is there anything you can put in a cats food to keep him from loseing his hair ? I can buy food with that in it but its expensive; thanks in advance...rick

-- rickey normand (rickeynormand@hotmail.com), April 21, 2002

Answers

HUH? It is natural for animals to shed their winter coat, otherwise they would burn up in the summer. Could you try putting a little mineral oil ( a drop or two) into their food to help them pass the hair through their system instead of throwing it up>? Works for me.

-- Carole (carle@earthlink.net), April 21, 2002.

Regular brushing to remove the hair also helps. I buy the cat food with the hairball remedy in it. (This actually helps the cat pass the hair ball, not stop the hair from falling out). I fed it to the cat for a couple of days, now I just mix a bit of it in with his regular food.

A pet rescue place in our town told me that in a couple of extreme cases she has shaved the cat - just left the tail, legs and head covered with fur. Then fed the hairball remedy food. And then when the hair grew back in, the problem was totally under control. Of course you could only do this in warm weather!

-- Bernie from Northern Ontario (bernadette_kerr@hotmail.com), April 21, 2002.

I've always heard that you can smear butter on the cat's paws to help with the hair ball situation. The cat licks the butter off, and the fats of the butter help them pass the hair without forming a ball.

-- Notforprint (Not@thekeyboard.com), April 21, 2002.