rams, have kept them in mixed comm without any probs. they go well with platties from experience. but not with fighters

The fighter is iffy with gouramies, as it depends on the fighter ( will it tolerate them or not, could kill them one day without reason).

 

[Truck]

Only buy the Rams if they're Mikrogeouphagus altispinosus, DO NOT buy Mikrogeophagus ramirezi, due to the temperature, PH and GH requirements they need to be kept properly.

 

[tommwest]

see now loking at the chidlids right now and snce i brught them they seem really calm and stay on the bottom feeding and when fish cme near them they dont batter a eyelid seem harmless more lie bottom feeders as there always feeding off the bottom, and i know the gourami and fighter dont get on as since i gotthe fighter is hid behind the plants and not really come out so they are defo going back

 

[drobbyb]

The rainbows need to be in a group of at least 6.

 

[tommwest]

The rainbows need to be in a group of at least 6.

ok i can get 3 more the tetra seem to have paired up with them aswell

here are a few pictures of my tank so you can see my set up got sand for a bottom layer and one of those 3d backgrounds all the plants you see are real apart from the ones on the background the tank size is 4foot long 16" high and 12"wide

 

[drobbyb]

Looks great!

 

[Assaye]

I'll be honest, the only fish I have a problem with is the fighter. These guys can be pretty aggressive and also sometimes get nipped by other fish due to their long tails. Probably won't get on with the gouramis or the rams aswell. They are best in tanks on their own, IMO, especially if you're not used to keeping them.

Actually, what kind of rams are they? Bolivians can be a bit aggressive and would be best returned if you want smalled fish but if they are golden rams or german blue rams then you should be fine in a tank of that size. The problem with german blues and golden (basicly albion germa blues) is they need very high temperatures, very soft water and a low pH. Most people can't provide that in a community tank.

Platys and tetra are fine with dwarf gourami. I think you probably have enough space to avoid aggression between the male gouramis.

Not sure about the rainbows. I think they'll be fine but I think they need a bigger group and so might need a bigger tank. I'll let someone else cover the rainbows.

I would say no to angels, tbh. Your tank needs to be 18" high minimum and in a smaller tank like yours, you'd only be able to have one anyway. The angel might also eat the tetras.

 

[tommwest]

these are the rams i have i totally forgot what there called think african or somthing along those lines are these ok or should i take these back too

 

[Truck]

They're bolivan and are absolutely fine for your setup.

 

[tommwest]

ive spent days reading through bits each telling me different stuff and within half hour i know where i am on here many thanks so ive got two rams at the moment should i get any more or are they fine and also the rainbow fish shoud i buy 3 more then of the same type?

 

[drobbyb]

More of the same would be ideal, more females than males, but you can mix the species if you want more than one type. For great rainbow information check out this site found here. That's Adrian Tappin's website and it has pictures and information of every known species, as well as general care and breeding.

 

[tommwest]

well your all be pleased to know i took back the gouramis tonight and since then the fighter has come out from hiding il have a look through the week at increasing the number of rainbow fish, anyone with a few ideas as to what else i could look out for as i say something abit unusual or brighly coloured and will get onwih the rest