Aggressive Dwarf Gourami?

T

TJT

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Jan 16, 2005
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I have had to do several returns on albino cory cats lately, and have had 1 platy die and 1 platy looks very bad, and 1 male guppy is acting odd. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites and 20 ppm nitrates and its a 10 gallon, maybe a bit overstocked, with 3 cory cats, 2 oto's, a DG 3 guppies and now 2 platys (Started out with being given the platys and guppies and went from there with what i wanted.) The live bearers are still fairly small and the cory cats arent very large either.
When I was talking to the lady at petsmart-only person there who ever seemed to know what she was talking about-she thought the gourami might be my problem. Any suggestion? He seems fascinated by the algae wafers I drop in for my cory cats and jumps at them when they try to eat it! I havent noticed him messing with the other fish mch other than the remaining platy who hides in my plant all the time, and the DG will go and stare him down.
 
Kind of hoping for an answer soon I am on a very short fuse for putting this fella in a bowl in the freezer
 
Dwarf Gouramis are known to be aggressive-but usually only to other gouramis. However, if the guppies are males with fancy fins, the gourami might consider them a threat. I have male gouramis and platys together and they get along perfectly, bu tim not sure about cories. If i were you I would check for symptoms of a disease- which might be the cause of ur fishes sickness/death.

Is your tank cycled? How does the platy look bad? Oh and gouramis need vegetation too- try feeding him spirulina flakes and he may leave your corys food alone
 
One guppy just got stuck against my filter intake tube. The platy looks very small, skittish, keeps all of his fins tucked in and lays on the gravel not moving much at all
 
I took the gourami out and put him in a bowl. It will stay warm here so he will be fine without a heater for now. We noticed he jumped at the guppies that are always together (male and -preggy- female)
Think I might pull the platy out if he doesnt start to look any better soon, and put him in the freezer. Also want to take the guppies back to the aquarium they came from - I wasnt a huge fan to begin with. Looking at other options for mid-top dwellers to go along with cory cats, ottos in a 10 gallon. Just added another power filter today to compensate for the overload so filtration isnt a problem. Not sure what I want, I love angel fish but afraid I dont have the room for that :( , maybe tiger barb, dwarf puffers.
What should I consider looking at?
 
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Just wanted to let everyone know the DG got another albino cory before I decided to give up on him. He eats their rear rins off apparently and I am going to put this one to sleep before it has to suffer anymore.
 
Gouramis vary so much in their temperments- some can be very shy and skittish, others will be active and personable, and some will be a horrendously aggressive nightmare.

If you got a nightmare fish, try and take it back... Even if you don't get any money, the fish is just doing what fish do. It's not the fish's fault- the aquarium is an artificial environment imposed on it... It's not deliberately trying to wreck your tank, it's just doing what gourami instincts say. Take him back, see if you can exchange him for another fish, and hope for the best. As frustrating as it is, we have to realize that we're putting unpredictable creatures into an artificial environment, and they can react very differently than what is expected of them (or what we want from them).

My paradise fish was fine with cories for months. Then suddenly, he became incredibly aggressive almost overnight. It happens- I sympathize. I wouldn't reccomend the combination of cories with any semi-aggressive fish without MUCH caution and observation.

I'd take your gourami back, and let the tank recover for a while- your livebearers will place an increasing demand on your tank, so it's always good to have some slack in terms of tank capacity.
 
I feel pretty bad but I ended up putting the guy in a butter bowl full of water, and placing it in the freezer. When I got home and looked inside I felt even worse, but I dont think petsmart will be willing to take him back. I would really like to start getting fish from the lfs around here but with the hours they are open and when I work its impossible.
I am rethinking the guppies as well, might want to do like 5 neon tetra's or something.

Unfortunately my bronze cory is dead. No clue why he is, I acclimated him to the tank very slowly saturday, and he shows no signs of damage.
I want to know what are the odds of my albino surviving, or should I put him down humanely? His tailfin is gone, the rear 1/3 or so of his body is pale (in comparison to the albino tone of the rest of the body) and although he still swims, he seems to do it only when he has to otherwise I have seen him lying on his side, upside down a couple times.
 
Gouramis also get very aggresive when building bubble nest or breeding. My two dwarfs in my 72 gallon get along fine except when breeding time comes around. Not only do they get aggresive on each other, but also towards other fish. But they never really do any damage.....
 
depending on what you mean by 'his tail is gone'....
if the fins are gone but he can still move around, you can repair that, if the fin is gone and some of the flesh is also missing, you should probably put him down. get some melafix if you dont'have it. buy a nice big bottle online if you aren't in a rush and save yourself some $$$. it can go pretty quickly. when is the last time you tested your water? how long has it been set up? what is the PH? Ammonia? Nitrtite? Nitrate? KH? Do you have a test kit or are you having Petsmart do it? Do they use seperate tests on the water or do they use the 5 in 1 test strips? the test strips are often way off and give poor readings.

i'd stop buying fish so readily if you can't get it stable. you need to figure out what is wrong with your water before you subject more fish to it. what is left? you put down a handful of your fish, right? unless you let us know what the deal with your water is, it is hard to help further.

you are probably right that the gourami is stressing the other fish to death but you could have a disease in there too.
 
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