Aggressive pearl gourami...(stocking question)

[FishyWarrior]

So i think i found out nearly for sure why i keep losing fish seemingly randomly. My pearl gourami was just going on a rampage, chasing everyone in the tank nonstop, bashing into all of them... they were all so scared and banged up from him that they all hid in the plants and refused to come out. And just the other day i saw another minnow was dead, so i had to make the difficult decision to donate him to the fish store i got him from. Which sucks because i really grew to like him, I'm wondering why he became so aggressive though after weeks of being perfectly fine and passive? I hear they only get this way when spawning but he was the only gourami in that tank. There was a case of ich in the tank, but i think i've completely treated it by now since i don't see any signs of it anymore and it's been over a week (still going to treat for a few more days though just to be safe).

Either way, i now have a space in my tank that i'd like to fill, but i have no idea what i could put in to replace him, so i thought i'd come here for suggestions. I would prefer to keep a singular fish that gets to roughly the same size as a pearl gourami would fully grown (or bigger if it will fit in my tank that is), and something really pretty to look at. Of course it'll have to be compatable with my other fish too. Here's my tank setup right now:

8 White cloud minnows, 4 dwarf neon rainbowfish, 5 kuhli loaches, 2 amano shrimp, a bristlnose pleco and some snails. The tank's a 40 gal breeder.

If you had a suggestion for a different direction to go entirely such as a school of smaller fish then i'd also like to know, but i would prefer a bigger one.

 

[FishyWarrior]

On a side note, i just noticed that one of my loaches was dead under a leaf with an all white body, so my guess is hes been there for a little while. And another loach just died now, hes was swimming weirdly and had this whitish, reddish flim on the side of his body and face. i left for a bit and came back and he was dead. I looked around and i think it might be some kind of fungus but i have no idea. Hopefully someone can id this for me.

Right now i have two i've seen actively swimming and seem fine, a few whitish really tiny specks, but it looks more like sand stuck to their body instead of ich. One loach i haven't seen, he could just be hiding, but i hope i don't find another body under a rock a week later or something. I don't really want to go looking right now since they seem to be stressed enough as it is.

 

[FreshyFresh]

Sorry to hear about your issues! I'm sure the aggressiveness of the pearl gourami didn't help, but it sounds like an illness was brought into the tank when something new was added. I'd keep the stocking as is until your sure your fish are happy and healthy.

In my option, gouramis are weird. You can have a sweetheart or a total jerk, spawned from the devil himself. You never know until a bit down the road. The only pearl I ever had was a female and was a super nice fish.

 

[FishyWarrior]

Sorry to hear about your issues! I'm sure the aggressiveness of the pearl gourami didn't help, but it sounds like an illness was brought into the tank when something new was added. I'd keep the stocking as is until your sure your fish are happy and healthy.

In my option, gouramis are weird. You can have a sweetheart or a total jerk, spawned from the devil himself. You never know until a bit down the road. The only pearl I ever had was a female and was a super nice fish.

Yeah i definitely want to wait a bit before adding anything new, but it would be nice to plan ahead at least. It is amazing how after removing the gourami the atmosphere in the whole tank just completely shifts. The fish are out of hiding, swiming happily, and maybe it's just me but their colors look better than they ever have!
The loaches were added just last week, so i'm guessing they had something on them already when they came in...In which case i'm not entirely sure what i should do, the other fish seem fine right now, it was just that one loach for the moment...

 

[FreshyFresh]

I would just wait it out. If the fish's color is good, they're active and eating, all should be well. Keep up on your weekly water changes and monitor for a few weeks. Give you time to research a center piece fish.

 

[FishyWarrior]

I would just wait it out. If the fish's color is good, they're active and eating, all should be well. Keep up on your weekly water changes and monitor for a few weeks. Give you time to research a center piece fish.

Will do, thank you!

 

[tanker]

Gouramis are strange, but I think you probably got a male. Most males do get mean, maybe trade for a female or 2.

PS-- How long have you had the tank? Is it cycled? Do you know what the parameters are?

 

[FishyWarrior]

Gouramis are strange, but I think you probably got a male. Most males do get mean, maybe trade for a female or 2.

PS-- How long have you had the tank? Is it cycled? Do you know what the parameters are?

Yeah he was definitely a male one, it still seems weird that he got so aggressive when other people don't seem to be having the same issue with just a solitary male. but i don't know.

i've had the tank for a little under 2 months now, completely cycled and the ph is about 7.4