Guppies and Bettas

[Olympia]

A guppy will do better without a heater than a betta. How big are your two tanks?

[ravenwinds]

I have to agree with OFL...it's the size of the tank and whether it's planted that decides if there will be problems. I have kept 3 female bettas in a 10g with guppies and they each interact with their species and pretty much ignore the other even during feeding.
I have also kept a male betta in a planted 29g with guppies, neons, cories, and even rainbow fish...I have never had cross species issues...sometimes it will get a bit boisterous with the schools of fish playing tag (especially with mollies!) But when that happens, Sapphire just moves to a quiet corner and sits in a plant...sometimes I swear he is watching his version of sitcom tv and laughing his little monkey face off!

It seems to hinge on whether tank is large enough for each species to have a place to call their own and retreat to. I think it is also important to remember line of sight...if a weaker, picked on species can disappear from constant view of an aggressive fish, it should be ok...kind of like when you are attempting a spawning...if one is not ready and the male gets violent, the female has to have a hiding place or cave to retreat to for a rest...the male will usually leave her alone if she is far enough away from nest and not in his direct view.
Don't get me wrong...you still have to monitor any fish in a new situation and act accordingly to protect fish that can't get away!

[JuliansMomma]

Olympia my normal tank is 45l and the other one, pfhht it's tiny. Like literally was told it was suitable for one goldfish. My parents have guppies and no Bettas, I'm contemplating giving her to them for their tank (we live in the same house but this still makes me a little sad!)

[Olympia]

That's about 11 gallons. You could give her away and look into another tank mate for you tank :)

[Bombalurina]

Originally Posted by JuliansMomma

Like literally was told it was suitable for one goldfish. My parents have guppies and no Bettas, I'm contemplating giving her to them for their tank (we live in the same house but this still makes me a little sad!)

Hah, if the petshop was telling the truth and it was *actually* suitable for one goldfish, it would be a good 100+ litres.

I think it would be good for your little guppy girl to go and live with other guppies. :) They are social fish.

This being said, I and some of my friends have all kept guppies and bettas together successfully. It depends on your fish and on your tank - the fish need room and hiding spots to get away from each other. Obviously, it wouldn't work with an aggressive betta, but some bettas tolerate them just fine.

As for Endlers, Olympia, I really wouldn't worry. The males are so small and their tails are not nearly so long as a guppy tail. If your betta will tolerate something like tetras, he should tolerate an Endler.

[Edifiler]

Originally Posted by Mo

While you are correct regarding them being compatible with each other depending on the individual personality of the Betta itself I disagree with you in many ways as even a relatively peaceful betta such as the one that was with the guppies can still become aggressive towards them as there are no facts, ways to test, or precautions to take to ensure that every individual Betta will or will not be compatible with the given species. in this case I had what I though was a peaceful Betta that interacted and lived happily with Gourami's. So I thought that he would be okay in my guppy tank, yet he still attacked them and to what I thought wouldn't happen happened. I would never recommend this case as you can already see, a peaceful Betta can become an aggressive one in different given situations so experimenting can result in death, disease, or stress. I wouldn't recommend this even if you have what seems as if to be a peaceful Betta, Because almost anything can turn and go wrong.

I agree, bettas are after all animals, and can be very unpredictable. But I guess if you had no choice and had to leave them together, how the tank is setup is an important factor. With enough space and cover guppies can easily escape from view before they can be attacked. But really it all comes down luck.