I have a female beta who seems very lonely and lazy and I was wondering if she can live with other types of fish in a regular aquarium? say something non aggressive like platy or molly...
2007-03-23 07:27:06 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
The myth that fighting fish will kill other fish put with them is that; a myth. If anything the Beta is a pretty weak fish and it's long fins make it a target for most other fish.
That being said one wonders why they are called fighting fish at all? This is because male beta's put together will fight to the death (sometimes these fights will rage for days till one fish submits) Male and female beta's will not go together (9 times out of 10) as the male can be excessivly rough on the female in an attempt to mate with her. However 2 females will usualy happily co-exist without any problem.
Furthermore the fighting fish can be kept with some other fish, for example guppies, tetras or small catfish such as bristle nose or Cory's and yes indeed platys and mollys.
However this depends on many things tank size, heating and filtration. If however you would like to keep other fish with your Beta then have a minimum of a 10 gal (I think in australia we call it a 2 footer) and keep corys and tetras in groups of 6 or more. I've not kept mollys or platies before so reserch their optimal living conditions and be sure you can meet it. Have a suitable filter and heater (hang on back or undergravel would be best, note that under gravel can be noisy. if it's in a bedroom go with the hang on back and keep the water topped up.)
DO NOT OVERSTOCK YOUR TANK!
Lastly do some research and dont rush, rushing usualy leads to dead fish or more money spent in the long term, or worse still a loss of intrest in this amazing hobby.
Visit www.fishprofiles.com they will help you with any questions you may have about fish keeping and are a great bunch of folks.
Ask lots of questions before you do anything and do plenty of research.
Lastly your fish is likley not lazy or bored, just cold. put her somewhere warm and she will flare up alittle more.
2007-03-23 14:39:14 · answer #1 · answered by roberto 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Fighting Bettas, regardless male or female will always looks lonely, lazy or move very little. It 's natural cos' they are slow moving fishes, especially the males due to their long finage...
It's best to separate this type of fish cos' they like to stay alone and dislike being disturbed. But it's okay to have only ONE male in community tank or several females together.
But please be remindered that some females can be very aggressive. Do not add fin snipper example like tiger barbs as they may cause damage to Betta's fin....
2007-03-23 16:48:58 · answer #2 · answered by donnpoh 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hello, I have had these fish and more then one at a time and had no trouble, and I have a 55 gal. tank and I have a male beta in with all the rest of my fish and have no fighting going on. I have donne this for years and I love having as many color fish in my tank. and since they don't cost that much for beta's I would say go for it That is just me saying what I have and do with my fish and tank. Good luck LINDY
2007-03-23 15:59:52 · answer #3 · answered by lindymann2003 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sure as long as the other fish are non aggressive.
Goldfish and Fancy tail guppies are out though, Goldfish because of the temperature differences they need and Fancy tails because the colors seem to set a male Betta off and he would probably kill them, but your female should be ok with them (fancy tail's that is lol)
Good luck.
E.
2007-03-23 14:32:48 · answer #4 · answered by > 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My daughter just bought a beta fish. They can live with other fish, as long as the other fish don't have fancy fins. The beta will chew on them.
2007-03-23 14:48:09 · answer #5 · answered by mkshepherd33 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
YES! I have a male betta living with 2 danios..and as long as the other community fish aren't biters, aren't aggresive and live in the same conditions, its alright. I have 2 Zebra danios..and he loves them, and they love him..I would say to get mpore than 1 danio though..as they have dominance problems, and maybe get a corydoras catfish! Females are just the same, you could evn get 2 more females as they aren't as aggresive 9beware though, don't get a tiny female with a large female for obvious reasons!)
2007-03-23 14:44:28 · answer #6 · answered by evil_loony_leo 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i have a female and a male betta living with gold fish and they do just fine. just make sure that you dont have any dark colored fish because those will probably be killed by the male betta, and dont put them in with ghost shrimp(they like to snack on them) to be sure that it will work put the betta in with the other fish and watch them closely for awhile. if the betta is being a bully just take it back out.
2007-03-23 14:56:12 · answer #7 · answered by Courtney T 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
You bet she can. The only thing to avoid is putting her with male bettas or with bad fin nippers like tiger barbs.
MM
2007-03-23 14:57:24 · answer #8 · answered by magicman116 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes they can live with other fish, but talk to someone at a pet store about which kinds because you can't just mix any fish together
2007-03-23 14:35:11 · answer #9 · answered by lilian 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Female bettas can live peacefully with other community fish.
Males are the ones that usually show too much aggression, to be in a community tank.
2007-03-23 14:31:47 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