zero2dash
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Ok, last night I went out and bought a couple fish. I switched out my substrate three days ago and had been checking the tank every day to see if I had any spikes which I didn't. (I basically left all the water in the tank, removed all the plants and decorations, left the one blue gourami -male I think- I already had, and simply scooped out the old gravel and put in the new). Checked everything for 3 days with no problems...pH, Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates all remained the same as they did before I did the swap.
I went to Petsmart last night and purchased 3 fish, not only to keep it simple but also not to overload the tank (in case it *does* decide to go nutty from the new substrate). I got (1) small/medium pleco, (1) male betta and (1) blue gourami (looks like a female at least as much as I can tell from the dorsal fin) to go with the 1 blue gourami (male I think) I already had.
Ok - questions:
1) The male gourami I already had seems to chase around/pick on the female (?) gourami I bought last night. I have plenty of plant coverage for her to hide, and I think the only reason he's picking on her is because she's about 1" smaller than he is right now. Is this something that will go away or...
2) Should I buy another one (or more) gourami (females) as further distraction so the male doesn't pick on the only other one I have?
Oddly enough it seems like the male betta sorta bodyguards the female; I had no idea how neat a betta could be in a community tank - I always thought buying one meant the rest of the tank died (until I read things from here on AA). He swims around her quite a lot and that makes the male gourami leave both of them alone 'cause he doesn't seem to sure of what to do with the betta.
I was worried about the betta last night when I first brought him home because he stayed at the water surface all night and wouldn't really "submerge" but he's swimming everywhere today.
Finally -
3) What would be some good colorful tankmates for the fish I have so far? I almost regretted not making this a cichlid tank (purple/blue and yellow ones) but I know there's gotta be plenty of colorful community fish out there (other than tetras I know about). What are good tank mates for a 55gal with 2 blue gourami, 1 male betta and 1 pleco?
I thought about (maybe in a week) picking up a couple of kuhli loaches, I had those a long time ago and those were neat. I need a good scavenger or two...either loaches or maybe a cat? What do you think?
Thanks in advance everyone
I went to Petsmart last night and purchased 3 fish, not only to keep it simple but also not to overload the tank (in case it *does* decide to go nutty from the new substrate). I got (1) small/medium pleco, (1) male betta and (1) blue gourami (looks like a female at least as much as I can tell from the dorsal fin) to go with the 1 blue gourami (male I think) I already had.
Ok - questions:
1) The male gourami I already had seems to chase around/pick on the female (?) gourami I bought last night. I have plenty of plant coverage for her to hide, and I think the only reason he's picking on her is because she's about 1" smaller than he is right now. Is this something that will go away or...
2) Should I buy another one (or more) gourami (females) as further distraction so the male doesn't pick on the only other one I have?
Oddly enough it seems like the male betta sorta bodyguards the female; I had no idea how neat a betta could be in a community tank - I always thought buying one meant the rest of the tank died (until I read things from here on AA). He swims around her quite a lot and that makes the male gourami leave both of them alone 'cause he doesn't seem to sure of what to do with the betta.
I was worried about the betta last night when I first brought him home because he stayed at the water surface all night and wouldn't really "submerge" but he's swimming everywhere today.
Finally -
3) What would be some good colorful tankmates for the fish I have so far? I almost regretted not making this a cichlid tank (purple/blue and yellow ones) but I know there's gotta be plenty of colorful community fish out there (other than tetras I know about). What are good tank mates for a 55gal with 2 blue gourami, 1 male betta and 1 pleco?
I thought about (maybe in a week) picking up a couple of kuhli loaches, I had those a long time ago and those were neat. I need a good scavenger or two...either loaches or maybe a cat? What do you think?
Thanks in advance everyone