Bettas and Mollies?

[smbrate]

I have a 1 gallon tank. I put a large goldfish, a black molly and a dalmatian molly in there. I'm not sure if the color is a difference in how aggressive they are, but that dalmatian molly keeps nipping at the other fish!! i think it has nearly killed the molly, and I can see where the big goldfish is raw-looking on the side (i don't recall it being pink, he was white!)

With that being said, i'm getting a 5 gallon so I can put my goldfish in there with (if it lives long enough) the other molly. But my dalmatian molly will not be invited. I don't want to waste the small tank on just him- can i put a betta in with him (male, i would like a colorful one)? I would say he's aggressive enough!!??

 

[JohnPaul]

Um...

There are about a thousand answers to give you, and all of them are variations on the word "NO."

A 1 gallon tank is honestly too small for even one fish. A 5 gallon is only large enough for one of the fish you mentioned at adult size. Well, except for the goldfish, which as it grows is eventually going to need 20 gallons just to himself because goldfish are notoriously messy. Plus the fact that mollies are tropical fish and need warm temperatures, whereas goldfish are "cold water" fish that need cooler temperatures. So they need two different tank conditions and should never be mixed.

None of those fish should be aggressive, but you are seeing aggression because you are confining them in spaces way, way, way too small for them. Even "peaceful" fish become aggressive when they are overcrowded.

Mollies as they grow to adult size should not be kept in anything less than a 10g tank, as they can grow up to 4" in length. If you put your two mollies in a 10g tank with some plants, etc. to break up sight lines, they should get along just fine. A 5g tank is large enough to house two mollies if they are both juveniles (maybe 1" or 1.5" long), but not two adults. So the 5g could be a temporary solution until you are able to buy a more appropriately-sized tank.

Don't even remotely think of buying any more fish until you have a much larger aquarium or aquariums.

 

[DragonFish71]

+1


JohnPaul is right.

You're seeing problems because you have such a small area for them and they are crowded. Think of it like this, would you like to live in a 1foot by 1foot room with 3 other people day in and day out? Doubtful right? You'd start getting aggressive too. Now what if one of those people has a glandular problem and started growing, and growing and growing. More doubtful right? How about all of you in this 1 X 1 room have to live in your own waste. Ever worse right?

Yeah, that's what fish do. In bowls and tanks they swim in their own waste too. The smaller the bowl or tank, the more crowded they get and the more their waste will build up. Having more fish than a container can maintain is akin to what I suggested above.

 

[BigJim]

+2 Sorry to have to break the bad news to you, but these guys are right. I'm sure when you bought these tanks, you were told that you could keep a goldfish in them. I cringe when I see tiny tanks labeled as "Goldfish Starter Kit" in the stores.

Hold off getting the 5g. Get a 10g or a 20g instead. Go even bigger if you can.

A slim-bodied goldfish (common, comet, etc.) needs tons of room. When fully grown, a pond is really the smallest suitable enclosure for a slim-bodied goldfish. A round-bodied goldfish can be ok in a 30g, but that's by himself. You'll need more water volume if you want more fish. Unless you can get a bigger tank, you'd be best of rehoming the goldfish as soon as possible.

Mollies can get large as well. Wild-type mollies can hit 6"+. Your varieties can reach 4". A 10g would be the absolute minimum for these fish.

The 1g is impractical for any type of adult fish. It could make a decent shrimp tank though. The 5g could house a single betta. 5g is the smallest tank I'd put any fish in and I don't even like to do that.

If your LFS has free water testing, bring them a sample. See what your water parameters are and I'm willing to bet that you'll see that your fish are swimming in high concentrations of their own waste. Don't feel too badly. You've just made a couple of common beginner mistakes.