Thanks to advice received from people on this group, I administered a
hairball treatment to my cats last week and after four days the
"coughing" they had been displaying for a number of days stopped.  I
bought the treatment at a local pet shop and it consists simply of
mineral oil flavoured with malt ( and my cats LOVE malt).

Anyway, after this treatment had ended and the coughing was gone, there
I was in kitchen putting some olive-oil-based margerine onto a butter
dish to take through into the dining-room when I became aware that both
cats were at my feet and looking up with a begging look in their eyes.
(My two lads have an incredible sense of smell!)

"Okay!  Let's see if you like it!" I said, and I popped a dollop of the
margerine in the palm of each hand and then offered it to the cats.
They immediately tucked in and licked until the teaspoonful was gone and
my palm licked clean.

Question: a dollop of this occasionally would clearly delight the cats
and it would be a darn sight cheaper than an $8.00 little tube of
mineral oil, but would regular use be bad for them and, if not, is it
likely to help clear hairballs from the oesophagus etc?  (Usually, for
myself, I use a fairly pricey poly-unsaturated margerine which has been
proven to lower cholesterol.  Maybe a little of that would be good for
the cats too!)

Thanks.

Eddy.