Betta fish vs Community aquarium

I'm wondering your guys personal preference on whether you prefer having just one Betta fish vs a community aquarium.What do you prefer.I have had numerous tetras, guppies, and a dwarf gourami among other invertebrates.I have also had 2 betta fish which have had very unique personalities.I'm considering getting a 20 gallon glofish aquarium set up with 6 white skirted tetras and 6 zebra danios.However the past fish (excluding the guppies) didn't seem to have to much personality compared to my betta's. Any good community fish suggestions that could comfortably fit into a 20 gallon aquarium or should I get a new Betta fish.(I'm getting back into wanting an aquarium again and currently don't have any fish).Thanks and have a wonderful day

 

How about a honey gourami or a bolivian ram or GBR.

 

I've seen loads of videos of community tanks with bettas in and they have all claimed it worked great, I am sure if the betta is kept with calm tank mates and none of them look like bettas it will work!

I would be way too scared to try it myself, mostly because I don't drive and all my LFS are kind of far and it would be a pain returning the fish, but many seem to have pulled it off. I do think they like to be alone though.

I do love the look of a good sized planted tank with a betta in though, I've seen 20 gallon tank with a single betta in and it was incredibly happy looking. I should mention the tank was really heavily planted too.

 

Welcome to fishlore!
I have both! But I prefer having a community. Bettas are too unpredictable to be in communities. Some can be fine for 2 years then suddenly kill the rest of it's tankmates. Or it gets attacked by it's tankmates.

 

I haven't seen any Rams at my lfs and I don't want to spend a lot for shipping especially because of the recent weather I'll look further into the honey gourami though .... Any other suggestions?

 

Is it a 20 gallon long or high?

 

I would either just get a 5 galling betta live planted tank or a 20 gallon community do u overall prefer a Berta fish solo or community?

20 g high I'd be to scared and would have to have a backup tank for the betta too

 

Actually, I like my bettas better than my community fish. They're more interactive and social with their owners. And plus, they're a lot prettier than most Freshwater community fish, imo! If you wanted to go with a betta community though, I'm not against it! I have a link to a betta tank mates thread in my signature.

How rude of me, forgot to say, welcome to Fish Lore! Pleasure to meet ya!

 

I remember when my betta jumped in the filter to get my attention and I had to push him back in the tank lol they definitely are more interactive I was just wondering if there are any community fish with lots of personality too as I haven't seen any nice to meet you to

 

I made the mistake of using a siphon hose (albeit a small one) for a water change when I first set up my Betta tank. She decided to get too close to the end and got sucked up into the hose. Crazy fish. :shock:

 

What happened to the betta after that tartersauce

 

What happened to the betta after that @

Pulled the siphon out to release suction and she fell back in the tank. Is fine to this day, just crazy there for a second, luckily there is mesh between the intake hose and the siphon bulb, so she didn't go to far.




Meta the Betta photo.

 

Wow lol yeah I'll probably get another betta fish as they always have different personalities and it's fun to train them to do tricks too thank you all for the advice I appreciate it

 

I think bettas are some of the most fun fish out there if you want something with personality. I don't know if it's possible in a 20 high, but could a sorority work (haven't done enough research on them to know if this is viable)? Then the OP could have a few fish and have bettas.

 

Why don't you do both? Rally if you get a betta, a calm one, then you can do both. I had a very big crown tail with 4 Mickey mouse platies, 12 guppies and an angel fish, and he was fine.

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Why don't you do both? Rally if you get a betta, a calm one, then you can do both. I had a very big crown tail with 4 Mickey mouse platies, 12 guppies and an angel fish, and he was fine.

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Because even 'calm ones' can have their issues at some point.

 

If you really want a betta, what about non-fish tankmates? Like snails or ghost shrimp.

I think if you had a lot of plants and other hiding spaces, especially in a 20 gallon, you could probably safely have ghost shrimp. Some people have good luck with bettas and ghost shrimp. Personally I didn't, but a lot of my shrimp seemed to die from other causes anyway. Ghost shrimp are pretty cheap, so it's not like it's a big cost if it doesn't work out. And snails seem to be pretty safe tankmates, so you can throw a couple of those in.

 

If you really want a betta, what about non-fish tankmates? Like snails or ghost shrimp.

I think if you had a lot of plants and other hiding spaces, especially in a 20 gallon, you could probably safely have ghost shrimp. Some people have good luck with bettas and ghost shrimp. Personally I didn't, but a lot of my shrimp seemed to die from other causes anyway. Ghost shrimp are pretty cheap, so it's not like it's a big cost if it doesn't work out. And snails seem to be pretty safe tankmates, so you can throw a couple of those in.

Might I point out, I had a fairly horrible experience with ghost shrimp. I bought some from Petsmart, and they shredded my betta's fins. I'm assuming/hoping that they were whisker shrimp, but in any case, it's safe to say that I won't be trying again with "ghost" shrimp. I think snails would be a much better choice. I haven't tried snails with bettas, but at least you can rest assured that they won't try to shred anyone's fins.

 

I have 2 Nerite snails in with my Betta and everyone has been fine.

 

I'd say betta! You could do a sorority.. I love mine or you could drill some black acrylic and use those as dividers and divide the tank for males based on how big the tank is! I have a 20 long divided into 3 sections.. 5 gallons, 10 gallons, 5 gallons. Both the 5 gallon sections have one male and the 10 gallon section has my sorority

 

I've seen loads of videos of community tanks with bettas in and they have all claimed it worked great, I am sure if the betta is kept with calm tank mates and none of them look like bettas it will work!

I would be way too scared to try it myself, mostly because I don't drive and all my LFS are kind of far and it would be a pain returning the fish, but many seem to have pulled it off. I do think they like to be alone though.

I do love the look of a good sized planted tank with a betta in though, I've seen 20 gallon tank with a single betta in and it was incredibly happy looking. I should mention the tank was really heavily planted too.

I had a very calm Betta in my 20gal long that recently passed away. He never bothered or flared at anyone. But, the new betta I got a few days ago is a totally different story. He swims very, very fast and darts towards the platties and even my oto cats! I had to take him out, he is in a 5gal bucket with a heater and filter until my neons in my quarantine tank are good to go in my 20.

 

I had a very calm Betta in my 20gal long that recently passed away. He never bothered or flared at anyone. But, the new betta I got a few days ago is a totally different story. He swims very, very fast and darts towards the platties and even my oto cats! I had to take him out, he is in a 5gal bucket with a heater and filter until my neons in my quarantine tank are good to go in my 20.

Bettas are all unique individuals, definitely more so then any other fish.

 

some will definitely be more aggressive then others. I had one that would chase fish for one second, then stop chasing and eat a snail. I also know someone who has 3 male bettas in a 40g, with multiple females. A few females had ripped fins from breeding, but other then that they are fine. They are over 3-4 years old. She raised many of them herself. They are also wild type.
I know some one that has a super aggressive betta that attacks everything in a tank.
The point is bettas have so much personality, its crazy. You can't judge them on the behavior of a different individual IMO.

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