thoughts on stocking

[asparagus]

Ok, no fish yet (waiting to come back from vacation next week). Have a 29 gal filled (water and decorations, no fish) and am about to fill and "decorate" a 5 gallon minibow (has filter and heater). Others are just options Ive thought about. I have 2 10 gallons hiding out in the trunk of my car (dont let my husband know!!! )
Please let me know your opinons on these combos!

What do you think of a male betta, 2 adf and a mystery snail in a 5 gallon mini bow?
Too much? Think they'd kill each other? Sounds like a really really fun tank to me, lots to see and do, but I know so little. Id be heartbroken if someone died or got hurt b/c they didnt get along.

Im thinking also maybe a 10 gallon w/ 4 adfs and 2-3 mystery snails and a platy or two.

Or a 10 gallon split into 2 (or 3) with 2 (or 3) male bettas separated by that mesh tank divider. Would put a snail maybe in each?

Or, a male betta and 3 cories in the 5 gallon minibow.

Just kind of thinking up new community tanks for myself. grin

I think Ive finalized my 29 gallon will be as follows:
8 platys
4 female bettas
2 black mollies
5 panda cories
2 apple snails
Sound good? Would you put anything else in there? What would eat the livebearers fry before I could see them?
Would ADFs go in there?

If I dont kill any (many?) fish within a month or so, I might get a 35 gallon hex for my family room.
Oh, Im cycling with biospira- my LFS heartily recommended it.

Thanks!
asparagus (nancy)

 

[Menagerie]

[center:32151b9856] Welcome to AA, Nancy asparagus!! [/center:32151b9856]

Oh, Im cycling with biospira- my LFS heartily recommended it.

You don't need to cycle with it! With biospira, you can put the fish in immediately. The bacteria in the biospira needs to eat (fish provide the food )

I'm sorry I dont' have more time to respond. The only thing that caught my eye was 4 female bettas in one tank. I have tried on more than one occassion in both 29 and 50 gal tanks to have two female bettas. Nasty witches!! One member has 3 in her tank, but I think she is lucky. Plus platies and mollies can long/big. That stocking option maybe pushing it for a 29 gal.

 

[rubysoho]

Hehe, I'm the lucky member with the three, but two aren't fully grown yet so I am still keeping my fingers crossed. I think it can be done, but you need 3 or more (kinda like other dominant fish need to be kept in larger groups to dispurse aggression).

5 gal - I wouldn't suggest ADFs with a male betta only because after two months of living harmoniously in a 5 gallon tank, my male betta started turning on my ADFs and literally pushed them across the tank a few times before I had enough with his bad attitude (he now lives happily in a 10 gallon with 4 danios). Also, I've heard male bettas shouldn't be kept with another fish that might resemble them (a platy), but I'm not 100% sure on that.

10 gal - I like your idea of the platys, ADFs, and snails. What about throwing some fancy guppies in there as well? I think it'd be a very pretty tank

29 gal - why not go with something different in here? You've mentioned platies for the other tanks, you could have a really neat school of 8 tetras to fill up the middle area. A small group of cories, lets say 6, for the ground area, snails, ADFs... and something else to round it off...but I can't think of it right now.

Check out liveaquaria.com because they have loads of fish to look at with quick stats on each. I found it very helpful when I first started (not too long ago ). Just ignore the prices, I think they are way to high

Welcome to AA!!!

 

[asparagus]

My thinking on the female bettas (and feel free to comment, I know nothing at all!!) is that in my lfs (the one I like best, which is over an hour away) keeps them in a single tank. Its a 20 gallon tank and they have about 15-20 females in there. I thought if I watched them for a while and got the "alpha" female plus 2 or 3 others, Id be ok. What do you think?
Im doing the 10 gallon with the adf, apple snails, platys and guppies. Psych! 2 platies and 2 guppies too much? should I just make it a "pair" tank and do 2 of each? That should leave room for the fry...OR I could just get all males and not worry about fry . grin.
I LOVE the colors of platys and female bettas- I was going to have an all guppy tank at some point down the road too. grin.

 

[rubysoho]

alpha status can change as fish grow, so I don't know how much good trying to pic out the alpha will work. Also, you could get an extra aggressive girl and two softies which won't be good for the more "sensative" ones. I think you'll be fine if you pic 3-6 females. I added mine one at a time, but I've heard others who added them all at once. Give lots of hiding spots just in case

 

[asparagus]

Everyone keeps telling me to get hiding places. What exactly do they mean by that? I have several (8) leafy plants, 2 cave like things (ones a tropical reef and ones a log - both made of resin) and a castle wall with holes in it. This is in the 29 gallon. Is that enough hiding spots or am I missing the point?
Thanks!

 

[rubysoho]

haha sorry, sounds like you have a good number of hiding spots.

 

[Jaxom_Ruatha]

It also helps that the female bettas are kept together from very young as they have a pecking order already and it disperses the aggresion well as rubysoho mentioned about aggressive fish. My LFS also display all the female bettas in the same 10+ (I am not quite sure how big it is) gallon tank without dividers and I didn't notice any dead bodies floating around. A group of female bettas is one of my favorite stocking choice that I will use as soon as sircumstances allow me an aquarium, though I am currently content with my dreams of the future and goldfish pond.

 

[asparagus]

In the 5 gallon with the dwarf frogs, is it a minibow 5 with the whisper filter? If I get a male betta and 2 adf's to put in mine, and the adf's dont work out w/ the betta, I might get another mini bow just for them. Im a bit worried about the filter sucking the frogs legs up and breaking them.
Any issues with you there?

 

[rubysoho]

nope, mine are fine with the filter. Oh, and you can always stick the ADFs in the 10 gallon with the other fish who SHOULD leave them alone if it doesnt work out with the betta.

 

[asparagus]

Ok, now we come to the definition of "dosnt work out" . Will the betta hurt the ADFs seriously (or opposite?)? I work all day and am only home in the evenings. I also have 4 cats and 3 small children to take care of. I cant be watching the tank 24/7 altho I plan on spending quite a bit of time there. How severe could "not working out" become and how long do I give them to work it out before I separate?
Thanks

 

[rubysoho]

I am pretty busy myself, but you'll notice the aggression building before it gets serious. The ADFs wont do a thing to you betta, but the betta will start harrassing them. You'll see him corner them, chase them, push them around the tank. When I noticed the cornering in my tank, I first thought my betta was just having a grumpy day. I gave it about a week and then he started pushing them across the tank with his nose. After the third time of seeing that is when I decided they needed to separate. So, I doubt you'll come home to dead/injured frogs (mine were never harmed) all of the sudden. But I won't say it can't happen.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

I had an ADF and never had a problem with him and the filtration unit. The only thing about him was his fascination with escaping.