Help with Diagnosis

[TequilaCollins]

You guys helped me out once before and I hope you can again.
I started doing the fast fishless cycle, but then someone told me about Bio-Spira (or something like that) that does a one day cycle. I put 4 plecos, 2 pitcus cats and 2 gouramis in the next day (9 days ago). No problems. Monitored the chems and everything seemed fine. It seemed to have worked just as advertised. Returned 2 plecos & the gouramis Sat, leaving 2 plecos & 2 pitcus cats. Planned on getting others tomorrow, but will hold off now.

Yesterday, everything still seemed fine. Today I get home and the cats are dead. They also have a LOT of white mold growing on them. I've never seen anyhting like it. It's about a quarter inch thick all around their bodies.

I took a closer look at the plecos and noticed they have ich.

My questions are, could the mold be related to the ich or otherwise normal, or is it something else to worry about?
Also, if ich is the only problem, what are the best methods for clearing it out? Hopefully without killing my bio-filter which is still undergravel, but with plans to get a canister later.

Stats: 46 gal freshwater
Ammonia : 0
Nitites : .35
Nitrates : 0
PH : 7.2
Temp : 80
Last water change was when I had to move the tank 4 days ago (80%)

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[webcat5]

The mold is a fugas and the ick can be a secondary infection. Treat the tank with an antibacterial/anti fungal medication to get rid of it. Seems strange that everything was okay yesterday. Are you sure that you just didn't notice anything wrong on the cats before hand?

 

[WILDER]

Can you describe the mold is it all over the body, does it have a fluffy appearance to it.

 

[TequilaCollins]

It's possible that I didn't notice anything wrong the day before. I was rushed.

The mold on them was not like what you see with cotton mouth. It was a translucent, almost transparent, mold that stood strait out about a quarter inch, and it completely covered them. I would almost describe it as cloud like.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

If you are saying the mold was only on the dead fish then it is probably just them decaying/rotting; i have seen a similar mold on dead fish at my lfs.
The ich could've killed them but i have never heard of the product you used in the tank and it is posible it killed them.
Are the living fish showing any symtoms or odd behavior other than the ich?

 

[webcat5]

Yesterday, everything still seemed fine. Today I get home and the cats are dead. They also have a LOT of white mold growing on them.

Kind of quick for decay.

 

[BettaMomma]

Could possibly be something called chilodinella - it's a parasite that makes fish produce a whole mess of mucousy covering on them.

Or just parasites in general, probably.
External parasites always cause extra mucous.

Is that what it looks like?
A blush-white mucousy film stuff?

 

[WILDER]

A grey white film and trailing mucas on the skin can be a parasite or bacteria infection.

 

[TequilaCollins]

Could possibly be something called chilodinella - it's a parasite that makes fish produce a whole mess of mucousy covering on them.

Or just parasites in general, probably.
External parasites always cause extra mucous.

Is that what it looks like?
A blush-white mucousy film stuff?

Maybe. That kinda descibes it, but when I think of 'film', I think very thin layer. This was thick. Bits of also came off when I scooped them out.

Do you think the same stuff that kills the ich, will kill the other stuff too?

 

[WILDER]

You could try a slime and velvet med.