Introduction & Betta Death

[mdemic]

<sigh>I didn't want to have to introduce myself this way...
I have been browsing this forum for a couple of weeks preparing and researching my 10 gallon tank setup. Years ago, I got a pair of algae eaters at the end of a school year and kept them for 3 or 4 years under less than desirable conditions. I'm not sure if they were plecos or something else because as I said it was several years ago. Anyhow, after seeing a relative's aquarium set up and me having meant to set up my tank again for several years I decided to take the plunge, this time with a live plant and some decorations/cover unlike the bare gravel I had for the other fish. After setting it up and letting it cycle, I got some fish yesterday, and for my little sister I bought another today. My fish setup is currently 1 Female Betta and 5 Zebra Danios, today I bought another Female Betta, from the exact same store out of the exact same tank as the previous one, brought it home and introduced it and then let it free. I had noticed that the first one was chasing the second one and nipping at it, but I took it as normal behavior, sort of like establishing a pecking order. Shortly thereafter, we went out to run some errands and returned to find the second one floating on the top barely moving, obviously pretty beaten up by the first betta. I netted it and put it in the container it came in hoping it would come back by this evening, but later I decided that it wasn't, and it would be in the fishes and my sisters best interest to tell her it wasn't going to make it and put it to sleep using the ice cube method as soon as she went to bed. I don't intend to take it back and take them up on their warranty, as I believe it will be best to let my sister bury Michelle (she had already named it) in the backyard, and even so I'm only out $4 ($8 if I replace it). She took it pretty hard and I'm sure she'll feel better getting to bury it rather than turning this one in for another.
My questions are:
1. Why did this happen and what can I do to prevent another disaster like this? As I said, they came from exactly the same tank at exactly the same store, both sold as females, and according to what I've read two females will work fine, but throw a male into the mix and things get crazy. They were fed shortly after the introduction, and the first betta has shown no aggression or even interest towards any of the Danios. So I'm not sure where I went wrong.
2. Are there likely to be problems if/when I add a few Neon Tetras? Like I said, I don't want to have to relive this disaster again. Do you guys and gals have any recommendations for other fish to get?

Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions.

 

[bettacove]

Better to keep 3 or more then just 2. That way there are more fish to pick on.
How long did you 'introduce' her before letting her loose? I float a new female in the tank for a couple days, that way the others get used to seeing them around. I let her out once they start ignoring her. This way has worked great for me and there have been very minimal nips.

sorry about your fish!
ashley

 

[Mushime]

i agree, 3 or more females is definately the way to go. here are a few tips i've found effective when adding new females to a take that already has females:

try to "redecorate" right before you add the new girl/girls. this sort of breaks up the feeling of territory and ownership the old females have...they'll think they're in a new tank and may not be quite as likely to attack "intruders."

sometimes taking ALL the females out and putting them back in at the same time as the new girl/girls will confuse them enough that they're a little less territorial.

i've never tried to float them in the tank for a few days, but that also sounds like a great tip.

you should always introduce a new betta when you have at least 24 hours to constantly supervise just in case.

one thing i always do is to "quarantine" new fish. bettas are extremely easy to quarantine since they can be kept in gallon+ jars comfortably. i like to quarantine for at least 2 weeks to make sure i'm not introducing a sickly fish to my established tanks...it's really heartbreaking to have a new fish come in and get the whole tank sick and have them possibly die.

last tip - make sure you have a LOT of hiding places if you have several bettas. even once they establish their pecking order there will be minor squabbles and the losers have to have a place to get away, or else they'll be constantly stressed out. lots of plants, lots of caves with a front entrance and a rear entrance, etc.

finally...female bettas can be just as aggressive with each other as males. bettas are complete individuals...one of the reasons i love them so much. they each have their own individual personality. some girls will get along great with other girls. some girls are evil at first and quickly settle into community life. some girls never do...you'll just have to watch and figure out what the personality of your bettas are...some of them are just not meant to be with other fish, period, they can't cooperate and get along. i think bettas are one of the few fish that you can't really generalize about...it almost always depends on their individual personality as far as being with other bettas, being with other fish period.

i think you are slightly overstocked at this point if you are going to add 1-2 more female bettas...i really don't think you have room for a school of neons (neons really should be kept in schools of at least 6) along with the bettas and danios. danios can get relatively large, and bettas can get up to 3" long...that's a lot of fish in a 10 gallon.

hope some of that helps.