[LidijaPN]

The question of what you can keep in that size tank is one of personal comfort. Guppies or endlers or microrasbora probably won’t die just from being in that size tank. So can you technically keep them? Sure.

Will they show undue aggression towards each other because of stress? Succumb to illness more easily? Exhibit less natural behavior because they have no room to stake out territories? Have shorter lifespans? Maybe. Probably. Who knows.

Are people gonna show you pics of their setups where they insist the fish are doing amazingly and spawning and everything? Absolutely. Some people manage to make these things work. And some just pretend to, for this is The Internet.

Which brings us to YouTube channels. Keep in mind the great majority of them care far more about the cool visuals than about the quality of life of their fish. Also, most of them keep tearing up and setting up new tanks over and over because new content is their bread and butter. So they’re not interested in setup longevity etc. just gotta look good for the camera.

So yeah. What can you keep in the 5g? Anything that physically fits. How long will it thrive in there? That’s the real question. We tell you what can live there definitely and comfortably. For anything else... it’s down to your own sense of gambling luck I guess.

 

[LidijaPN]

Thank you for the detailed post!


I wouldn't want something in there just surviving, i'd want it to have a better life than me honestly 😅. So i take it your suggestions are the usual betta/shrimp/snails?




We are probably taking about different channels. Don't know if this goes against the rules but i wasn't referring to a channel like MD or other aquascapers but channels like Aquarium Co-op or Prime Time Aquatics which seem to be well accepted by the community and do not really post stuff for the camera. Why would they suggest such fish for small tanks? So that you go buy their fish? Their tanks ? Their tiny hob filters? Why would the same guy tell you that there are similar products to his and you should buy whichever one you want. Why wouldn't they tell you fish wouldn't live their happiest lives in there because it's too small a place? Just to make another video for the algorithm?Like you i am also raising questions because in the end who really knows.

Anyway it seems that most people on forums agree that you should only put a Betta fish there and some people on YouTube suggest other fish. I think this thread is really valuable to new fishkeepers because all these conflicting views only lead to confusion.Someone posts a video of a betta in a 2.5 gallon and everyone roasts them in the comments saying the space is too small and the fish is miserable. Someone posts a video of 6 ember tetras i a 5 gallon and nobody complains.

It doesn’t have to be that they have nefarious reasons. They might just have a different approach to animals or a different idea of what ‘doing fine’ means. Like a chicken farmer will have a very different idea of what’s ‘totally good for chickens’ than if you had a pet chicken.

None of us can really read fish minds so we’re all guessing one way or another... but over time we notice that if a tank is smaller it gets out of balance easier if overstocked, or you get a peaceful fish acting very aggressive, or stuff like that. Illnesses breaking out. Is it guaranteed? Of course not. Is it more likely than in a bigger tank, definitely. So it’s really a gambling comfort thing.

I mean a lot of fish are small enough bodywise to do great in a 5g, if they were alone.... but the problem is those are schooling fish and end up stressed when there’s too few of them.....

If you want something different you could maybe try a pair of very tiny killifish, like clown killies maybe? From what I know they don’t need a ton of room. If normal bettas are boring you could look for a wild betta, but then you 100% need a lid because they jump. Finally a fun choice could be a single sparkling gourami. If you plant it heavy it shouldn’t be bad for him and if he’s alone he won’t be mean to anyone. They are very cute and personable fish. You could also look into a single paradise fish, that also has betta vibes.

All this said, I’d generally still recommend getting a 10g and opening up your options. I have tiny microfish in a 29g and watching them explore and defend their territories and look for things to hunt is fascinating.