betta and cherry shrimp in a 5 gallon (stocking advice)?

[clownbaby]

So I have finally gotten my mom into fishkeeping! After her watching my 30 gallon enough she told me yesterday while we were at a thrift shop that she was going to buy a tank for a betta fish. And there was a 5.5 gallon tank at the shop! No leaks and it came with a heater, sponge filter, hang on the back filter and a nice light for 4 bucks. I think I will order a nice nicrew light for her since she hasn't ever kept aquatic plants before and I want it to be easy and fun for her, instead though I will use the LEDS in the light for my house plant shelves. 

She wants a betta fish but also likes cherry shrimp. I prefer tanks to be understocked myself but she says she would like some shrimp in the tank too. I told her I would do more research on if that's okay and honestly I am just not sure if that is overstocked or not. I know the betta would keep the shrimp population manageable but I am more worried about stocking levels than the shrimps breeding

I am just really excited to get my mom into this hobby and also to have more fishes haha! 

Any advice? 

[Tlindsey]

On 9/3/2024 at 2:17 PM, clownbaby said:

She wants a betta fish but also likes cherry shrimp. 

I've read threads on different forums and they both stated it depends on the betta some will harass neocaridina and some will ignore. 

 

Edited September 3 by Tlindsey

[clownbaby]

On 9/3/2024 at 11:26 AM, Tlindsey said:

 

Oh of course. We will probably get a female so the chance of aggression is lower, but even then I know it can still happen. My question mainly was about stocking numbers. AqAdvisor says the tank would be about 90% stocked with one betta and 6 cherry shrimp, but I wanted some other opinions too. Do you think the tank would be overstocked with a betta and shrimps? 

Since this is my moms first tank I just really want it to go well for her, yknow?! She has been looking for new calming hobbies to help with her mental health and even though I will help her get started I will be leaving in about 9 months for uni abroad and need her to be ready 🙂 if the shrimps push the stocking and maintenance levels by a lot, I just wouldn't want to add em. 

[CoryWithAKatana]

My advice would be to give the shrimp PLENTY of hiding spaces and caves to hide and spawn in. The betta will for sure eat fry if they can so try not to let that happen. Another thing I would try to do would be to cycle the tank plenty before adding the shrimp, since they like established tanks. Another crucial thing I would also do would be to add the Shrimp first. I know this sounds strange but in my experience bettas will live with other organisms the best when the other organisms are already in the tank. This is because the betta will think that they are being added to the shrimps area instead of the other way round. Personally I would not suggest a betta with shrimp in such a small tank but I believe you can do it with enough time and effort. 

So to recap: Cycle the tank(few weeks/month) --> Add shrimp (let them settle for a week)---> Add Betta.

This is my personal advice, feel free to disagree or whatever 

[clownbaby]

On 9/3/2024 at 12:03 PM, CoryWithAKatana said:

My advice would be to give the shrimp PLENTY of hiding spaces and caves to hide and spawn in. The betta will for sure eat fry if they can so try not to let that happen. Another thing I would try to do would be to cycle the tank plenty before adding the shrimp, since they like established tanks. Another crucial thing I would also do would be to add the Shrimp first. I know this sounds strange but in my experience bettas will live with other organisms the best when the other organisms are already in the tank. This is because the betta will think that they are being added to the shrimps area instead of the other way round. Personally I would not suggest a betta with shrimp in such a small tank but I believe you can do it with enough time and effort. 

So to recap: Cycle the tank(few weeks/month) --> Add shrimp (let them settle for a week)---> Add Betta.

This is my personal advice, feel free to disagree or whatever 

With that advice and what I knew before, I think I will keep it a solo betta tank. I was hesitant at first but I was thinking perhaps it could work, but I would rather play it safe so my mama isn't stressed. Thank youuu!!

[EricksonAquatics]

I don’t think the stocking is the problem but rather the issue of finding a betta that won’t eat your shrimp, lol. Bettas bioload is so small and shrimp don’t add hardly any bioload, either (unless you have an absolute ARMY of them). So personally I think this could totally work. Load it with plants and let the plants take care of you!