I am a high school biology teacher who fell into the hobby by rescuing a betta from a living in a beaker. I set up a cute little 5.5 gallon with some live plants and neocaridina.
Then, a student tells me he needs to remove his catfish and do I want him. Long story short, I now have a 60 gallon Long tank and a common pleco who will definitely need more space eventually.
The tank has the pleco and my female betta (who is pretty aggressive and an expert hunter of shrimp).
The kids really want to add more fish. I told them I am not putting anyone else in the tank until we figure out how they all get along.
The pleco is super chill, but my betta is super aggro. Are there any fish that would fit in? My first thought was small, quick, schooling fish. But I am looking for recommendations.
Eventually, there will be more plants and hides in the tank, but we are taking it slow and trying to be deliberate.
Posted by whats_a_weekend
3 Comments
honestly i don’t think you have many options here. your best bet would be to set up a new tank for the betta (10-20gallon is perfect for short finned) and start a community tank. that betta will most likely try to kill anything you put in the tank that’s smaller than them, or get eaten/stressed if you choose to add fish bigger than them. i think a separate betta tank and turning this one into a community tank would be your best option!
That tank isnt suitable for a betta, that filter is way too high. They need calm water to not be as stressed, I would recommend not keeping a common pleco with a betta. Their size difference is too much. I would recommend replacing it with Cory’s, tetras also make good tank mates
You have a “common” Pleco… Yeah, you’re going to need a 250 gallon tank for that river monster. Maybe you don’t really understand what you got yourself into.