Why is my Male dwarf gourami nipping fins of the female dwarf gourami?

Question

I have two sharks and two pictus catfish along with these two male and female dwarf gouramis for last whole week. I have checked the water quality and it looks fine. But I have noticed that the caudal fin and the dorsal fin of female gourami is getting nipped by the male. In that case will it be good to separate the female?

Answer 1

you should seperate them if you want them to live

Answer 2

Gourami are considered semi aggressive they will nip the fins off of other fish. Never put them together with the community fish. And also because they can also be territoral. Make sure there is plenty of places for each fish to hide and call their own space or spot in the tank. Meaning lots of plants and rocks. But yah its common for them and all fish to do so.

Answer 3

Gouramies are weird.  I have pairs in which there is no fighting and pairs in which they fight constantly(same species)  There are several factors

-Hiding spots (plants, decor, etc)

-Condition of the water

-Food supply ( I heard that if you feed the same amount to your fish twice a day instead of once it helps reduce aggression)

- Lighting (If they they are stressed try giving them more "off" light time)

- There personalities (sry, out of your hands, can't give fish lobotomies)

- You could also try putting other more active fish (neons, tertras, etc.) to distract them  (just be sure they are ACTIVE, not AGGRESSIVE)

Answer 4

Gouramis aren't terribly tolerant of their own species.  How big is your tank?  If the female doesn't have room to get away from the male, this will continue to happen.  I strongly suggest keeping only one Gourami if this is happening.