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A week ago I bought a couple of dwarf gouramis for my tank. One of them was fine but the other one used to hide alot. After I changed them I got a gourami that hides coming out occasionally, and the other one lies on its side or sometimes supports itself using the glass or a rock thats inside the aquarium and then it starts swimming. When its swimming I can't tell that there is anything wrong with it.

I know nothing about gouramis. I've kept livebearers, tiger barbs and bettas. I wanted to do something new, but now i'm thinking of changing both of them and getting someting else.

On the other hand I would like to know more about gouramis as I want to keep them in the future. Can someone suggest some good sites where I can find some info.

Thanks.

Oh no, don't give up on gouramis yet! I'd be a bit worried about the one that lays on its side. How was the aclimation? How big is our tank? What are the paramaters (just in case)?

What I have noticed is that many different species of gouramis can be shy. About a month ago, I bought two honey gouramis (closely related to dwarf gouramis--same genus) and they have benefitted from having floating plants in the tank. There are lots of hiding places..caves and such...and other plants. They are not shy at all in this setup--they like to swim up to me when they see me.

On the other hand, when I got my pearl gourami, it took him forever to get comfortable. It took about a month for him to not swim away when I came to the tank. Now, he begs for food whenever I approach.

What I am trying to say is that I have learned to be patient. It may take a bit of time for the gouramis to get comfortable in a tank. Try adding more plants and/or hiding places and see what happens.

As for websites, I don't get my information just from one. I read several different websites to see what they say about a species. There is always false information, and reading more, you can cut out what you can see as false. I also have a tiny book of fish species, that I can cross-reference with internet sources. However, the best way to learn is actually having the fish--something I have realized as I keep fish for a longer time.

Last edited by solublefish at 30-Oct-2004 08:02

Thanks alot.
I went and changed that gourami today for another one. Both the dwarfs are a bit shy but they seem ok to me. They're EXTREMELY beautiful fish the only problem is that they're shy but I guess with time that'll get fixed.

I got a red betta today it seemed fine, but with hours it died couldn't find anything wrong with it though, the tail was not perfect but he didn't have tail rot. I'm guessing it must be some internal problem.

I'm waiting for my LFS to get a new stock of bettas. I want to add 2 females and a male to my 30g, currently it has 2 dwarfs, 4 swords, and 4 guppies.

Would the additions be ok?

It is usually not a good idea to put Betta splendens with other bettas or gouramis. Also, female and male Betta splendens should not be housed together at all. You'll most likely end up with dead or seriously injured fish.

However, other species of bettas could go in with gouramis. I am on the lookout for Betta imbellis (which will go with my honey gouramis), which is a peacefull species. It could work in your tank.

Another idea is getting another type of gourami. A pearl gourami could make a nice addition.

Last edited by solublefish at 30-Oct-2004 15:43

Actually I've wanted to get a couple betta pugnax, but I can't find any. I'll read up on the pearl gourami though.