Cats and dog

Question
Hi Kate,
I have 2 cats a male and a female, both neutered and they just lose so much hair, its unbelievable. I got them on fatty acids for some time but they put on too much weight  and I was forced to stop because they were getting too fat
which is no good for 6 and 7 year old cats.
Two months ago I also got a Cairn terrier of 3 months and thought they would go on well. No such thing...their body
language is so completely different!!The dog takes a submissive position and rubs his eyes when he lays on his back. The male cat just looks at him, wondering what he is doing but usually is not agressive and lets him get passed.
The female however hisses and attacks him whenever he comes too near and no amount of coaching helps. This cat has a very strong bond with me and my youngest daughter who found her on the street when she was about 10 days old. She is a bit peculiar but I think that might be the reason.
Please give me your opinion about the hair loss and also
about the behaviour problem.
Thank you very much in advance
         henriette

Answer
Hi
i know exactly what you mean about the excessive cat hair loss. All my life i have cats and their hair loss has not been a problem but our current, even though she is a small cat shed all year and quite a lot. I have known anything blike it. I;m sorry to say their is no cure, i have checked. the best advice is that you brush them every day to remove the loose under coat hairs (see my link to my page about grooming below).

As for the behavior issues. It all very myuch depends on how the cat was brought up during the first few weeks of their life. he they were exposed to other animals extra. If not then it is very difficult if not impossible to get them to react differently. the best you can hope for in these cases is that they just avoid each other. I will also add a link about introducing cats to geather, the process is the same for a dog. It may worth trying this slow introduction period, to see if it calms the situations alittle. :)

Kate
/cat-grooming.html
/introducing-cats.html