Good fish type? Tank size? and more questions

[PinkCow]

Hello--I'm new around here!

I have a lot of questions right now, as I'm planning a shopping excursion in a day or so. Any answers are greatly appreciated!


1. To begin with, I live in a dorm room. This unfortunately severely limits the space I have to keep fish, and definately means saltwater is out of the question. Until I manage to get an apartment, which will probably be another year, I'm stuck, and the largest size tank I can fit right now would be a 2.5 to 3.5 gallon. So I was wondering... what kinds of fish would be suited to a small environment like that? Besides bettas? Are there any, or should I just get another betta for my second tank (I have one already)? I'd really like to branch out and get another type, but I don't know what would be the best.

2. I'm really interested in cory catfish, especially the panda kind. I'd love to know how many gallons I'd need for a proper size group of them, for future reference.

3. I really wish I could find space for a good 5 gallon tank, because this would open up a lot more possibilities to me. Are there any that get taller instead of wider, or is this bad for the fish?

4. Finally, the weirdest question I have. This is going to sound really odd. But I was at Wal-mart a few weeks ago and saw a really adorable type of fish in one of their tanks that I thought I would look into. However, for the life of me I cannot remember what kind of fish it was. They were mostly black, with a little bit of white, and their eyes sort of looked like they were going ^^ all the time. I know that's not much to go on, but if anyone knows what I'm talking about or could direct me to a fish database of sorts, it would be great.


Thank you so much in advance for any answers, and I'm sorry for all the questions!

 

[InR reason]

It truly doesn't hurt to ask. You will always find that people differ in their opinions but there is always a uniform line of thinking with most members here who have experience in aquaria. My opnions and answers to your questons:

1) I strongly urge you to get another betta, or to interest things up a bit a couple of females for a 2.5-3.5g tank. If you opt for females watch for the initial bullying which should subise once a "pecking order" is established. And remember to buy a small heater (I use a 25W in my 2.5 and because it is set very low the water stays 78-80F) and a small filter like a Red Sea Nano filter. You will thus create a healthier envronment for your fish.

2) Cory's are cute, and because of each fish's small size you could put one or two in small tanks. However, I wouldn't. They prefer to be kept in groups of 4, 5 or more and that kind of bio-load would require a lager tank.

3) While a 5g high would be a unique idea I'm not so sure it exists. A taller tank is usually found when you reach 15g (like mine) and up. A taller tank is fine for most fish (not all fish- do your research!) provided you have proper filtration/maintenence on it.

4) Possibly an upside-down Catfish, but then again I'm not so sure. They would require a larger aquarium anyway. Keep them in mind when you make the move and get a larger tank. As far as Walmart goes- I would refer to it as "rescuing" the fish as most people who work there don't know anything about aquaria and simply don't care. Make sure you KNOW more about what you want before you rescue (yes, rescue!) a fish from that place. Don't rely on anyone working there to be honest in their knowledge.

I wish you luck- and don't hesitate to let us know how you make out or if you have any more questions.

 

[joylynn]

For something a little different for a 2.5-3.5 G tank you could do an invert tank with a couple of cherry shrimp or 6 or so ghost shrimp. I love shrimp and have a 1G with 3 ghost shrimp and a bamboo shrimp in my 5G. I wouldn't recommend bamboo shrimp for you, they get too big and I will have to move mine eventually, but some of the other smaller shrimp varieties could be cool. You might be able to do African Dwarf Frogs in that size too, not sure, I have never had any of those.

 

[PinkCow]

Thank you for the answers! They're much appreciated.

In response to the couple of female bettas in a 2.5-3.5 gallon tank, is that a plausible setup? I've heard that you should keep odd numbers of females so they don't "gang up" on just one, but I don't know how much truth that has in it.

In response to the African Dwarf Frogs, while I had greatly wanted a pair of them originally, I looked up my dorm's rules and found that "no pets except fish" is how it goes... and I don't want to risk a housing inspector catching the frogs and not realizing they are aquatic.

Also, I have a used 1-gallon tank that used to be the home for my male betta. Can this be used for any single new fish, or is it too small? My betta outgrew it, so I felt like a single female betta might be the only choice. Is there anything else, other than a hospital tank, that it could be used for?

Thank you so much for all the help.

 

[Ms.Bubbles]

I strongly urge you to get another betta, or to interest things up a bit a couple of females for a 2.5-3.5g tank.

3) While a 5g high would be a unique idea I'm not so sure it exists.

I don't recommend putting 2 bettas into a little 2.5 gallon tank. Even one in a 2.5g is pushing things IMO.

5 gallon "hex" tanks are taller, and would support one betta, or 2 or 3 male endlers (they're a relative of the guppy, very tiny, colourful and active).

 

[PinkCow]

Thank you for the help!

I think I'm just being too picky in this situation, because I can't seem to find any fish that I would like to keep in a tank of that size. And I might be able to get a 5 gallon, but again, it's not much bigger. While I love the betta I have now, I wish I could get a different kind of fish for my other tank, but I think I'm going to be restricted to bettas until I can get a tank bigger than even 5 gallons.

I had entertained the idea of a dwarf puffer until I read that they eat snails, which I would have no direct acces to. I do wish I could keep a female betta with a group of panda corys, but I know 5 gallons is not enough for something like that, so it will have to be a future goal of mine.

I'm still searching for a fish that will do well in no less than 2.5 and no more than 5 gallons, though!

 

[joylynn]

If you can find them there is a fish called the "least killiefish" that are tiny and you could keep several in a tank of that size. I would search on the term "least killiefish" on this website, there is one member who is a huge fan of them, but can't remember hte name off the top of my head.

 

[Woofy]

hey, i think i know something unique you can keep in a small tank besides a betta. you can keep a dwarf puffer or two maybe, they are really smart and funny and only grow to about1.5" i have one in a 2g and hes so cute. you might need to do more % water changes, but they are really worth the trouble. go to dearfpuffer.com if you want more info.