Help with my 25 gallon!!!!!???

[Luna09]

Hello,
I have a fully cycled 25 gallon planted fish tank I am looking for opinions on.
Currently it is stocked with:

2 dwarf gouramis
4 pristella tetras
1 male betta
2 Otto cats (had 3 but one passed :'(
1 juvenile gold marble angel fish

Is this overstocked? It looks so bare compared to other tanks I've seen.
My angel is about the size of a toonie. I know she will get ALOT bigger which is why I am hesitant to put anything else in, however I feel like it is missing something.

Any and all suggestions are welcome
Including what you think on plants. The purple leafy thing in the front near the bottom of the tank is a dwarf Lilly. I think once it starts going to the top things might look a lot nicer.

 

[davy 1983]

i know ur angelfish would like some amazon sword plants, they use them as a retreat, iv four amazons in my 50gallon and they use them to lay eggs on aswell. if u were to get more angelfish. but i wouldnt put any more angels in a 25gallon i think its at least a 30gallon for two angels.

 

[LyndaB]

2 dwarf gouramis
4 pristella tetras
1 male betta
2 Otto cats (had 3 but one passed :'(
1 juvenile gold marble angel fish

You're not necessarily overstocked, however, you're poorly stocked.

You shouldn't keep two dwarf gouramis in that small of an environment. They can get really aggressive with each other.

Your tetras need a larger school, 6 is good, 8 is better.

Watch the betta carefully, most do not make good community fish. The angel will most likely attack it, or vice versa.

You need more otos, at least 3, 5 is better.

 

[Luna09]

Nothing is aggressive. Which I was surprised about but the gouramis are pretty much best friends, the stick together and neither is mean to the other. . I've also never had an issue with male bettas in a community, just with other bettas. My LFS has a betta in almost every tank with no issues. I agree about more tetras and ottos but I am seriously thinking about taking the ottos out altogether. I'm not a huge fan and I have no algae. Im going through a lot of zucchini to keep them from starving.
Would 4 more pristellas be about it for my capacity? I take it you think adding another dwarf is a bad idea? It's weird that I haven't had any aggression but eveyone's fins are pristine and there's no chasing being done at all.

 

[LyndaB]

How old is the tank?

It could be that you're not seeing aggression yet if the fish are still juvies.

 

[Luna09]

They are juvenile. I've been reading up on dwarfs and all I've found is that 3-4 are better to even out aggression. So does This plan sound good: buy two more dwarfs and 2-3 more pristella. That would definitely put me at the maximum I want in the tank. I'm used to overcrowded (I have an mbuna tank) and if need be I have a spare filter I can add if the water isn't optimum.

 

[okapizebra]

If you have a spare filter I'd add it on there anyways. Can never go wrong with extra filtration.

I do not know if adding more gouramis would be a good idea. Honestly, it sounds like a disaster to me. With gouramis and bettas and an angel? Sounds like a time bomb. They may seem fine now, but you never know when aggression can arise...

 

[Luna09]

One betta and I have always had one in a community tank with zero aggression issues. Seriously if it is raised in the tank it will be fine, I'm surprised no one knows this as it is commonplace where I am from. He was put in a community when he was 2 months old. As far as stocking goes I'm more worried about the angel and she has another tank she can go in if anything goes awry. Dwarf gouramis are compatible with angels and pristellas, which are big enough that I don't have any worries about them getting eaten.

Gourami fish are fine in a community, I had a blue and a pearl in with guppies for 7 years and they were A ok.

My main question isn't whether they are compatible but whether I am over stocked and what I can do as far a aquascaping goes. I really appreciate the concern as far as everyone getting along goes but I am not concerned about aggression. A pecking order is established.

 

[LyndaB]

The betta and the gouramis are labyrinth fish. You may run into serious issues if you stock more gouramis.

 

[Luna09]

Should I switch one gourami out if I see aggression? The only place I would have for her is in my 10 gallon, which has a few guppies. 10 gallons is awfully small for a gourami.

 

[Luna09]

Good news, my LFS has agreed to trade me one of the dwarf gourami for a little honey gourami (the honey will be in my planted 10 gallon)
So I think a lot of stress will ease. I say goodbye to a dwarf in the morning. But hopefully it's better for everyone.

I've bought another 3 pristella tetra to make it 7 and I was happy to see that the ones in my care are looking a lot more vibrant than the ones I just got. Im doing something right !! TLC and time should perk the new ones up

This leaves me with one dwarf and a betta that may eventually be an issue apparently, but with added driftwood and plants, the eye contact should be kept to a minimum and I live in hope that that is all that is needed they are completely different colours and I am routing for this also being a help with any aggression.

***sigh***

Thanks for everyone's suggestions. I feel good about my decision and would probably not have come to it without all the constructive criticism and feedback.

 

[Samzter]

Some people have good experiences with mixing Gouramis but I wouldn't ....

 

[tukker]

2 be honest 10 gal is too small for gourami. For any gourami. minimum tank is 2foot x 1foot x 1 foot hight depth width. And thats a minimum, bigger is better. They are aggressive against female, and attack them.till death or exhaustion. Just like bettas do

 

[severum mama]

I disagree. There are many species of gouramis and some are more aggressive than others. Sparkling, croaking, and pearl are notable examples of gouramis that are relatively peaceful and can be kept in groups. Obviously tank size comes into play with that.

Oh, and there are also many species of Bettas other than splendens, most of which can be housed in groups or pairs.

 

[tukker]

True, dwarf croaking can live In a smaller tank. But when ppl talk about bettas they usually mean the splendens

 

[bud29]

Hmmmm.........I'm probably a little late for this thread, but I thought that dwarf gouramis were some of the more peaceful gourami. I read that they only were aggressive to each other when there are females in the tank.

 

[Samzter]

Hmmmm.........I'm probably a little late for this thread, but I thought that dwarf gouramis were some of the more peaceful gourami. I read that they only were aggressive to each other when there are females in the tank.

You are correct in a way. Females are peaceful , as for the males they can get on like mine do, their the best of friends! Then most times they don't .

 

[bud29]

You are correct in a way. Females are peaceful , as for the males they can get on like mine do, their the best of friends! Then most times they don't .

Alright.....I was going to get 2 males in my 30 gallon, glad I read this thread!