Shrimp with male betta in 5g/20l: bad idea?

[ghlime]

I have a relatively small male betta in a 5g/20l with a lot of plants. I was thinking about getting a few shrimp when the plants grow in more and there are more hiding spots. What shrimp would go best in this setup or is it just a bad idea in a 5g/20l?

 

[Essjay]

It all depends on the betta. I had cherry shrimps with three bettas one after the other in the same tank.
#1 ignored the shrimps and the babies so the shrimp population grew and grew and I was always sucking up babies when I cleaned the tank.
#2 ignored the adults but ate the babies. The shrimp population stopped increasing and I no longer sucked up any babies.
#3 chased and killed the adult shrimp so I had to rescue the survivors.

You can't know which type of betta you have until you try it

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I concur, it all depends on the temperament of the betta.

You can kind of test it in the store. If you see excessive flaring, that betta probably isn’t the best choice. The bettas I have kept shrimp with will chase them if they are swimming up in the middle of the tank, but hey will very quickly dart down back to cover* when the betta try’s to get them.

*This is important. The tanks I have bettas/shrimp in are densely planted.

 

[ghlime]

Yeah, I don't plan on getting any shrimp until the plants have grown in densely. The three kinds of shrimp at my local Petco are Amano, ghost, and cherry. Which kind do you recommend for a 5g/20l and how many? (How many should I start with not knowing how my betta will react?) Also, do you quarantine them and how do you acclimate them to new tank water?

 

[FishGuest5123]

My male betta ate half of my cherry shrimp population in 2 days. Had to move him to another tank.

 

[Bettapuppy]

I have a 6.5 gallon tank with a betta and three amano shrimp and they seem to get along well. I’ve had the shrimp since March. My LFS advised against getting any neocaridina because of their small size and bright colors. I tried ghost shrimp and they all died within a few weeks. I don’t think they were very healthy. Amano shrimp aren’t brightly colored, but they are fun to watch and they are great algae eaters.