new to gouramis!

[miran3773]

Hello all, recently purchased two of these beautiful fish at the lfs.
A couple of questions...first off I believe blue here is male


As seen (maybe) he's a pure vibrant blue, no stripes or anything. My question about this fella is that he does laps, whether they are up and down the tank, or length wise...is this problematic?

Secondly this one



Has stripes, and a couple of colours. I've had a look at the dorsal fin but not 100% sure if it is curved, because there is no definite point to it. So the question about this one is female or male? I read that females are a drab colour so my guess is male but a little clarification is always appreciated Also its little belly has fattened up, compared to the other? Is this something to be worried about?

 

[Mumma.of.two]

What you have there is two male dwarf gouramis. Beautiful fish. Are they in the same tank as each other? They can be quite aggressive towards each other. Watch out for bullying.
As for the pacing IME it's normal with dwarf gouramis. Mine did it all the time. Keep an eye on the one with the larger belly. They are little piggies so will over eat if given the chance.

 

[Bobishu]

The red one looks to be female, I've always had gouramis. It would be a very obvious point to the fin if it were male.

 

[miran3773]

Yeah they're in the same tank but the chubby one likes the plants and drift wood and the other seems to stay in the open. Thanks for the clarification I thought they were both male, and I'll have to keep an eye on the other for his eating habits

 

[jkdubs2]

The red one looks to be female, I've always had gouramis. It would be a very obvious point to the fin if it were male.

It might have its fin nipped. It happens apparently when u buy from stores.

 

[Bobishu]

It might have its fin nipped. It happens apparently when u buy from stores.

Very true, you never know. They pack them in those little tanks, and they don't do good in groups as it is.

 

[miran3773]

That would explain it, I forgot about that. And its awful how they do that, especially if they can be aggressive towards one another

 

[Bobishu]

It is terrible. They really don't like eachother. I've lost a few to fighting, Opaline killed my blue, paradise killed a dwarf, powder blue killed my paradise... Lots of combinations, none but 2 have worked out for me. And that's, a moonlight gourami with a kissing gourami, and my honey reds are just fine with my dwarfs.

 

[miran3773]

Should I be worried in the future for these two? I haven't witnessed anything , personally I think blue is too occupied swimming the length of the tank

 

[jkdubs2]

Well how big is your tank?

 

[miran3773]

Also could someone explain the function of their lower "fins" or bottom antenna ( not sure what they are)

 

[Mumma.of.two]

I've had two dwarfs and one killed the other and a gold and a dwarf that picked on each other constantly until I moved one. IMO/E only one gourami of any kind per tank.

 

[miran3773]

Well how big is your tank?

They are in a 55gallon

 

[Bobishu]

You might, might not. They tend to set up territories, and will fight to defend their space. Though I keep this under control by re arranging my tank about once a month. But its all worth it for the color and personality they add to tanks.

 

[jkdubs2]

If u could manage only a few males with the majority of females you might be alright. But they are mean to their own kind for sure

 

[miran3773]

You might, might not. They tend to set up territories, and will fight to defend their space. Though I keep this under control by re arranging my tank about once a month. But its all worth it for the color and personality they add to tanks.

Yes they do, especially with the one who goes up and down up and.....

 

[miran3773]

If u could manage only a few males with the majority of females you might be alright. But they are mean to their own kind for sure

We have just the two gouramis in there no other females or males

 

[Bobishu]

Well they are dwarfs, so they fully grown they should be around 2 inches at most, maybe a little more if they are abnormal lol. So hopefully 55g should be enough room for them.

 

[jkdubs2]

I think you'll be ok. Just keep an eye on them. I've had dwarf gouramis since I've started fish keeping. They usually do well in a 55 as long as they stay outta eachothers way. If they start to get too aggressive tho u might consider rehoming one. Just make sure there is lots of hiding spots and ull be ok.

 

[miran3773]

Both ended up dieing within one day of the other...check our water and we were perfect across the chart. We have a feeling it is from the store that they were purchased from as we havent had luck with their livestock