can i have two bettas together

Question
i have one male betta and i was wondering if i can have  two male bettas together or one male and one female bettas?

Answer
Hey Becky!

Personally, I've never kept betta fish as pets. However, I do know a few things about fish aggression, and betta are always prime examples of it.

Betta males from very very young become very territorial. Two male betta in one environment simply cannot co-exist. When encountering another male (or sometimes it's reflection in a mirror) a male betta will flair up his fins, buff up himself and flash his color. Although quite pretty, this generally leads to fins being shred and that's never fun. However, I have heard of a male / female co-existing successfully, but it's not recommended because the male might mistake her for another male every now and then. She wouldn't be too happy if she was suddenly attacked for no reason. Multiple females are safe together, and apart, it's just the males that are aggressive. The benefit, I think, to keeping one of each is of course, breeding. It's a rewarding experience to care for small cute little fry. However, you'll find betta fry are one of the more difficult to keep. You have to research and sex each fry very early to prevent male on male fights. And your male betta will "protect" his young. Once they hatch, they quickly become a snack, but during the egg development he really watches them close!

Anyway, back on topic...

You can choose to keep your male with other types of fish such as tetra, livebearers, or other non-aggressive community fish. Anything prone to tail nipping or fighting will provoke the betta to defend his ground, or vice versa.

If you wish to keep two males, get a solid tank divider so the two cant ever see each other. This allows for shared tank water, and less equipment, without risking a fight for rank and ground.

Hope that covered all the different questions you had. If not, Bettatalk.com seems to have pretty good information on these popular fish.

Best of luck! and let me know how things are going.