Questions & Answers about Нет, собака там, а кот здесь.
This sentence starts with Нет. What kind of question might it be answering?
It is answering a yes/no question! For example, someone might have asked with rising intonation: Собака здесь? (Is the dog here?). Since the dog is actually over there, you start the answer with Нет (No) to correct them.
Where is the word for "is" in this sentence?
In Russian, the verb "to be" is completely skipped in the present tense. So instead of saying "the dog IS there," you literally just say собака там (dog there).
Why is the word а translated as "and" here instead of и?
Russian has two common words for "and". You use и when things simply go together. You use а when you want to show a contrast, kind of like "whereas" or "but". Because the dog is in one place and the cat is in a completely different place, we use а to highlight that contrast.
Why does кот mean "cat" when I thought the word was кошка?
Кошка is the general word for a cat and also means a female cat. Кот specifically means a male cat. Russians often use кот when they know the cat is a boy!