how many fish i should put in my five gallon tank

Question
I was wondering how many fish I should put in my fish tank they have a lot of room but they are so tiny.  My mom said I should only put 1 fish for every gallon put I'm thinking she's wrong.  Since you guys are the experts I figured to ask you.

Answer
Hi Miguel,
Your mom is right in one sense. Because one fish per gallon is a good rule to go by...But keep in mind thats only with small fish the size of neons or zebra danios. Fish that are larger or have heavier bodies like with platies that won't work so well. The tank would soon be overcrowded.

There are many little fish you can try. You should look at this link and check out the stocking schemes actually meant for 5-gallon tanks and check out the fish profiles. Make sure you right click, highlight and copy the entire link then paste it into your search box to go to the site.

http://www.fishchannel.com/freshwater-aquariums/tankmate-tips/5-gallon.aspx?cm_s...

Stick with a small group of tiny little fish and make sure to keep up with weekly or better yet twice weekly 50% water changes. Don't forget to use water conditioner and make sure the temperature is equal to your tank or a little bit warmer is fine.

The link gives you some really good ideas for colorful and interesting fish and a general guideline for stocking your tank.

Best wishes!
Karen~