I have 1 male betta fish. Is it alright if i put another male betta in with him or should i put in a female?

Question

The male i have is small. I have a 1 gallon tank.

Answer 1

Because of the aggressive nature of this species, tankmates must be chosen carefully, and two male B. splendens should not be housed in the same tank unless they are separated by a dividing wall. As a general rule, male Bettas cannot be housed together. It is possible to house two male bettas in a single very large tank, provided that there is plenty of cover (such as floating plants) and enough space for both males to establish their own territories. However, this is an extremely risky procedure because of the male's natural territoriality. These experiments in housing males together often end in the death of one or both inhabitants of the tank. (Male bettas do not 'fight to the death' in the wild; once one fish has clearly won the encounter, the loser will retreat to a safe location. In an aquarium, however, there is no place to run, and the winning fish will continue to attack the loser, often ending in death.)

While they might eventually mate, keeping a male and female together may prove too volatile since the male will often be much more aggressive and mating conditions must be precisely conducive. Often, breeders have a special container so the female may display without being harmed by the male prior to induced breeding.

Females may or may not be able to coexist peacefully in the same tank depending on their temperaments. They are not schooling fish, and are still rather aggressive, but with enough room and many hiding spaces, they can learn to get along. There should never be exactly two female bettas in a tank together—a pecking order, a hierarchy, is necessary for them to live peacefully. With only two fish, one will be the bully and the other will be picked on. However, with three or more, a hierarchy is established.

Before co-housing Siamese fighting fish with other species, their compatibility should be carefully researched, and the owner should have a back-up plan if the shared tank does not work. Although bettas are most aggressive towards each other, they have been known to kill very small fish or nip at the fins of fish such as fancy guppies; often, the betta will mistake their finnage for that of another male fish and attack the guppy. Certain fish should not be housed with bettas. Schooling fish often become fin-nippers, making the betta a prime target because of their flowing fins. Also, aggressive fish like barbs should not be around bettas. Keepers have also reported problems when attempting to keep Betta in the company of piranha, for obvious reasons. It is strongly recommended that bettas given tankmates should be housed in a tank that is at least 35 litres (10 US gallons) with plenty of hiding places. Anything smaller will stress the Betta.

Common tankmates include mollies, catfish, or loaches. However, care should be taken when choosing tankmates, as certain species of fish attack the long fins of the male betta. The key is that the respective species is not aggressive and will not spurn a betta's aggression as well as thriving in similar set-ups. For instance, apple snails should not be kept with bettas because the water condition will cause the deterioration of a snail's shell and snails are sometimes known to latch onto a betta's fins causing damage.

Answer 2

Neither; bettas are also called Siamese Fighting Fish, for a reason. They are very territorial and will fish with other males. They will also fight with females. The only time a betta fish, male or female, should be with another betta fish is during breeding, and even then, many females are injured during breeding.

Also, 1 gallon is way to small to accomodate anything else... It is even too small for one betta (I would not keep a betta in anything smaller than 5 gallons) - however if you clean the water frequently (almost daily) and if the water is someplace that it is warm, it should be okay...

If you want tankmates for your betta, you will need a bigger tank. If you got a 5 gallon tank, you could get a couple african dwarf frogs:
http://www.fishpondinfo.com/frog4.htm
In a 10 gallon tank, you could have your betta and a school of small tetras like neon tetras or harlequin rasboras.

Answer 3

NEVER, EVER put 2 male bettas 2gether, unless u want them both dead. A 1 gal. tank might be a little small 4 two fish. If ur getting another fish, you might want 2 get a bigger tank. If u get another betta, be sure to introduce them slowly, don't just dump them both in, and leave 4 work. Instead, try pouring water from his into hers, and water from hers into his, so they get used to each other. ONly put the male and female 2gether for a little while, bcuz if the male wants 2 mate, but the female doesn't, the female may be dead in a few days. good luck!

Answer 4

Male bettas will kill each other if they can get to each other. However they really fan and flare their beautiful fins at each other. If you have them in separated small betta tanks in the same fish tank they really put on a show. Best bet is to read up on them. For instance did you know they do better in water that is not aerated?

Answer 5

Never put two males together. They will kill each other. You can only put a female in for about 24 hours until they mate them the male will kill the female. Male bettas are solitary fish.

Answer 6

Do Not Ever put two male beta fishes together because they will kill each other. Try reading some books on beta fish and do some research before adding a female.

Answer 7

You should not put 2 betas together. They will fight. The only time the males and females don't kill each other is when they breed, but will fight shortly after. If you want to put another fish in with the beta, put an algae eater with it.

Answer 8

If you just put another betta in there the male will kill it you should put a female and another male then they will all get along and there will be no fightin

Answer 9

I have always heard that you never combine two male beta fish. They fight and one will eat the other. Talk to the local fish expert at petsmart or wherever you go.

Answer 10

NO, beta fish are also called fighting fish. If you put them together they will fight eachother untill they die. Keep them seperate. If you don't belive me put a mirror up to the glass and hold it there until the fish sees itself, watch how it puffs up and gets ready to fight...