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I always like to get a second opinion on these things: I have a male betta in an unfiltered 2.5g tank by himself. I think he seems content but I was wondering if he might be happier with a tankmate? Or would one even be appropriate? Thanks!

I don't think he needs another tankmate. And as it's a 2.5 gal you can't really fit one in there anyway.

Maybe shrimp or a snail, but other than that, you're really limited by the size of the tank.

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

2.5 gallons is barely big enough for a single betta.
If you did want a tankmate, a single p. bridgessi apple
snail would be good.
I wouldnt add shrimp - expensive snack for a soon to be very happy betta.


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Even a single betta is best kept in a 5 gallon or more,2.5 gallon tanks arent really suitable for fishkeepiing, its not truly humane.. I have 1 male and 3 females in a 30gal, and they get on with minimal scuffles but in a 2.5 gal there will be nothing but deaths if you choose another betta. Upgrade to a 10 to 20 gallon and then perhaps you can risk a female. Even shrimp dont deserve to live in 2.5 gallons really, its not a stable enough environment for almost any fish. Sooner or later the water quality crashes, and unless your betta is indeed very tough, it will probably die. 5 Gallons is a great small tanksize to start with for a single fish like a betta, anything less is generally too hard to manage for water quality. Bigger is easier, and of course , much nicer for the fish, who should be given room to move and some mental stimulation.

A julii cory would be just fine inn there

Yup. I'm that crazy Twilight/animal/music girl

I wouldn't put a single cory anywhere, they're much happer in groups. I think the minimum for julii's is 6.

Actually, no, it wouldn't, shadow. For one thing, cories are schooling fish and should be in a group of at least six. For another, true julii are harder to find than their usually mislabelled counterparts, the trilineatus which are larger. And yet another reason... this is an UNFILTERED tank. A cory needs filtration and likes the current provided by it.

While julii are smaller, they still aren't going to be any happier than trilineatus would be to be stuck in such a small tank. In fact, I took my julii/trilines out of my TEN gallon because it was too small for their antics. They now roam my 20 gallon long and are MUCH happier.

While I've kept bettas in two gallon tanks before, it takes regular, thorough maintenance. 100% water change weekly is ideal. In a five gallon, with filter, you have more options. I had a male betta and a pair of cherry barbs. Again, it takes regular maintenance to keep up something this small, so keep that in mind when committing yourself to the smaller sizes of tanks.

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

Yep Shadow, corys cannot be kept in anything less than 10 gallons, and they need a MINIMUM group of 6 individuals.
It is totally unsuitable to keep 1 alone. Youre better to keep none that keep a lonely unhappy cory by itself.
These fish have actually been known to die of loneliness.


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Indeed, my sister had a pair of cories, and when she shut down her tank recently, I happily took the one remaining cory into my school... he went from being a total wallflower (always hiding, you had to search to find him) to being out and about, gathered with my cories. Yet another case where a school of mixed cories is better than no school at all!

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

Well first of all I would never consider putting another betta in the 2.5g. I should probably be offended, but it's the internet so I guess everyone is stupid until proven intelligent.

This betta has been in this tank for about 6 months now and I have never had a problem. I do 100% water changes weekly and check the levels. I personally believe that 2.5g is a good minimum size for a single betta, but the humane treatment of bettas is a topic for another thread. I did not set up this tank with the intention of adding anything else, I was just wondering if a snail would be possible. Thanks for your comments.

I think a snail would work since you're obviously good about keeping things clean. They do tend to be a big... well, they're poop machines, but if you have issues with algae on the sides of the tank, they should help. Just don't add pest snails or you'll go from one to one hundred in like, 5.2 seconds.

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

I keep my bettas in there own separate tanks by themselves, no tank mates..though, I split a 20g long tank but putting a glass divider in the middle.(the bettas can't see eachother) So, they have about 7 - 8g each all to themselves. But, i put a 5g on each side. And I put the two cherry’s I had left in those two 5 gallons. So, through the glass, the betta can have some interaction with a cherry barb. So, there is interaction for the cherry's and the bettas with the whole stressful chasing each other part.

-pam