male betta and snail or shrimp in 5 gal. tank?

[OrangeAugust]

I'm thinking of getting a betta this week and I haven't had one in a few years. My last betta had a 1/2 gal. tank. I realize now that that's still really too small. The betta I had before that had an even smaller tank.
I was looking online at tanks that Petco sells for Bettas and there's a 5 gal. tank. I think that would be great and then I could give him a tank mate. I've heard mixed things about male bettas and shrimp. Would a male betta potentially eat any kind of shrimp? Ghost shrimp are larger than cherry shrimp, right? would a betta be less likely to eat a ghost shrimp than a cherry shrimp? Or should I go with a snail instead? What kind of snail should I get? Do snails or shrimp need sand or will they be fine with the pebble stuff?
Thanks!

[katrina89]

it depends on the bettas personality... mine never ate a ghost shrimp...i dont know anythin about cherry shrimp tho

[CharStarr]

My male VT Kudo is in a 10 gallon tank with his new tank mate Gus a mystery snail. It all depends on the betta, some are more aggressive then others. Kudo has tolerated tetra and ADF in his tank, my new super delta Spyro I think will not tolerate any tank mates, he's more aggressive. But to answer your question, I think a snail would do wonderfully with a betta in a 5 gallon, I've learned though through this site not to overcrowd due to bioload issues so just be careful how many tank mates you get!

[battered]

I'd say generally, bettas are not compatible with cherry shrimp. It may take a while for an encounter to occur, but when it does, you'll usually end up with a dead rcs. Bettas don't generally go for ghost shrimp because they are bigger than rcs, but I had one that attack a molting ghost shrimp after several months of living together in a 10 gallon. In terms of snails, personally, I like nerite snails the most. Amazing algae eaters, smaller than mystery snails (which is good in my book), and can be very colorful.

[OrangeAugust]

Thanks, everyone! I think I'll go with the nerite snail as a tank mate to start with. I'll observe the personality of my fish for a while and then decide whether to get a ghost shrimp too. If I have a 5 gal. tank, would the bioload be too much if I decide to also get a shrimp? Or should I just stick to the fish with either a snail OR a shrimp? I'll have live plants in there, too.
I'm going to Petco today after work. I'm excited. hehe

[Perseusmom]

I would stick to just one a shrimp or a snail...Good luck shopping !