# Starting a Female Betta Sorority



## XanaduSalt (Jul 8, 2015)

I am already experienced with male bettas, _but_ females are tricky for me. 
I want to start a female sorority and I have attempted to make one out of three bettas (one of them is a rescue due to it's horrible cup I bought her in).

Pepper, a red female, is the most aggressive and wont stop pestering and pecking Baybi, a smaller chocolate female. Snowflake, a white female, is in a separate tank until she is fully healed from clamped fins.
I know my tank is probably too small to start a sorority, since it is one gallon. I plan to buy a larger tank in the near future soon!

Could someone please tell me the best way to make them get along and recommended setup for a tank. 

Baybi:
http://www.bettafish.com/album.php?albumid=29169&pictureid=184145

Pepper:
http://www.bettafish.com/album.php?albumid=29154&pictureid=184105

Snowflake:
http://www.bettafish.com/album.php?albumid=29177&pictureid=184177


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## Elliriyanna (Jan 25, 2013)

You will need at least a 15 gallon Pack it with plants, you will want a minimum of 5 bettas, each should have a cave and you want to put them all in at once. 

But thats just the VERY basics. sororities are delicate.


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## XanaduSalt (Jul 8, 2015)

Thank you! 
Is there anymore tips you guys can give me? I'm basically being thrown into cold water right here, this is all new for me with females.


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## Elliriyanna (Jan 25, 2013)

This should help  
http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=123796


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

My recommendations are: 

Tank of at least 15 gallons

Tank is fully cycled _before_ females go in. There's absolutely no way I would try and do a fish-in cycle with a sorority. 

Minimum of five females for a sorority, and any new females are quarantined for a minimum of two weeks. Disease introduced by a lack of proper quarantine procedure is a huge problem for sororities because they are such a high-stress environment. 

I find caves etc. are less important. What you want to do is absolutely pack the tank full of plants, whether live or fake. You don't want to be able to see from one side to another, or from the front of the tank to the back of the tank. Not only does this break up lines of sight, but it also discourages chasing, which can become a major source of stress for the fish being chased. 

A sorority is not a tank to set and forget. Betta splendens are highly unpredictable fish. When females start to mature they often become much more aggressive and territorial, which is where a lot of sororities start to fall apart. Simply because a female tolerates the presence of other females one day, is no guarantee she will tolerate them the next. 

Most importantly, don't fall into the trap of anthropomorphism. This can be especially dangerous for a sorority. Never forget, your females are _not_ friends, no matter how benign their behaviour towards each other might be. Chasing is _not_ play, and displays of aggression and dominance can be extremely subtle and almost unnoticed by us humans. 

As I mentioned, betta sororities are high-stress environments. These are aggressive and territorial fish being forced to live in close confines. You have to be aware that there's as much a chance as your sorority being successful long-term, as there is of your sorority ending in disaster. And for a sorority tank, 'ending in disaster' usually means the serious injury or death of one or more of your females.


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## XanaduSalt (Jul 8, 2015)

This helps a bunch! Thank you!


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## savagebeautymnl (Apr 16, 2015)

Great tips! I'll borrow them too, as I'm also about to start a 15 gal sorority. Just need to find & then quarantine 3 more girls.

I read somewhere that sororities have better chance for success when the inhabitants are about the same age & size, but it's not a requirement. We'll just have to watch out for extremely aggressive behaviour. I also got 2 slightly smaller girls that resemble your own Snowflake! 

Water sprite and tiger lotus are a few of the plants that've grown really fast for me, in case that helps.

Good luck with your set up, XanaduSalt!


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## XanaduSalt (Jul 8, 2015)

Thanks for the tips and goodluck on starting yours, savagebeautymnl! Right now I have the girls in their own containers since I don't have a 15 or 20 gallon long available right now. 

I'm a bit wary now about starting my sorority, since I've been told it can end in disaster and dead or dying fish. I just might keep them in the same tank, but with tank dividers to keep them apart.


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