Post by Suzanah on Mar 24, 2015 6:47:18 GMT -5
So you want a bunch of beautiful betta females living together? Don't most of us?
Well it can be done and here are the tips and tricks I've picked up from experience and a lot of reading.
1. A twenty or thirty gallon plus is even better if not preferred. The more space you have, the better. I would not suggest trying a sorority tank with anything less then a ten gallon. In anything less then a ten gallon there simply isn't enough space for the girls to get away from each other.
2. Female bettas can be housed together in groups of three or more - and I would suggest at least 5 or 6. The lower the number of bettas, the more chance of bullying there is. Odd numbers are preferable in smaller groups. When housing two females together, one tends to claim dominance and bully the other - this is not a good idea. Grouping three or more will allow them to establish a hierarchy. Keep in mind that all bettas have a strong individual personality. Any one betta may be overly aggressive and may have to be removed from a community tank. Be prepared to take a betta out and have a tank he/she can be placed in if he can’t play nice with others - i.e. have a backup plan.
3. When setting up a tank for a sorority it is best to have lots of cover and places for the bettas to hide, get away from each other and explore. Things like small caves (more then one) and silk or live plants make for awesome cover and hiding places. Filtration is strongly recommended as it will make life and maintanance a lot easier. Without it there is a ton more water changes involved. I find the health of the bettas tends to be better as well.
4. When first setting up a sorority it will need watching to make sure that all the girls are settling in fine. Don't freak out if there are arguments and a couple of nipped fins. This is normal because even female bettas have attitude - they're still bettas. Only remove a betta if she proves to be too aggressive. This will also apply to when you want to add new girls to your tank. Since each betta has a different tempermant, adding in new tank mates will cause the bettas to sort out a new dominance order.
5. Important! Have a back-up plan in case there is one or more of the female bettas that cannot coexist.
Well it can be done and here are the tips and tricks I've picked up from experience and a lot of reading.
1. A twenty or thirty gallon plus is even better if not preferred. The more space you have, the better. I would not suggest trying a sorority tank with anything less then a ten gallon. In anything less then a ten gallon there simply isn't enough space for the girls to get away from each other.
2. Female bettas can be housed together in groups of three or more - and I would suggest at least 5 or 6. The lower the number of bettas, the more chance of bullying there is. Odd numbers are preferable in smaller groups. When housing two females together, one tends to claim dominance and bully the other - this is not a good idea. Grouping three or more will allow them to establish a hierarchy. Keep in mind that all bettas have a strong individual personality. Any one betta may be overly aggressive and may have to be removed from a community tank. Be prepared to take a betta out and have a tank he/she can be placed in if he can’t play nice with others - i.e. have a backup plan.
3. When setting up a tank for a sorority it is best to have lots of cover and places for the bettas to hide, get away from each other and explore. Things like small caves (more then one) and silk or live plants make for awesome cover and hiding places. Filtration is strongly recommended as it will make life and maintanance a lot easier. Without it there is a ton more water changes involved. I find the health of the bettas tends to be better as well.
4. When first setting up a sorority it will need watching to make sure that all the girls are settling in fine. Don't freak out if there are arguments and a couple of nipped fins. This is normal because even female bettas have attitude - they're still bettas. Only remove a betta if she proves to be too aggressive. This will also apply to when you want to add new girls to your tank. Since each betta has a different tempermant, adding in new tank mates will cause the bettas to sort out a new dominance order.
5. Important! Have a back-up plan in case there is one or more of the female bettas that cannot coexist.
