What Tankmates Are Ok With Aggressive 3 Spot ?

[fishnovice]

Had 4 adult rescued gourami, 1 moonight and three 3 spot. All were unwanted fish and was told they were elderly; moonlight and a three spot were poorly and I nursed them back to health. They seemed OK for a few months till I added the other 2 to their tank.One of the newcomers was a bully who hassled his tankmates. 12 weeks later all are dead except the bully. Now it may have just been old age and disease (the last one that died a few days ago had lumps on its long trailing fins and hung arund the filter just before he died) but it's a bit of a coincidence.I'm now left with an almost empty tank. What tankmates would be safe with 3 spot bully? (They don't have to be gourami, I'm open to any stocking ideas)

 

[Tonym]

I would look to stock it with things like Rasboras and tetras or maybe Dwarf neon rainbow fish. For the bottom something like a BN or corydoras.

 

[saratogaslim]

My cranky, aggressive Gourami does well with a handful of Neon and Gold Tetras and a pair of Bolivian Rams. The Rams have just moved in...at first lots of grumbling, posturing, and retreating by all to their chosen plants and rocks, but now just a grumpy posture and everyone knows when to go back to their space. For all their spats my Gourami and my female Ram seem quiet interested in each other, and hang out together in the same plants when everyone's feeling rosey. The male Ram is younger and the Gourami bosses him sometimes. For reference, my female Ram is quite a grumpy girl as well, but they seem to have sorted it out.

He completely ignores the Tetras. If they're in the way, he just goes around them.

 

[fishnovice]

The only other tank occupant is Alice my stunted 8in common plec (another rescue, former tankmate of the dead gourami)who has to stay there as I have nowhere else to put her. I have a big L001, two fast growing syno juveniles and 3 young BN in my other tanks. The gourami tank has gravel substrate and not looking to change on account of plec poo which means weekly gravel vac needed.

As it happens I have a ram and was thinking of getting it a mate. However my ram is used to a sandy bottom and a peaceful tank, currently sharing with a shoal of assorted cories.Not sure how it would cope with gravel and a much larger bullying gourami. It was very stressed when I got it and took 2 weeks to get its normal colour back.

 

[fish_ant32]

My Angel fish has been with a blue three spot Gourami for three years now and the Angel fish has always been his boss even though my Gourami was previously a bully (had to separate him from another), but he is always swimming with the Angel and is not stressed at all.
There were also 2 silver sharks in the tank with him until they got too big and they got along perfectly.

 

[crazychris]

Hi. I'd say anything really except another gourami! I've had a large blue gourami for years and he's lived with lots of different types of fish, big and small, in three different tanks and has been fine. He hates any other gourami though and would chase one incessantly. I've tried other blue ones, both sexes, even bigger ones than him, moonlight, golden but no, he won't accept any other gourami. He's fine though apart from that. Just can't put another gourami with him so yours may be the same.