Do Honey gourami get lonely?

[Anne]

I watched Cory's video on possible fish for a 5 gallon tank and finally was able to purchase one honey gourami.

It's decently planted, with water lettuce, java fern, crypts, and vallisneria so lots of hiding spots. But looking at him now, he looks just kinda lonely? Just a few days ago he was in a gigantic tank with 40+ different fish and now he's by himself.

There's a bunch of articles online talking about how honey gouramis like to be in community tank. Would he be fine alone, or should I add some other fish (let's say pygmy corydoras) so he has something to interact with? I'm worried that adding another honey gourami will lead to fighting and I don't think a 5 gallon is enough space for 3. Then again, I might just be projecting my human feelings on a fish so please knock some sense into me if I am. 

Thanks in advance!

[nabokovfan87]

@Cinnebuns we need your gourami experience!

1 hour ago, Anne said:

Would he be fine alone, or should I add some other fish (let's say pygmy corydoras) so he has something to interact with?

A lot of gourami are kept as a centerpiece.  I would definitely keep it as a one gourami tank.  Given that it's a 5G I don't know that I would add any more fish honestly.  That's just me personally.  Amano shrimp (1-2 of them) might be a fun thing to add in there. 

1 hour ago, Anne said:

Then again, I might just be projecting my human feelings on a fish so please knock some sense into me if I am. 

Not at all.  I think it's human (and in some cases animal) nature to want to have a sense of a "home" and the things that go into it.  I would focus on a happy environment and treat it like a betta setup.  Ultimately, if it's a good place to be for the gourami and it's visually pleasing for you, I don't think you can ask for much more!

Also, welcome to the forums!  🙂

[Lennie]

I keep mine as a centerpiece.

however, I personally believe 5g is waaaay too small for honey gourami. Mine is super duper active. I personally wouldn’t keep anything other than shrimp or dwarf rasbora type fish in a 5g.

my honey lives is a 42 gallon. And believe me, He is everywhere nonstop. He really enjoys swimming. He would feel like trapped in a 5g in my personal opinion. I used to keep him in a 29 centerpiece fish, even then, It feels small for him and his behavior to me.

If I were you I would aim a planted tank with some neocaridinas and very tiny fish like dwarf rasboras in that tank size. Or maybe just shrimp.

 

The thing is, honey gouramis also like some action going around them. They don’t seem to mind being the only honey gourami in the tank but they seem to enjoy and active tank very much in my experience

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by Lennie

[Cinnebuns]

22 hours ago, Anne said:

I watched Cory's video on possible fish for a 5 gallon tank and finally was able to purchase one honey gourami.

It's decently planted, with water lettuce, java fern, crypts, and vallisneria so lots of hiding spots. But looking at him now, he looks just kinda lonely? Just a few days ago he was in a gigantic tank with 40+ different fish and now he's by himself.

There's a bunch of articles online talking about how honey gouramis like to be in community tank. Would he be fine alone, or should I add some other fish (let's say pygmy corydoras) so he has something to interact with? I'm worried that adding another honey gourami will lead to fighting and I don't think a 5 gallon is enough space for 3. Then again, I might just be projecting my human feelings on a fish so please knock some sense into me if I am. 

Thanks in advance!

Honey gourami are incredibly peaceful but males will have their little arguments. Generally, when multiple males are in the same tank, they tend to pick their area and mostly stay away from each other. I have 2 in a 15 gallon. Mine tend to both get breeding colors at the same time. When this happens, then tend to test each other more and get on each other's nerves a little but nothing too dramatic. That said, I agree that I wouldn't put 3 in a 5 gallon. I don't think I would even put 2. There is mixed info on honey gourami out there that's for sure, but from what I've gathered, they can do well as a single gourami or with others. Either way is fine. 

In regards to other species of fish however, I'm not sure. I've never actually tried a honey completely alone in a tank with no other fish period. My guess is that yes its putting human emotions on them and they are fine. It may also be that they appreciate a little activity but don't require it. I'm not sure. Even so though, a 5 gallon becomes extremely limited. Idk that I would personally do pygmy cories because of how active they are.

[Anne]

22 hours ago, nabokovfan87 said:

@Cinnebuns we need your gourami experience!

A lot of gourami are kept as a centerpiece.  I would definitely keep it as a one gourami tank.  Given that it's a 5G I don't know that I would add any more fish honestly.  That's just me personally.  Amano shrimp (1-2 of them) might be a fun thing to add in there. 

