Q I've noticed that when one of my cats goes to the vet and then comes home, they don't seem to get along and hiss at each other lot. Is there some reason for this?

A This is not too unusual of an experience for owners of multiple cats. Because the sense of smell is so important to cats, when one cat returns home from the veterinarian, she does not smell the same to those cats who stayed home and thus appears to be a stranger. Therefore that cat is often met with an aggressive response, being hissed at or batted at.

ou can help to prevent this by getting the scent of each cat onto the other cat. Once you've returned from the vet, take a clean towel and rub it on the cat who stayed home. Then rub the towel on the cat who went to the vet and then back on the one who stayed home. Another solution, of course, is to take both cats to the vet, even if only one needs to be seen. The other cat can stay in the carrier and both should return home with the same scent and peace should reign.