FishProfiles.com Message Forums

From my personal experience, I have found dwarf gouramis to be very aggressive. However, you might find some peaceful ones. I wouldn't suggest it. One way you could get away with is to heavily plant the tank so each gourami could have a defined territory with a kind of 'wall' of plants seperating them.

Trust me, he won't be lonely.

Good point. I have a little while before I can do anything but admire the 3 platies and all the frys... but.. when my tank HAS finally (can you sense my impatience ) cycled, what should be my next fishes?

1 dwarf Gourami
8 neon / cardinal tetras OR
3-6 corys?

Maybe by then the frys will be big or gone (not to sound cruel, but I wasn't expecting them). If they are big, I may sell them. Platy wasn't one of the fish on my wish list, but the pet store said it was a good starter fish, and well, now I do like them, so I can't get rid of my first 3 fish. But I could the frys. Cute little buggers, and now about a week old, they look slightly more than 2 big eyes and a small tail.

Anyway, the point was...if I still have little frys, which would be the next best fish?

(It's friday..and Im rambling..lol ) :%)

I would put them in in this order:
tetras
gourami
corys
I don't really have any logic behind it, it's just what I'd do

I also had Trumpet Snail on my list. But I have been reading alot of articles on them, and it says they reproduce so quickly, you soon can be overrun with them. And then you have to get rid of them. (And none of the ways sounded fun). Do they really reproduce that fast? Are they a good choice then?

Actually, yes, they reproduce VERY rapidly. Instead I'd go with a couple mystery snails. Ideally, otos are the best algae eaters, IMO. Did you give up on that idea? They're small and HIGHLY effective. Just a thought

Sorry, don't know about the snails, but for which fish to add when...

1st-dwarf gourami-he'll looove to eat your fry
2nd-cories
3rd-tetras-they are the most sensitive of all your fish and should be added last when your tank is completely stable

I'd have to agree with SolubleFish, you want to add the tetras last b/c they're a bit more sensitive... although I don't think it matters much if you add your dwarf gourami or your cories next.

-Beth

p.s. which kind of dwarf gourami are you thinking about?? There are some really pretty colors out there.

[span class="edited"][Edited by bscal 2004-08-14 08:32][/span]

I'm not sure which Dwarf. Whichever they have at the time..lol. But I do like the red striped ones...

Also, doesn't look like I have much to choose from at my local pet store in the way of corys, looks like I would get the albino ones.

[span class="edited"][Edited by CyndieL73 2004-08-14 23:45][/span]

Okay, here I go thinking again. Would 2 dwarf gourami's be horrible? SInce I heard you can't really get females in the stores, it would most likely be 2 males in a 20g tank, with lots of hiding places. Would that be okay? or would they fight? I hate to just add one, he may get lonely.

That and I want to add more fish...hehe... I know I KNow...slowwwwwwwly... and I have to wait until the Darn thing finishes cycling.... but ammonia is dropping and nitrItes and NitrAtes are rising...so it will be soon....just not soooooon enough.....]

Dwarf Gouramis are not as aggressive as the larger ones..they will be fine with other dwarfs.....

okay, there are some who would disagree but you might want to have 3 cories. I used to only have 2 cories in my 10g, bumped them up to 4 when I set up a 55g, and now they are at 6. I did not see any difference in their behavior-they have always been active and seemed happy. Anyhow, you could also, if you want 6 cories, add 3 for now and then a couple months down the road add 3 more. Then you would have them around to take care of excess food, etc. but you wouldn't run the risk of stocking your tank too quickly.

-Beth

the 2 that I have are fine and have been for about 8 months now....Plus all the profiles that I have seen on them, suggest them in pairs.....even FP's...but I am sure there are rare cases of an aggressor....

Vic, What variety of dwarf do you have? Maybe that is the key.. I think I have seen the neon blue striped ones (that actually have the red stripes). and that was about all. I have a very well planted (fake plants though) tank. My 15+ frys have no problem hiding and I do have quite a few larger leaf hiding spots. even in the 20g y 3 platies have been known to completely disappear for a bit.

Thanks once again everyone for the advice..

I have 1M Powder Blue and 1M Red Fire....I have seen the Neon Blue at my LFS, but its one full color....more like a blueish green color....they also have what they call a cinnamon Dwarf, and its the one with Red Stripes....Atleast here in Tx, but everyone seems to have there own names for them......I will be going back soon for the Neon Blue and Cinnamon for another tank

So you have 1 of each variety. I wonder if that could be why they aren't aggressive to each other. I would most likely have to get 2 of the same kind. And I may be overstocking myself...at least if I get all the others I want later...

Grrr....maybe I should resist temptation and just get the one...(for now)... probably got another week to wait for the cycle to complete anyway... darnit!

Thanks for the advice

You could try Honey Gouramis. As far as I know, they are more peaceful than the dwarfs, but are just as small (if not smaller).

Honey Gourami Profile

[span class="edited"][Edited by just beginning 2004-08-27 21:55][/span]

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

a note on snails, most people dont reccomend them because they are a hassal. they destroy plants and the algae they eat does not counteract the amount of waste they produce. by the way, i am loving this post because i am about to set up 20 gallon and could not think of what to add. i should really move my kribs in there.


chris

Yeah, I think I am going to skip the snails. Don't wanna have to get rid of them but don't want too many, so I am not going to get any at all.

Okay once again, another question. My frys are almost a month old now (Born 8/7/04). Some are getting to be quite big..almost an inch, while others are still quite small. Now I was planning on letting nature take its course and get a dwarf gourami in there to take care of the frys, but will he be able to when they get so big? My tank is almost done cycling (I HOPE!!), but it will most likely be next weekend before I get the gourami. (if the tank IS done cycling) I'm still just planning ahead to figure out what to do with the frys who maybe are too big to get eaten. I don't know of anyone else who has tanks, and I am not sure if I can sell them to the LFS. (Not sure I would want to either, seeing their tanks

So, basically, how big will be too big for the gourami to eat a fry? (by the way, I know this sounds just morbid... and I do feel bad for the frys... )

Thanks ONCE again for answering my multitude of questions. Hopefully this has been helpful for others reading it as well.

PS. Ammonia dropped to ZERO last nite, nitrItes were highest ever at 3, and NitrAtes at 50...IM almost there!!

it really does not matter what you do with the fry because they are so small they dont affect the water quality that much. my suggestion is to keep them until they reach a size large enough that your lfs will at least take them for free.

if your store does not do this than they are either strange or they are a big chain, in either case, look for a new store.

and all questions are welcome, we would rater see someone like you ask questions up front then asking after a mistake has been made.



chris

I just want to Commend you for doing your homework and your excitement towards this hobby....And I've always known that Fish Tanks Lower your bloodpressure and calm your stress, thats why there in all Dr. Offices....But never looked at it that way about just bringing everything back up with ALL the Excitement...HA

[span class="edited"][Edited by Vic 2004-08-12 13:17][/span]