Not at all.  I think it's human (and in some cases animal) nature to want to have a sense of a "home" and the things that go into it.  I would focus on a happy environment and treat it like a betta setup.  Ultimately, if it's a good place to be for the gourami and it's visually pleasing for you, I don't think you can ask for much more!

Also, welcome to the forums!  🙂

Thank you for validating my feelings and the warm welcome! He's definitely settled down since I made my post and is leisurely patrolling his perimeter now. I guess he was just settling from the big change, he was darting around so much for the first few days. I'm thinking about getting a betta log for him because he seems to like hanging out near the water lettuce so he won't have to hover as much! 

I'll work on enriching him by getting more plants. Glad to be a part of this community. 

1 hour ago, Cinnebuns said:

Honey gourami are incredibly peaceful but males will have their little arguments. Generally, when multiple males are in the same tank, they tend to pick their area and mostly stay away from each other. I have 2 in a 15 gallon. Mine tend to both get breeding colors at the same time. When this happens, then tend to test each other more and get on each other's nerves a little but nothing too dramatic. That said, I agree that I wouldn't put 3 in a 5 gallon. I don't think I would even put 2. There is mixed info on honey gourami out there that's for sure, but from what I've gathered, they can do well as a single gourami or with others. Either way is fine. 

In regards to other species of fish however, I'm not sure. I've never actually tried a honey completely alone in a tank with no other fish period. My guess is that yes its putting human emotions on them and they are fine. It may also be that they appreciate a little activity but don't require it. I'm not sure. Even so though, a 5 gallon becomes extremely limited. Idk that I would personally do pygmy cories because of how active they are.

Thank you for your advice, the conflicting information online is so difficult! There were articles saying honey gouramis should be kept together and others saying absolutely not unless you have a 20 gallon so I'm glad I made the right decision this time. I'll be keeping him by himself and adding more plants for enrichment. He's already looking more settled in and not glass surfing anymore! 

[Anne]

22 hours ago, Lennie said:

I keep mine as a centerpiece.

however, I personally believe 5g is waaaay too small for honey gourami. Mine is super duper active. I personally wouldn’t keep anything other than shrimp or dwarf rasbora type fish in a 5g.

my honey lives is a 42 gallon. And believe me, He is everywhere nonstop. He really enjoys swimming. He would feel like trapped in a 5g in my personal opinion. I used to keep him in a 29 centerpiece fish, even then, It feels small for him and his behavior to me.

If I were you I would aim a planted tank with some neocaridinas and very tiny fish like dwarf rasboras in that tank size. Or maybe just shrimp.

 

The thing is, honey gouramis also like some action going around them. They don’t seem to mind being the only honey gourami in the tank but they seem to enjoy and active tank very much in my experience

 

Your tank sounds like it holds a beautiful ecosystem! In the future, I'm hoping to get something in that size in the future once I get more space. 

Thankfully, my honey gourami's settled down a lot more since last night and is no longer glass surfing. I've only ever kept bettas that were flaring even on the first day so a timid fish was a first for me. I think I'll keep him as the only fish and just work on enriching him through more plants so I don't overcrowd him. Thank you!

[Cinnebuns]

1 hour ago, Anne said:

Thank you for your advice, the conflicting information online is so difficult! There were articles saying honey gouramis should be kept together and others saying absolutely not unless you have a 20 gallon so I'm glad I made the right decision this time. I'll be keeping him by himself and adding more plants for enrichment. He's already looking more settled in and not glass surfing anymore! 

Conflicting information happens A LOT in this hobby for different reasons. Sometimes it's because it entirely depends on the specific fish's personality. Sometimes there legitimately is multiple correct answers. And unfortunately sometimes it's because you are reading an article written by a bot that has inaccurate information. The last one is why I always recommend making sure the article you are reading is from a trusted site. Still, keep in mind its possible that all of the answers actually are correct. It's a hobby where there are many paths to the same solution. That's why it's often best to get answers from many sources so you have options to choose what works best for you. 

Edited June 24, 2023 by Cinnebuns

[Anjum]

I'm glad your Honey is settling in! I had a similar experience - I added a solo Honey to a community tank & at 1st he seemed lonely. But after a couple days, he started exploring the tank & interacting w/ the other fish. 

More plants is a great idea, mine loves weaving in & out of the plants. Another thing you might try: mine has learned that food comes from tweezers & when I stick the tweezers in the water, he swims right up & will eat from them. I feed frozen (thawed) bloodworms & repashy from tweezers, but probably any kind of food you could pick up in tweezers would work. Swish them around in the water a bit, then let the food go. Pretty soon he'll catch on. 🙂