Tank Mates

[ikermalli]

I am looking into getting an eight to ten gallon tank in around two weeks, I know bettas are well on their own but I also want to get another fish to keep with it, do you have any recommendations? By the way, are there any bright colorful fish I can keep with my betta?

[mesapod]

my dad kept a school of neon tetras with a betta if you do get neons be sure to get like 5.

[anasfire23]

Neon's are good but cardinal tetras are better, hardier fish. I have a love for harlequin Rasbora's and have never found them to be aggressive at all and they definitely go well with Bettas.

[mesapod]

i was reading up on cardinals and it said they were way harder to keep like they need acidic water to live (5.0-6.8). i agree on the rasborras they can be nice little fish.

[ikermalli]

I am looking at getting a rasbora, should I get only one or a few? By the way, do any of you know of any good 10G tanks from petsmart? Or could you show me one because I was looking from 8-12 Gallon tanks and I am not sure which are best. http://www.petsmart.com/

[FinnFan]

Rasboras are schooling fish and would likely be happier as a group of 6. That said, when I went to buy my first rasboras, they only had 4 of them. I bought those 4 and put them in my 10g, and they seemed perfectly happy. So maybe you could get away with a school of 4.

For the tank, I think they have better deals if you just go into the store and look. The online selection is ok, if you want acrylic. If you want glass though, just go to the store. Some superstores (such as Meijer and Walmart) have inexpensive 10g "starter" kits, for around $20-30.

Or check craigslist and your local newspaper. Both great sources of perfectly good used tanks. Smaller ones come up a lot. I got my 10g from a yard sale for $4. Good luck with your new fishes.

[anasfire23]

Rasboras are better in a school of 6 or more but I had 4 to begin with also and they did really well. Get 4 to begin with and see how they go, you can always get more down the track.

[ikermalli]

How much do they cost? What would you recommend getting for a 30 Gallon Tank? I am probably going to buy one of them in two weeks then move my betta and several other fish and plants in.

[fishbguy]

I have 5 rasboras and they are fine, tho 6 would look better. I would just get 6-8 for a 30, 6 for a 10, and 4 for an 8

[JustOneMore20]

Get the biggest tank you can afford and have room for. You and the fish will be happier that way. If you are going to put fish in with a Betta, I wouldn't get anything less than a 10g.

I kept 6 Harlequin rasboras and a male Betta in a 10g for awhile and they lived happily together, until the rasboras got an upgrade.

You'll have more fish choices with a 30g. If you are putting the Betta in, I'd make sure your filter isn't too strong because that can stress them out.
For fish choices, I suggest 8-10 Harlequin rasboras, 6-8 Cories, the Betta, and maybe a few Otos.

[mesapod]

if you get the otos make sure to feed them stuff like blanched lettuse and zuchinni

[ikermalli]

Okay the Rasboras and Otos look nice so I think I may get six of each, but still no one has told me how much they cost because I need to save up, also I may get a 10G next week to keep just my betta and another few small fish in, but I don't know what to put in there.

[fishbguy]

Prices all depend on where you live. Even all the lfs's by me have them at different prices, ranging from 2.99-5.99 for rasboras and 4.99-6.99 for ottos. The best thing to do is to go to the lfs, and see how much they cost. You probably won't have to special order them because they are pretty, common, and I have yet to see a lfs that doesn't carry them. Even wallmart will have them.

The otto's will be a little bit harder to find, but not that much. They are normally always on the lists, and cost very little. Most lfs's won't charge extra for you to special order some fish as common as rasboras and ottos.

[JustOneMore20]

I'd go with 3 Otos. They are algae eaters and you probably won't have enough algae in a 10g for 6.....and sometimes they won't eat prepared foods.

I'd feed them algae wafers, with some veggies as a treat occasionally. They don't always eat the veggies.

[mesapod]

at my store the otos are 2.50 each and rasboras are 3.20 each oh in Canadian dollars.

[gemjunkie]

IMO I'd start with a 20g Long OR bigger. Ten gallon tanks are HIGHLY unstable. I have kept 10g tanks stable for years only to have them crash for NO apparent reason. At least with a 20g tank, I have had some warning before the tank went bad so I could do water changes.

NOT only that, what you are talking about stocking a 10g tank with REALLY should be in a 20G or larger as that would be overstock for a 10g.

[ikermalli]

could you put that a little more simply?