Tankmates for Gouramsis

[Sasha]

I thinking of putting a couple of Gouramis into my 46 gallon tank when it's all set up and cycled. Maybe I'll get a couple Pearl Gouramis and a few Clown Loaches, if they're good tankmates. I would like to know what other species of fish go with Gouramis?

 

[Sinuhe]

I'd suggest some peaceful, smaller fish that doesn't nip fins. Maybe a school of some Tetras? Fot algae eaters, my Gouramis get along fine with Otos.

 

[Sasha]

Are livebearers good companions for Gouramis? How about Rainbowfish?

 

[Rose]

All the livebearers are good tank mates for the Gouramies. As are cory cats, clown loaches, majority of the tetras.

Rose

 

[Debo]

Sasha,
My Gouramis get along well with my Loaches. Check out my signature at the bottom to see who lives with who. Everyone gets along great. I just wouldn't suggest a gold as the one I had BULLIED everyone after he got comfortable in the tank. He turned out to be a real psycho.

Deb

 

[Sasha]

Thank you for the advice. I have a little more knowledge about what fish I want to get for my tank. I might transport some of my mollies into the new aquarium because my 29 gallon is getting a little too crowded. What other kinds of Gouramis are peaceful fish?

 

[nightlife20]

iv got tow balloon kissin g's


they only fight because they are both males... mind u sayin that i put them into the bigger tank yesterday an they havnt battered a fin at each other since....




im guessing my 15g was a bit small for the two of them



Dawn xx

 

[Paradise_Gourami]

My black skirt tetras get along great with my gouramis

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

Gouramis are good community tank fish, as long as you are aware of some aspects of their normal behavior and plan accordingly.

They are territorial and if you have too many adult males they will chase and bully each other. It is also not unusual for a male to harass the female gouramis. If you have a planted aquarium that will provide escape routes and hiding places, a few gouramis will do well. They do not usually bother the other kinds of fish. They are very hardy fish who can survive conditions that many other fish cannot.

Kissing gouramis are large fish and do well with clown loaches since they are large, too. Otherwise, I would avoid them. They often "kiss" the sides of other fish which is not good.

If instead, you decide to go with small fish, there are many lovely gouramis to choose from. Moonlight gouramis are beautiful and graceful, but sometimes shy, gouramis that are often overlooked by hobbyists seeking brighter colored fish.

Dwarf gouramis now come in a variety of colors and are a good choice, too.

 

[Sasha]

I'm planning to get Pearl Gouramis, Dwarf Gouramis and maybe a few tetras. I'm not going to get Kissing Gouramis because I think they're a little to aggressive for a community tank. For the Gouramis, will females be more peaceful together than the males? How can you tell a male Gourami from a female?

 

[KellieFishEggs]

Male Pearl Gouramis have an orange belly and a long dorsal fin. Make sure you don't get two males, I learned that lesson the hard way. By the way, I recommend rainbowfish as tankmates. My Pearl Gouramis and Rainbowfish get along great!

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

I've had good luck keeping females gouramis together. Until just recently, I had two pearl gouramis who I called "the sisters." When I got them I thought one was a male, but I was wrong. They were very peaceful but stood up to the males that, from time to time, were in the tank with them.

The easiest way to tell the gender of gouramis is to look down on them from the top of the tank. The males will gently taper from head to tail while the females have a rounded abdomen and then taper toward the back. If you look into a tank that has both sexes, you will see the difference immediately. As to fins, the males have pointed dorsal and anal fins while the female's are rounded.

I've kept glowlight tetras and blind cave tetras with my gouramis and the gouramis seem to ignore them.

 

[Sasha]

How could I forget Rainbowfish! I've been looking into their species and I love their colors! What kind of Rainbowfish do you suggest? The next time I go to a pet store, I'll be sure to examin the Gouramis and see if I can tell the males from the females. Thank you for explaining to me the difference between males and females. Now I know what fish I'm going to have. Since Dwarf Gouramis are more colorful in the males, I'll only get one or I might see a female that's colorful. Two female Pearl Gouramis for sure. My 29 gallon tank has two neon tetras, which are a little lonely. Are neons good tankmates for Gouramis?

 

[Inchworm]

... Are neons good tankmates for Gouramis?

Hi Sasha

I haven't kept rainbow fish, so I don't want to make any suggestions there, but I don't think you should have problems with neons and gouramis. My gouramis have done fine with the glowlight tetras which are quite similar to them.