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ten gallon bettertank mates

2K views 15 replies 7 participants last post by  Pearl2011 
#1 ·
What are some good tankmates for female bettas in a ten gallon?? Based on size and compatibility what do you recomend?? Ill look at water conditions after.
 
#2 ·
What are some good tankmates for female bettas in a ten gallon?? Based on size and compatibility what do you recomend?? I would love cories, but my water is above neutral so that would be a problem. The tank is planted. Would shrimp and snail work to?? Or maybe an algae eater??
Which to you think would work best?? There four bettas who have been together for a year today. Any other suggestions?? I don't partuculary like loaches though.
 
#4 ·
Bristlenose catfish are too big for ten gallons. if you've got sufficient algae, otocinclus could work, but you should really look at the profile for them because idk their water requirements. i'd honestly add tons more plants and a few more girls, or the shrimp and snails. can't fit many things into a ten gallon comfortably
 
#5 ·
I am planning more plants, just they are in the QT ATM and I have another tank to set-up.
I don't really have algae so I guess an algae eater won't work. there are four girls, Hope and Speckles wouldn't hurt a thing, Dawn is okay, and Ruby has a bad attitude. She doesn't actually hurt them (often) but when she does she tends to go after Dawn. I added another better a while ago and they were fine, Ruby has been very good since then.
Would an ADF work?? And off topic but how could I lower the pH a bit so my options for different species would be more open?? so far:
Snail and shrimp :)
Cories ???
More bettas :)
Bn catfish :(
Oto :(
Tetras ???
ADF???
 
#6 ·
bettas are hard to find tankmates for! It should be easier with a female though. Mt first reccomendation would be shrimp. They'll get along great! If you have cool water, white clouds might work. Catfish like Corys, and otos would work out in warm water. Almost all small bottom feeders would be good companions actually! You could try some black kuhli loaches, those are really neat. Don,t get any guppies, tetras or other nippy fish, as they might go after the long fins. There are so many options, but it all depend on the temperment of your fish, temperature, and airation(bettas don't need airated water, but most other fish do!)
Hope that helped, and please get back with more info!
 
#7 · (Edited)
Shrimp are fun, comical, and pretty little things. They make great tankmates. Just make sure you are not underfeeding you Bettas or introduce them around meal time or they will get chomped! If you are worried, jar your girls and let the shrimp find all the hiding places before you release them. I let my male float in a quart jar for a couple hours and fed him extra before I let him loose. Had no problems. Shrimp are also cleaners and have a VERY low biooad. Usually between 0.1-0.4gal each

Cory Cats are great mates and False Julii are both beautiful and active. Bioload varries.

Mystory Snails are actually more fun that they sound. It's fun to watch them suck on the glass or munch on an algea waffer or fresh veggies. Bioload is 1 snail per gal.
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#8 · (Edited)
When it comes down to it, you need to find tankmates that thrive in the same conditions as your Bettas (tropical temp, pH, hardness, and so on...), won't try to eat your Betta, are NOT know fin nippers (female or not, they can be a target), are not agressive or simi-agressive, and do not look like a Betta (and thus be subject to their agression). Also note that there are plenty of things that a Betta will try to eat, so know that tiny tankmates are a risk. Also, no matter what anyone tells you, don't add any kind of tetra. The Betta can attack them, but they are also known for attacking Bettas and your tank is too small for a large school that would buffer that. I had Neons and they really hurt my little man at one point :-(
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#10 · (Edited)
You don't want to overload your tank, so you must be careful.

Tetras are out. They are known fin-nippers, simi-agressive, and many can have colorations similar to Betta which can cause fighting. Take my advice on this one as I learned it the hard way! They need large groups and even then, there's a risk.

Another female would be good. Many say they work best in groups of 5 or more. Keeps down the fighting ;-)

Corys are great with Bettas, but in a 10gal, you will overload the bioload even with small corys or otos (which actually have a larger bioload than corys!). If you ever decide to do a 10gal with 1 Betta or a larger tank, these are great!

Shrimp are lots of fun! Little comedians I call them. They play and goof around. Best of all, the have vertually no bioload! That means you could easily have a dozen cherries or ghosts in your tank with 5 female bettas! Just make sure they have places to had so your girls don't make snacks of them!
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#11 · (Edited)
Sorry! Ran out of characters :oops:

Anyway, the shrimp should be fine, but it's always best to buy plenty extra in case of mortality or just a hungry Betta ;-)

Snails are actually pretty cool little dudes. Mystery Snails are gendered, so as long as you just have one, no babies! They have a bioload of about 1 per gallon, so with as many Bettas as you have, I would just add one.

You might want to research the ADF a bit more before you consider it. They and Bettas have been known to fight if each does not have its own teritory and one can end up dead. It's what I was told by other fishkeepers, so I don't personally have any experence with it.
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#12 ·
As far as algae eaters DONT get Plecos I love em but for a 10 Gallon.. no go.. lol get to big n poop A lot... Go with something like Otocinclus, and there is one that I have in my 10 G it has a wide body and looks almost like a Sting Ray... they do good as eel.. or an apple snail..
 
#14 ·
I had five bettas, but one turned out to be a male (very nice spade tail) and almost killed one of them. Then I added another female betta who got swim bladder, couldnt swim up to eat, and died. A day after my b-day too :(
Ill prob add another female, then more plants and then maybe shirmp. Is anacharis a good plant for the shrimp to hide in?? Nice and bushy and with a couple clumps more ill prob lose my bettas :p

What should i look for when im getting more bettas? A big one? Small one? Middle-ish sized?? Same colour or something different? When I added Bubbles I knew she would be fine since I had had her for over a year, but the ones from the pet store are a gamble. Anyone done this before??
 
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