Keith, I'm highly allergic to cats and dogs, and regarding allergies my IgE numbers are 1200 (normal is under 100).
That said, because we feed our pets the best quality food out there, I no longer have ANY sort of allergic reaction to them. Before, simply petting a cat would make my hands unbearably itchy, as well as my face and eyes.
It's ALL in the food. Orijen is pricey, but the benefits seriously outweigh the cost. My cats might still shed, but our hypoallergenic dogs leave more hair around than the cats do. The only things that get cat hair on them are our curtains that the cats crawl around through (they like sitting in the window.)
I do sometimes still react, especially if I do use the brush to comb them. But just not touching the hair, because you're pulling out the oils and dander from their hair which is the thing we are allergic to. If you have an allergy to dogs and cats, even having a hypoallergenic dog doesn't truly help, the reason they don't cause huge reactions is because they don't technically shed and drop hair when you touch them. If you were to brush their hair and touch what shows up on the comb, you'd react.
As for the album, I'll try to find the official thread but the album isn't available in Canada. Everything else is, but not this.
You should also really consider putting the video up on iTunes, it'd be awesome
And I stress again, these things will make life with a cat a THOUSAND times better:
Scratching post. Good enough one will ensure they won't scratch anything else. I've never had a couch damaged by our cats.
Good food will almost entirely eliminate both shedding AND hairballs.
As it might be clear, I'm currently listening to the episode as I type this
Oh. Never mind then.
Keith, if you're getting rid of the cat, I would consider getting a friend for Hugsy. He will be much happier and you'll thank yourself for it.