I'm new....cycling....guide me oh wise ones :)
- Thread starter Patty1980
- Start date
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
Sorry, I completely missed this post somehow.
They should be fine in the Tupperware in a few weeks, provided you at least stick an airstone in there. You'll need to clean it regularly and do water changes because the Tupperware in itself will try to begin cycling but they at least won't be subjected to the ammonia of the shrimp. Just an FYI from my own very personal experience. Snails may help keep the tank clean, but this benefit is canceled out by how much waste they produce. CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY amounts of waste. They're cute, but man. *whew*
They should be fine in the Tupperware in a few weeks, provided you at least stick an airstone in there. You'll need to clean it regularly and do water changes because the Tupperware in itself will try to begin cycling but they at least won't be subjected to the ammonia of the shrimp. Just an FYI from my own very personal experience. Snails may help keep the tank clean, but this benefit is canceled out by how much waste they produce. CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY amounts of waste. They're cute, but man. *whew*
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
Your tank is 5 gallons, right? You can keep a few shrimp in there, or a few snails, or a single betta. The only other fish I know of that can live in a five gallon is a Dario Dario (scarlet badis), a so-called "micro fish." They're TINY TINY and you could have a nice little shoal. Otherwise, 5 gallons are typically only recommend for bettas.Edit: Just found this AA blog on Darios.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f29/scarlet-badis-dario-dario-by-godfan-193708.html
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
Definitely. A five gallon is only really suitable for one fish, unless it's the micros I mentioned. Bettas are solitary animals anyway and don't typically do well with tankmates. Male bettas can be extremely aggressive, in particular, with anything they view as competition. You could also have a few large shrimp in the tank with him, as they don't add almost anything to the bioload. Not saying you wouldn't see aggression, but shrimp and snails are the only real success stories I've heard of tankmates for bettas in 5 gallon tanks. In a 10 gallon, there are a few other possibilities.
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
I'm glad to be able to help. Let me doublecheck with a betta expert on how to go about introducing everyone to each other. I'd say your 2 snails, one shrimp, and a betta would be fully stocked, but I'll also check on that. Back in a bit with an answer.
Let me doublecheck with a betta expert on how to go about introducing everyone to each other. I'd say your 2 snails, one shrimp, and a betta would be fully stocked, but I'll also check on that. Back in a bit with an answer.
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
Right. Betta experts have now been consulted ... the consensus is as follows. Some bettas tolerate shrimp. Others do not. As in, you have more or less a 50/50 chance of having the shrimp eaten. Amano shrimp are your best bet, if you do choose to go the shrimp route. Amanos can apparently get as big as a full-grown betta, which greatly increases their chance of survival. One big problem is when the shrimp molts. At that point, he has no body armor and is totally vulnerable, so you would need to make sure he had a very good hiding place until his new exoskeleton solidified again.
Snails--do you know what kind you have, by any chance?
Snails--do you know what kind you have, by any chance?
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
I'm decidedly not a snail expert, but those look like mystery snails to me. Does that sound right?
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
.... mystery snails grow to be about 2 inches big. They produce a ton of waste. I just put the numbers into aqadvisor.com and the betta and the 2 snails have your stocking level at maximum capacity. Ghost shrimp contribute almost no bioload at all (way less than even Amanos) so you could try 2 extremely large ones, if you want to risk it.
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
Every single other person who has ever owned fish has said the exact same thing, believe me. Bigger is better in fishkeeping. Better for the fish and way better and more fun for you. Someday you might consider a 10 gallon from Walmart. They run $15, with an included filter, and give you more space to play with. A 20 or 30 is way better, definitely, but the 10 gallons are super inexpensive.
Greta1981
Aquarium Advice Freak
*exciting!!!*
Your tank looks beautiful!
