does anyone have problems with their female bettas?

Question

I just bought a female betta to add to my ten gallon. There are three other fish in the tank (what kind cannot be disclosed to preserve the generality of the answers, but no they're not bettas nore do they look like bettas). Okay the thing is when I sat her little cup by the tank she stared very intently at the other fish, they took all of her attention. I can't tell if she is flaring at them because her fins are so short (common trait of females) and she is my first betta. Or could she just really want to get to know her new fish friends. I just don't want to start any fishy drama. What do you think?

Answer 1

bettas are a lot more inquisitve than other fish. mine spend a lot of time staring at me while i am on my computer and if i am watching them they love to have staring contests. flaring isn't really a sign of atacking. all bettas are territorial male or female. hopefully you have something in the tank she can find to call her new home. they like plants with broad leaves they can rest on, they like plants near the surface and some of mine like having little cups and cubbies on the bottom. female bettas generally aren't a problem. they will tear up goldfish, angelfish, some gouramies -- anything that messes with her can expect to get the wrath of a betta. a fish twice their size will usually keep them in their place though. bettas aren't really community fish. you can keep them with very timid fish like small tetras and rasboras.

Answer 2

In multiple states, I've had problems with many pet stores selling male bettas as female bettas.

Male bettas with short fins do exist. They are used mainly in asian countries for gambling, and are therefore slightly more agressive. Personally, I like the short finned males better than the long finned ones, but that's me.

Without knowing what your fish are, it is hard to tell whether they will be OK. Many people claim bettas are OK with all kinds of fish, but in general, I've had major trouble keeping bettas with anything brightly colored or excessively finny. I've never had a betta that can live peacefully with neon tetras or fancy tail guppies.

I've also had unexpected trouble with mollies nibbling off the fins of bettas.

However, I have had a great deal of luck keeping bettas with virtually every kind of bottom feeder. They may get slightly interested in corydoras and plecos, but when the betta gets too close, these fish bat them with their tails, and swim away, and that's that. Neither one ever seriously injurs the other.

As for your fish, here's some questions
1: Are the fish brightly colored? especially if blue, green, red, or orange?

2: Do the fish wiggle their tail fins a lot?

3: Do the fish spend most of their time in the top two thirds of the tank, or eat flake food?

4: Are the fish schooling fish?

If you have answered yes to two or more of these answers, your betta MAY not get along with the fish, but all bettas are different, and fortunately, if a problem arises, you can keep your betta in a rather small fish bowl or other container. Such betta warehousing is not the nicest way to keep a betta, but you won't need to by a whole new tank right away..

Problems generally become obvious within the first week of keeping them together, and casualties usually occur one at a time. Try putting the betta in for some time whlie you can observe the behavior closely. If you have to go to bed, or work, and are uncertain, net the betta, and put her in separate storage until you are ready to observe again.

Answer 3

Females can be aggressive, and yes they can flare. I have 7 in my betta sorority right now. They will assert their status when added to a new tank. Sometimes you get a really aggressive one who does more than flare and pose, I've had my share of killer females. I suggest you wait it out. If you have barbs or gouramis you may have a problem anyway, barbs are fin nippers and gouramis are in the same family as bettas and will fight with bettas.

Answer 4

i have seen several female bettas together in one fish tank at the pet stores before so i dont know if u have to keep them seperate from other fishes or what but i do know that u must keep the males alone or they will kill everything else my advice would be to go ahead and put her in the tank but watch her for a few minutes to make sure she dont start anything with the other fishes and if she does jusst put her back in lil cup thing

Answer 5

Oh man, I had 4 female bettas and they were a nightmare! I was assured that they could live peacfully with each other. And then they started to attack, kill and eat each other (yes, I had been feeding them). She probably isn't flaring - her fins are naturally like that. Try incorporating her while you have time to watch the tank for any aggressive behavior. Doing this a few times may help her get aquainted without becoming an angel of death like my dear Sophia.

Answer 6

The males are the fighters, but if she gets too aggressive with the other fishies, Isolate her.