Not 'horns' newbe007, but suborbital spines. Here is a picture of one of my large clown loaches with his raised:
Whitey's fish are very unlikely to come to any real harm during their arguments, even if it looks quite fierce and they raise their spines.
Having said this, the suborbital spines of Botiid species are very sharp (can cut our skin when handling) and can become entangled in netting very easily so much care is advised when catching/moving/bagging them.
Emma