# 10 gallon sorority



## fishyface323 (Jan 25, 2014)

Can I do a 10 gallon sorority? How many bettas can I put in, without stressing them out?


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Keeping a group of bettas together is a high stress environment. I've seen a lot of failures in 10 gallon tanks.


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## OrangeAugust (Jul 23, 2012)

My 10 gallon betta sorority is going great. I had 7 female bettas in a 55 gal community tank and it was heading towards disaster really quickly. So I put them in a 10 gallon with a ton of plants and only occasionally I'll see that a number of them have ripped fins as if they got into a bit of a tiff, but usually it's pretty peaceful. I'm attaching a pic which isn't a good example because they all have some torn fins, but this only happens occasionally and I think this time it could be because a few days ago I took out plants and scrubbed off a bunch of blue green algae and had to throw out some out. So there aren't as many hiding places. I guess that's the key.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

How long has it worked for you so far?

There are certainly instances where it works. However, I think people have this romanticized idea of the "sorority". It's funny, any time someone wants to put a betta in a community tank, everyone says "make sure you have a backup plan in case it doesn't work". Never once have I seen that warning for a "sorority", and the odds of that failing are at least as good, if not better, than the betta in a community.

I can certainly understand the allure for betta keepers - what could be better than a tank full of bettas?? But, such a setup is really for your enjoyment rather than the fish's well being. It's forcing the fish to exist in an unnatural way, which is generally frowned upon in fish keeping. But of course it's just a hobby and people are free to enjoy their hobby.


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## OrangeAugust (Jul 23, 2012)

It's been about 6 months.


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## amphirion (Jan 15, 2014)

this technique is utilized by african cichlid owners as well. provided the tank has plenty of hiding spots for weaker tankmates to hide, quite a few females can be placed together in a 10 gallon. the idea is that the aggression be spread upon many rather than a targeted few.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

amphirion said:


> this technique is utilized by african cichlid owners as well. provided the tank has plenty of hiding spots for weaker tankmates to hide, quite a few females can be placed together in a 10 gallon. the idea is that the aggression be spread upon many rather than a targeted few.



Except that bettas are not African cichlids. The cichlids naturally live like that - it would be unnatural not to "overstock" them. Bettas (that we are talking about) do not naturally live in a group like that.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

amphirion said:


> this technique is utilized by african cichlid owners as well. provided the tank has plenty of hiding spots for weaker tankmates to hide, quite a few females can be placed together in a 10 gallon. the idea is that the aggression be spread upon many rather than a targeted few.



This philosophy is being misapplied here though . It's NEVER recommended to do in smaller aquaria . I keep African cichlids and understand the thinking behind this however not convinced a 10g is appropriate for any such stocking . With my overstocked African tank I have 20 fish in 72 gallons .. That's a far cry from what's being talked about here. 
I also do not believe bettas are suited for living together like this . In an African cichlid setting an ill suited fish will be killed VERY quickly as they are not only very aggressive but they have teeth resembling piranha. As sad as that night sound ... It's better this way . A stressed yet alive fish can lead to a columnaris outbreak . This is something very uncommon in overstocked African cichlid tanks yet the downfall of nearly all betta sorority tanks I've seen come through here. 


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## amphirion (Jan 15, 2014)

fair enough. i see your point.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Yup - the high stress environment is not good for bettas. What's a shame is that things can go well for a long time, but then ONE little thing changes and everything falls apart. I often say aquariums are not a house of cards waiting to come crashing down, but that's exactly what these "sorority" tanks are - a house of cards.


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## OrangeAugust (Jul 23, 2012)

After I set up my sorority I actually thought about this... with a number of people saying that bettas don't live in close quarters like that in the wild I got to thinking that maybe we shouldn't be doing it. It's bothered me for a little while but so many people do it that I was kind of able to shrug it off. But I definitely see what you mean. If I hadn't already had 8 female bettas together before I heard a number of people say that (while not discouraging sororities) I might not have tried a sorority...
IDK, especially after this conversation, I'm kind of thinking about selling them or giving them away to someone on this site to good homes and just keeping one.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

I must say in really impressed with this discussion . This is perhaps one of the better discussions of the merits of betta sororities I've seen in a long time .. Where egos and emotions aren't dictating the direction  


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## amphirion (Jan 15, 2014)

Lol. im glad it turned out that way too. i think overall, we do want what's best for our fish. i know that while i know much in the realm of tropical fish, there is still even more that i don't know. always good to have an objective and open mind.


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## fishyface323 (Jan 25, 2014)

I'm glad I asked  much better than putting 5 bettas in a tank, falling in love with them, and then being upset over torn fins and dead fish.


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## jag14 (Sep 23, 2012)

I have a 10 gallon tank with 4 females. They have been living together almost a week, and seem to be doing fine. I have lots of plants, decorations, and added some plastic hair curlers for them to swim through. I wasn't sure about trying it this way, but if it didn't work, I would just put a divider in and keep 2. Added some ghost shrimp yesterday, spotted 4 out of the 6 this morning. My 4 don't mind being near each other, they seem to be getting along fine so far.

The red betta is my office buddy, he lives in a 5 gallon behind on the file cabinet. Pity I don't have room for a 10 in here... But my office is more like a closet. A 5 is all I could get by with in here.


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