What To Put In Tank With A Girl Betta?

[GuppyGoddess]

Edited - am going to try three girl bettas.

 

[Assaye]

Just wondering - why not cycle the tank first? Much safer for the fish and much less stressful for you.

As for tank-mates - females can be as moody as the boys so anything you try she might not accept. In 10 gallons (US gallons, right?), I'm not sure what you could have that would be OK without friends and have a big personality. Normally I'd recommend pygmy corys, shrimp or snails, and maybe some green neon tetras (although I'm not sure if they need a bigger tank). Corys are actually pretty awesome - I didn't like them until I actualy got some and now I'm a total convert. They do need to be in groups of about 5 though. Some people have sucess keeping them in threes.

There might also be some wild bettas that are actually OK to have a couple of, but I don't know if your betta splendens will fight them. I'm not really the expert.

EDIT - be careful with only three. I only have three in my community tank, but that's a short term measure and they will soon be in a larger group in a different tank. Sometimes in groups of three two gang up on one of them and you can end up with dead fish.

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Just wondering - why not cycle the tank first? Much safer for the fish and much less stressful for you.

As for tank-mates - females can be as moody as the boys so anything you try she might not accept. In 10 gallons (US gallons, right?), I'm not sure what you could have that would be OK without friends and have a big personality. Normally I'd recommend pygmy corys, shrimp or snails, and maybe some green neon tetras (although I'm not sure if they need a bigger tank). Corys are actually pretty awesome - I didn't like them until I actualy got some and now I'm a total convert. They do need to be in groups of about 5 though. Some people have sucess keeping them in threes.

There might also be some wild bettas that are actually OK to have a couple of, but I don't know if your betta splendens will fight them. I'm not really the expert.

EDIT - be careful with only three. I only have three in my community tank, but that's a short term measure and they will soon be in a larger group in a different tank. Sometimes in groups of three two gang up on one of them and you can end up with dead fish.

Yes, US gallons.

Well, what happened was I wanted a girl betta and made the mistake of underestimating how quickly the ammonia levels would rise in her 2-gallon bowl, so I thought it would be wise to put her in the main tank while cycling it rather than keep her in her bowl and change out all her water daily.

Okay, I'll scratch the idea of getting more female bettas. The fish I have now is extremely active and will swim right up and nibble at my finger. She has no fear!

I actually brought home another fish earlier today (stupid of me) to quarantine in the 2-gallon and will be returning it because it is a girl betta! I just checked her ammonia levels in the cup she was sold in and the numbers are off the charts! Dark pea green! Poor fish.

Don't corys grow pretty big? I was looking at rasporas. Thoughts on those? Do they stay smaller and work in a group of three? A guy at the pet store said they would work and that the corys would possibly work.

Also, I was looking at white clouds that stay smaller, but the sales guy said they don't like 78 degree water.

 

[Rezatii]

White Cloud Mountain Minnows are sub-topical and a lot of people keep them in cooler temp. tanks while bettas like things at the slightly warmer end of the scale so they might not work together. Also a lot of people here have recommended pygmy cories, which, obviously stay pretty small XD

Also do you have a filter in your tank/s? if not it might be worth buying one or even making your own 5-minute sponge filter, there are great instructions on this forum for them. Spong filteres also work really well for male bettas as the current isn't too strong for them

-Rezz

 

[rindindin]

I wouldn't recommend any less than four girls. The two more dominant ones will pick on the weaker girl. More girls, the better.

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Thanks. . .I checked out the white clouds and the size seems perfect, but the sales guy said they wouldn't work in a heated tank. I'm picking up the filter and heater today or tomorrow. The filter I found is 58 GPH for the 10 gallon and should be fine for the single fish. . .it's only $8.99. Maybe I should add a sponge filter in when more fish are added? How does that combo sound to keep the tank clean yet calm?

Pygmy Cories do sound perfect. They may be what I end up getting. I was just reading here about them as they stay small. Maybe stick 3-5 in after a few weeks of the tank being set up. Even though the female betta I have in there is a tiny little blue fish, she's my showcase fish. lol My husband thinks I'm crazy sticking that one tiny fish in the 10-gallon, when I have two guppies that would do better in there. . . he says I'm being sexist. Putting the female in a better tank than the boy fish. lol

I'm kind of relieved to have just one fish in there. So much less work. I'm sick of doing water changes. lol Still have three others to change every other day. Eh!

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Ended up bringing home three harlequin rasboras. My betta isn't flairing at them (which I take as a good sign - because she went nuts over the other female), but she is relentlessly chasing the rasboras. I'm kind of expecting to find one floating at the top of the tank tomorrow!

Before putting the rasboras in, I added an extra plant. While doing that, my betta bit me twice! She may be best as a single fish if everything doesn't calm down since she has no fear and will attack anything within her reach.