10g stocking with betta

[Nicole29]

I currently have a male betta

in my 10 gallon tank. I am thinking about the following stocking option and wanted to get some opinions on it.

1 male betta

6 pygmy corys (or another dwarf cory or something like the panda/juli/false julio)
A Nerite snail
some cherry shrimp (not really sure how many)


I have kept Bettas in community tanks before and I am aware of the risk of them with other fish. I know my current Betta may not welcome any tank mates but I am going to see how he does. I've never kept snails or shrimp before so not quite sure if they fit into my stocking, but welcome to any other suggestions.

The tank has some fake plants and a few hiding places right now, but I plan on buying some live plants soon.

 

[Tifftastic]

The smaller of the cherry shrimp will get picked off by the fish. The pygmies or habrosus would be fine, but I wouldn't go with pandas or julis as they do get a bit bigger and might be kind of cramped in a 10 gallon. I doubt the betta will give much bother to the cories though and the nerite will be fine.

 

[OrionGirl]

Bettas vary and some will harrass and kill even larger shrimp. I had one that killed off amanos. I'd skip them, TBH.

 

[Nicole29]

Alright so scrap the shrimp then, thank you.

Any other suggestions for potential tank mates?

 

[Tifftastic]

IMO with the cories, the nerite and the betta you'd be fully stocked. Ten gallons don't really offer a lot of options.

 

[Nicole29]

oh I didn't mean any more fish!! I just thought there may be some other suggestions aside from the corys, but based on my research I think they will be my best bet. Thanks!

 

[Nicole29]

So after going to my LFS I think I've decided on the corydoras habrosus, is this an ok choice?

I'm going to have to switch out my gravel for sand before getting the corys and have been doing quite a bit of research. Alot of people seem to have success with just play sand but I'm worried about the few negative stories I have read? Any thoughts? I read about getting some MTS to help mix the sand but I'm not a fan of their reproduction pattern

 

[fishorama]

I much prefer pool filter sand to play sand. Cory habrosus are a good choice...but you're pretty much maxed out w/a betta & those 6 or 8 habbys in a 10g...get them & call it quits...you're done stocking a 10g. But that can be awesome!

 

[myswtsins]

Yup, I think the betta, a nerite and a group of habrosus will be perfect, as long as he tolerates them. I also prefer pool filter sand over play sand, not just for looks but for piece of mind. If you only use a thin layer of sand, less than 1.5" and mix it up when you vacuum you will not need any snails to mix the sand. Although MTS are my favorite "pest" snail and the slowest to reproduce IME.

Good choices and good researching!

 

[Nicole29]

I've tried to look up where to buy pool filter sand (I'm in the UK) and I'm having difficulty without having to resort to ebay (which I don't entirely trust) and it's about the same price as in the LFS I believe so might have to go with the play sand although I do prefer the pool filter sand.