Stocking a 10g!

[Vatilla]

To not view explanatory story, please move to second paragraph.

So I was surfing the web (Kijiji), looking for a new tank hood when I came upon a brilliant opportunity. There was a 10g for sale with a filter, gravel and decorations for only 30 bucks. I recently paid 35 for my new heater,and I was like "OH MY GOD THAT IS AWESOME!" So I went on a babysitting rampage and I got 80 bucks in under 24 hours. About 2 and a half hours ago I went to pick up the tank. The guy says "Well we haven't used it in a year and we got it 2 years ago- there was a leaking problem but I fixed it with silicone and you can do the same if it starts up again. Oh, and we kept a mouse in there for a while, so that's why there's some straw." A mouse. A mouse in a fish tank. I got it anyways, thinking I would at least get a better filter and some awesome decorations and a new lid. I got home and looked at the gravel. It was filled with mouse poo. You can't even understand my fury. I went up to the bathroom, and after an hour of trying to clean the gravel, the tossed it onto a garbage bag and wrote "TOXIC WASTE- DO NOT TOUCH" on it. So yeah, I cleaned the tank with disinfectant (I am not sure if that is good for fish or not, but it was mouse poo and I figured that disinfectant would be better than that and rinsed it 20 times and it is now soaking in hot water) and I called it a done day.

Now, I am looking into stocking this tank (I am getting gravel from a neighbour). I currently have a 10g with a Betta, 3 Otocinclus and a Mystery Snail. The Betta is in a QT with fin rot and I have a second Betta waiting to go into the 5g QT when my other one is done. I would really like another Betta, but I also want some calm fish that can all coexist peacefully. I was hoping to not get grouping fish, but I am open to anything! So if someone has stocking ideas please put them below, but not Bettas unless you can list some fish they can be housed with that aren't bottom dwellers.

 

[BalloonBellies]

bettas can be housed with platies, zebra danios, neon tetras, penguin tetras, white cloud mountain minnows, swordtails, mollies.
Here some ideas
1 betta
5 neon tetras
4 platies or mollies or swordtails

1 betta
5 white clouds
3 nirite snails
3 balloon belly mollies

 

[Vatilla]

It seems like it's over stocking a little... Isn't it 1 inch of fish per gallon?

 

[azmodan]

bettas can be housed with platies, zebra danios, neon tetras, penguin tetras, white cloud mountain minnows, swordtails, mollies.
Here some ideas
1 betta
5 neon tetras
4 platies or mollies or swordtails

1 betta
5 white clouds
3 nirite snails
3 balloon belly mollies

No offense but this is very bad advice. Mollies and swordtails are much too big and active to be in ten gallons (and arguably even platies too). Neons, zebra danios, and white clouds are preferably kept in something with a larger footprint as well, as they are very active fish and need the extra space. Housing bettas with other fish is very hit-or-miss depending on the personality of the betta, and I would say that in most cases it's miss.

Vatilla, for your tank you can research nano schooling fish like ember tetra, chili rasbora, celestial pearl danios, and so forth. Along with a nice school of those you could also do a sparkling gourami for a centerpiece and also some dwarf shrimp. Other fun options for 10 gallons include scarlet badis, african dwarf frogs, endlers, dwarf puffers (prob just 2 max in a ten g, species only), and clown killies.

 

[BalloonBellies]

I have only two mollies in a 12 gallon and four neon tetras. I could see where they could be considered too large but the balloon mollies are a little stubbier and shorter in size. The only thing is the can be heavy waste producers so longs ur on top of your tank maintenance you can get away with it. If ur gonna do small schoolers make sure u have 5 cause they can become nippy in smaller groups.

 

[BalloonBellies]

Honestly I would forget the betta and do other fish like azmodan suggested cause then u won't have to worry about limiting yourself to fish that only get along with bettas.