JCR

I have read and seen photos of betta's in a tank filled with fish. Now I know Betta's are aggressive, but are they only aggressive towards other male Betta's or are these people just crazy for putting Betta's into a community fish tank...

sgould

You have to be careful and keep an eye on them, but Bettas can be kept with other fish. Best chance for success is to put them with fish that have "normal" size fins...large fins can trigger their aggression. It also depends a bit on the individual fish. Some people have had better luck than others.

COBettaCouple

It's kind of like playing the lottery.. some Bettas have personalities that are more mellow and can get along with a number of peaceful low-mid level fish and some just won't put up with any intruders. And sometimes you see a picture of a Betta in a tank like that - it's the BEFORE and you don't see the AFTER pic. Cory cats and otos seem the most likely to be accepted by Bettas.

JCR

Thanks guys for your response.. So I guess I won't throw a betta in with my Angels..

Butterfly

Thats not a real good idea no
carol

timg

I never really gave it a thought when I put my bettas into the tanks, other than to avoid like types. My six bettas are all mixed with other fish, including danios, which have a reputation for fin-nipping, but neither of the males have had any problems. It may be that I am just lucky, or perhaps it has to do with the way I introduced the fish, I don't know.

The only time I have seen any aggression from the betta was when Jack, the dwarf gourami was building a bubble nest and Mr. Ching, the betta, wanted to inspect it. (He has to check everything in the tank, he's a really nosey parker!). Jack wasn't happy about that, and the two of them had a little chase around. Mr. Ching stayed out of the way for a while after that, but then when he came back, he went straight for Jack and let him know he wasn't going to be bullied. They both get on fine again now!