Betta in a community tank question.

[smatts]

Do you think I could put a betta in this 10 gallon tank?

Currently home to: 2 Dwarf Honey Gourami's, 2 Dwarf Aquatic Frogs, 2 Zebra Danios, 3 Cardinal Tetras.
There is a fair bit of plants and hiding spots in the tank.

The guy at the LFS said no because the danios might upset the betta with thier fast movements.

[Aqualung]

I'm not sure about the danio thing, but I'd be worried about the gouramis and betta getting along.

[PumaWard]

My honey gourami ripped my male betta's fins to pieces :(. I wouldn't do it.

[DarkPhoenix86]

I'd like to add a male betta to my 20 gallon tank. i have plants, and like a lil cave sort of, that my algae eater seems to like. I presently have 2 plattys, 2 guppies, a fancy guppy, and 2 glass fish. would it be ok to add a male betta there also? and what temp. do bettas prefer?

[PumaWard]

I don't see why not, just make sure that no one is nippy towards him.
They are pretty lax when it comes to temps. Anywhere from 75F-85F should be good.

[smatts]

Do dwarf gourami's behave different then regular gourami's?

My 2 dwarfs have not been aggressive / territorial with any other fish in the tank.

[PumaWard]

In a way, they are more peaceful, BUT, bettas are labyrinth fish much like gourami so the gourami see them as a threat. Bettas are kind of slow and those long, flowing fins make them easy targets for an over zealous gourami.

[BigFishDude]

I'd worry about the guppies with the betta. The betta might mistake the guppies for another male betta due to there colorful tails.

[JesseJ]

There really isn't one right answer for this. Some bettas tolerate other fish and some don't. Some gouramis are aggressive and some aren't. I would suggest putting the betta in the tank BUT keep the betta's home intact and running. Check the tank every 30 min and see how the fish are acting and see if ther are any signs of aggression for any of the fish. If nothing has happened after about 4 hours then things will probibly be ok.

Keep a close eye on the tank for as long as the betta is there because I've know some of them that are ok for months and then snap.

[mickeymacleod]

I had a Betta that I put in with my goldfish. The goldfish were terrified of him for about a week, then decided that the Betta was smaller than them so they got along just fine. IMO, I think that if the Betta you got was originally in a community tank when you purchased it, it should be alright in your tank. This said though, I haven't had any experience with gouramis so I can't say what they would do.

[TYPO]

I have a 18 gallon tank, and I had 2 guppies (one male and one female), 2 leopard danios, 2 aquatic frogs, and a plecostemus. (and a black mystery snail). I had no problems, really.. after a coule nips to the danios fins, he left them alone. The only problem, was after the fact, they all got ick, and my 2 guppies died, and my betta got it pretty bad. He's just fully recovered recently, and, I plan to put him back in the tank as soon as the cycle is finished.

[WildFrisco]

Bettas behave differently from one to the next. I've had like 6 and every one of them is unique, "personality"-wise. I've had 3 fat honey dwarf gouramis in a 10 gallon with my betta and did very well together. They'd chase each other every now and then, but not the betta.

Bettas and zebra danios? Not sure. I know they are very active but try it and see if any fin nipping occurs. I've had bettas with cardinal tetras before with no problem. The cardinals are a little more shy with the betta around.

Currently I have a betta with lyretail hifin swordtail, and 3 semi-fancy guppies (not feeder guppies, and not show winning guppies). No problems at all. You'll just have to try it and see.

[WildFrisco]

Oh yeah I have to add that I've had like 2 extremely aggressive bettas before that didn't like any other fish no matter the size or finnage. I exchanged them =)

[baileya74]

I had a Beta in my tank. Had to take him out because the Danios would pick at it's fins.