My Gold Gourami is Chasing my other Gouramis!

JonBurton

Hey there, I have a gold gourami and 3 inches in size and he is chasing my other 2 Gouramis(Dwarf and Blue) And it sort of looks like he is nibbling on their tales. What should I do to stop this? it looks like he is bullying the other 2 because they are smaller. Or he is being territorial. Should I sell it or keep it?

Olympia

Gourami species should not be mixed for this reason. These fish compete with each other in the wild and often do not get along for that reason.
I'd get rid of the offender, if you want to keep the other two, a ton of plants will help keep the peace.
What size tank is it?
Posted via Mobile Device

JonBurton

It is a 10g tank and I will probably end up selling it.

Byron

Agree with Olympia, this behaviour is to be expected from gourami, and in so small (to the fish) an aquarium. The other two won't likely last long if the gold is not removed. And the Blue and Dwarf should be separated.

We have fish profiles, second tab from the left in the blue bar across the top of the page. Info on minimum tank sizes, compatibility, etc. is included for each species. Please have a read. For a direct link:
Blue Gourami [this is the same species as the Gold which is just a colour variant]
Dwarf Gourami

JonBurton

Actually I left for the night and came back right now and they seem completely fine. I guess I just had to wait ;)

JonBurton

Never mind, they went at it again, the Dwarf Gourami's tail is completely gone now... Gunna have to get rid of him.

Byron

Yes, you cannot change a fish's inherent nature. Sometimes an individual fish will be different to some extent from the norm, but not usually.

JonBurton

The women at the pet store said all gouramis get along together. So I got 2 different ones. I am going to bring them both back and tell the store manager what happened. And sell the Gold Gourami on Kijiji.

Byron

Unfortunately, employees at some fish stores have limited knowledge. Some stores don't care as long as they sell fish. And then there are the good stores owned by hobbyists and/or that employ hobbyists.

JonBurton

Yeah the women who sold me my fish did not look to enthusiastic. Oh well I will get a refund and Get different fish. What kind of fish do you recommend? Like I want to have some mixed. :)