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After getting 1 male and 1 female blue gourami (Wasn't trying to, just picked the healthiest)My dad said that when he went back for somthing they said that we needed to have 3 females for every male, or the male will chase the females to death. I, for one, don't belive that. Maybe two, but three? I mean, I don't think I have room for 4 5-7 inch fish, The biggest tank I have is a 29 or 30 gal, I kinda think that they just want more money. Do I really need 3 females per male? And, are females (Without a male in tank) generally less aggressive than the males? (Mine seems to be, but she has a male as the "Boss of the tank"

If pets are so stupid, how did they weasel free room and board out of us?

I got a F/M & M Gold Gourami. The male was already pecking at the F/M while I was still floating the bag. He continued to chase her non stop, but I have a large tank (120 Gal) so I figured he tire soon enough. However, he just got worse and she started to slam against the glass tring to get away so despertly. The rest of the time she would hide in a cave, the second she came out he would attack her really hard! Well she would certainly starve or get killed in this situation so I took the male back to my LFS. I was also advised to get more F/M for him to disperse his attention amoung several ladies...but no thanks he was just too mean and not suitable for a community tank I was aquiring. P.S the Blue G. are supposed to be even more agressive than the golds, just my personal experience hope it helps your decision. Barb

120 GAL. Community Freshwater (2 huge mated angles, 2 German rams, Red tail shark, 2 Pearl Grammies, 3 Bushynose Plecos, Swordtails

110 Gal. (3 Koi Angles, 3 black marble viel tail Angles) 20 Neon tetras, 1 red tail shark, 3 clown loaches, Platys

they are labyriths, and will like bettas act in this manner, take it for what you want, but they aren't far off in their statements. again breeding males will become aggressive and 2 females per male is good, given that yoju want them to breed.

but if you want to breed i suggest geting a 30 long just for them for breeding and not in a community aquaria.

O.k, I might not have to worry about this... The male wasn't chasing female. strange. He was being nicer in general. strange. He is now instead of being silvery he's blackish except for his stripiness. Strange. He lethargic. Not good. He isn't showing any interest in food.... Bad!!! What could be wrong? The female's still normal, and the guppies seem even healthier! (If he dies, after a good tank cleaning, I'm not getting another male)

If pets are so stupid, how did they weasel free room and board out of us?

If you got him from walmart there's no telling what could be wrong. Walmart tanks see about every illness possible and if you can't get fish from a better source you should definitely quarantine.

Some males do fine with just 1 female and some will end up killing her. It depends on the individual and it depends on the female you've paired him with. If she's just as agressive and fights back instead of crashing into corners then even an agressive male can get along in a pair. Of course then there is the chance they will both fight and injure or kill each other.

He was at the bottom of the tank today. dead. Does the female need companionship? Are Petsmart fish generally healthier? (Atleast they arn't mixing 5 species in a 15 gallon)

If pets are so stupid, how did they weasel free room and board out of us?

They should be fine without companionship If you want, grab a 2nd female

(AND QUARANTINE! )

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

Thursday- I personally don't think Petsmart fish are any healthier then WalMart fish. I have worked at WalMart (not in the fish dept, but I was over there during my luncheon breaks and such) The only major difference is that Petsmart personel are generally more knowledgeable about each fish.
That said....

3:1 ratios are typically the way to go with most fish, and this rule is generally applied to livebearers as well as some of the more aggressive fish (gourmies, african chichlids, ect.)

How big is the tank that you had the blue gourmis in? If you have a 30g you could do this:
3x females
1x males

^_^

Inky

If she'll be fine alone I might not get another. She's small now, only 1.5 inch, but I know they get much larger, she is now in a 10 gal. But when she gets too big I have a 29-30 gallon, but that's the largest. Whats the 1:3 ratio?

If pets are so stupid, how did they weasel free room and board out of us?

three females to every male is a 3:1 ratio ^_^

Inky

oh... I should of realized that.
But I STILL wonder what killed him. Because if it was a disease, it could kill the rest of the fish. I'll post somthin on the Fish Diseases.

If pets are so stupid, how did they weasel free room and board out of us?

You could probubly treat the water just to be safe.

Inky