akamel

I had always thought that bettas "preferred" small tanks--like a 1 gal tank. This is wrong isnt it?? I got a male betta while back and had it in a 1 gal fish bowl--no aeration or heater or anything. But I was always told that they preferred this and now Im hearing different! Have I been stressing him ? Can I put him in 10 gal with a gourami?? What are the best conditions for him ?

CHoffman

I think that most people have made this very mistake...This is a great place to start.
Read this and ask as many questions as you need to. Were all here to help.
Welcome and Betta Care Guide - Please Read First!!!

Lucy

Great link from Cesch!
Gouramis and Bettas are too closely related to live together.
They do best on their own, and should have a filtered, cycled, heated tank of their own.
Bettas are wonderful fish. Too bad pet stores don't advise people better about them

akamel

so would he be better off in the 1 gal fishbowl as oppossed to the 10 gal with gourami ??

iloveengl

I understand where you are coming from. I found this site after my little Esmie died and found out that I had been taking care of her all wrong. I know at Walmart they sell ready-to-go 5 gallon sets that are perfect for bettas because they are heated and filtered and come with a hood and light...all for $28, I think. They have 10 gallon version too, but they cost more.

Lucy

If he's put in with the Gourami someone could get hurt or killed.
However, a 1g bowl isn't a proper home either. He's a tropical fish who needs warm water and room to swim.
I hate to recommend anything less than 5g's but some have luck keeping them in as little as 2.5
Walmart also has 3g tanks for about $20.00, just need a heater. It's not an ideal shape for a betta, but better than a bowl.

akamel

thanks! I am just not sure what to do... are there any good tank mates for him? i could go and buy another 10gal

Lucy

Some members have luck with corys, otos or a snail. Otos do best in an established tank though.
It depends on the Betta whether he/she would accept them or not.
Or.......you could get a 10g and divide it and get 2 bettas.

Here's Shawnie's instuctions Dividing a tank for betta's..fun and low cost

chickadee

I will say that if you are going to keep the betta alone and it is you feeling the need for tank mates for him, not him, then a 3 gallon tank is okay. But not if you are going to put in even one more tiny fish, then it needs to be at least a 5 gallon.

In a 5 gallon he can have 2 otos but it will need real plants and to be cycled FIRST.

In a 10 gallon he can have 3 small cories or 4 otos.

Other fish that can be put with them in different sized tanks are small plecos, kuhli loaches, dwarf loaches, cardinal tetras (not neons), ONE Mystery or Apple snail.

Fish and Inverts to avoid: Barbs, Gouramis, danios, neons, guppies, mollies, platies, shrimp of all types, sharks, swords, rasboras, hatchets, angels, crab, lobster, any other fish with long or flowing fins, any other semi-aggressive or territorial fish, goldfish.

some of the fish listed are hostile to the betta and some are in danger from the betta. Some are questionable and best not to try unless you are willing to lose one of both of them.

uprightandlocked

I'll be honest with you ... my betta Aadyn James lived by himself in a 10g tank. At first, I thought it was going to be a big waste of a 10 gallon tank. Why could one fish possibly need all of that room?

Well guess what. After going back and forth debating about finding him compatible tank mates ... I realized that I was truly enjoying him swim back and forth, up and down, over and through things. The tank didn't look too big for one small fish. It almost looked too small!

Aadyn loved having all of that space and his personality was so alive when he was in his home. Sadly, I lost Aadyn James recently. I redid his tank and it now houses 6 red cherry shrimp.

The moral of this story is: Your betta will not look out of place in a 10g by himself. He'll probably love you more for it.

akamel

thanks everyone ! Ok so I will get him a ten gal and maybe some friends.

COBettaCouple

If you can find the 6.6g bookshelf tanks that petco sells (and some online stores), I'd recommend that for a betta over a 10g tank. The 6.6g bookshelf tank gives a betta a longer horizontal run and a shorter trip to go to the surface for air.

As far as tankmates go, I recommend none.. a betta tends to like having their own tank and prefer interaction with us more than other fish. I'd put a betta's tank in the busiest part of a home, they have such curiousity.

scatty

I agree that bettas love lots of activity around them - especially us. I had cory cats in with my guy and they got along famously, he really seemed to enjoy interacting with them, but a couple of them were naughty corys and nibbled his fins a little. He's currently in a 5g on his own with lots of plants to lie in and things to swim under and around. He seems to enjoy his furniture being rearranged and inspects everything intricately.