30 Gal male + sorority

[stuntman2946]

so i have the 30 gal kingdom set up (lots of castle decor) with lots of plants and im wondering whats the best way to add a sorority to the tank.

i already have the male in the tank and he has taken to it nicley. (appart from being a picky eater)

i am going to try adding females to the mix because i love the way bettas swim and act. i just want to do this safley. ive seen several videos about putting them in the tank for a few hours with some kind of divider or other thing where the male cant get to them.

whats the best way to accomplish this? and how many females should i add? i was thinking somewhere between 4-7 for the alpha and subs.

[ILLBETHEJUDGE]

Males and females should not be mixed together, you might get away with the females only. In a 30 gallon you could have at least 10 females if you have plenty of hiding places, not just talking about cave like places but more like plants, either fake or real your choice.

[dramaqueen]

I don't think I'd put a male in there. There will be fighting among the females and I think having a male in there will make things worse.

[stuntman2946]

im hoping to find a local breeder to get siblings because ive heard they dont fight as much

[Bombalurina]

Even if you manage to get siblings, I still wouldn't add them to a tank with a male. OldFishLady has successfully managed it, but her bettas are the results of multiple generations raised together. The most likely outcome of your scenario would be the females ganging up on the male and harassing him to death. Definitely either stick to a sorority or a male, not both.

[eemmais]

Yeah, I would not keep the male with the females. If you don't want to set up a whole new tank for him, you could divide maybe 2.5-5 gallons for him.

[Option]

Originally Posted by stuntman2946

im hoping to find a local breeder to get siblings because ive heard they dont fight as much

I think you're missing the point. It's not the females that we're fearing will fight with each other....your male will be the one that will fight (and likely kill) the females.

[stuntman2946]

alright yall have talked me out of it, i guess it just wont work with my experence. what are some other fish i could add to the tank besides neon tetras?

i would really like a pleco but my male betta is the top priority of the tank

[Bombalurina]

It depends on your water parameters. What is your water hardness and pH? :)

[stuntman2946]

ph is around 7, im not sure how to test hardness