Who is allergic to there kitty?

Ok so I ave always known I am alergic to cats, dogs, hoses any thing with hair.

My parents have always had a dog and a cat for as long as I can remember. normally I just take an adjustment period to get myself adjusted to the cat so that I build up a kind of resistance and then I have no problems.

My symptoms are sneezing, itchy eyes and my arms/hands come up in itchy bumps

We have had Mellow a week and the sneezing has almost stopped and so has the itchy eyes, but I still keep getting these raised bumbs (i think they are called hives very itchy!) these have slowly been getting further and furter up my arm after each time I get them, they used to just be on my wrists and now they are on my forarms.

Mellow is very afectionate and likes to rub on me, I always wash my hands after petting him and that helps, the wierd thing is when he rubs my leggs I dont get the rash there, it is just on my arms.

I had been washing my hands with dish soap (because the kitchen is the easiest place to wash hands) and i was wondering if thats been drying out my arms making me more susceptable to the rash

I have read the page about allergies, but I was wondering what you guys do to relive symptoms. we vacuum and i hae got this allergy rub thing that you put on them, its natural and non toxic, you rub it on them then dry it off (Mellow enjoys this) but I dont know if it is really making a difference.

Any sugestions would be aprieciated!

I'm allergic to my cats, all 12 of them and while I don't get the hives, the watery itchy swollen eyes are sometimes awful. I got one word for ya- Zyrtec. Its amazing stuff, works like a charm! Talk to your doctor about getting a prescription.

Also, you might be right about the dish soap drying you out, try putting some moisturizing soap in the kitchen and see what happens

I am allergic to one of my dogs she is a shepard sheltie cross, she has to be in the basement ( in my daughters room) or out side. my toy pom doesn't bother me,I have a mild allergy to cats, I found a newborn kittie 8 1/2 weeks ago so far a little sneezing, I usually have problems with adult cats, I am hoping because she is used to getting bath, that might help. or else I will be taking aerius a daily allergy medication that works for me. it take a few days to kick in but it work well

It sound silly but I hate taking pills, I would rather suffer abad migrane than take a pill, The only pill i can take is the birth control pill and even that I cant take it unles I know I am in a safe place! I have a phobia that if i take pills or eat certain foods I will die, this started a year ago when I got quite sick and since then I have been very scared of certain items...enough to have mild panic attacks, Now as I am writing this I know how stupid it sounds but I just cant get over it lol, I managed to even keep it a secret from my husband, but about 6 months ago I told him and he is great, altho I do frustrate him!

So I am really looking for a non pill route if possible. I am going to put some of the dove soap in the kitchen, I dont know why I didnt think of that b4. that way I wont use the dish soap!

Please don't feel silly. I suffer from anxiety attacks and can empathize with you. I am also allergic to my 2 cats. All of a sudden last September I started breaking out in hives all over my body. I also have the sneezing, runny nose, etc.

Besides taking antihistamines, allergy shots, using an air filter in my bedroom, I brush my cats about 4 times a week while wearing a surgical mask. Then I take off my clothes and jump in the shower. I do a lot of laundry and have removed as many fur gathering items from my home as possible, such as carpeting and rugs, and clutter. I clean a lot and wash my hands as much as I can. I wish I had more advice. Good luck!

I own two cats and I suffer from allergies as well. The first several weeks were very difficult but then the sneezing dissipated. I use Rhinocort nasal spray, which is very expensive but works well. I only have to use during an allergy attack.

I told my allergist that I think I conquered my allergies due to immunity. However, he thinks it's just mind over matter. In other words, he believes that I wanted to badly to keep my kitty, that I psychologically controlled my symptoms.

Nonetheless, I do experience bad symptoms every three weeks but Rhinocort helps a lot. Also, I do get small red bumps if my kitties lick me and or wipe their noses on my skin. But the bumps quickly disappear after washing my hands. That's another thing - I wash my hands multiple times per hour; otherwise, my eyes will get itchy and my lips will swell up.

yeah i just found out im mildly allergie to my new kitten. I have many of the same symptoms.

But someone told me that, over time, you can develop an immunity or resistance to your particular cat. Is this true? Has anyone heard this one before?

Yes, I'm allergic to my kitty as well. I get the watery, itchy eyes and the sneezing if I'm not careful. I haven't broken out it hives yet (knock on wood) but I've only had him for a week.

I just vacuum a lot and make sure to wash my hands as soon as possible after petting him, especially before I touch my eyes/face. I also do not allow him on my pillow on the bed, so I'm not dealing with fur on my face when I'm sleeping. He's content to stay at the foot of the bed during the night, which also helps.

I think I'm lucky the allergy is mild. I knew I was allergic before we got Orion - I had the same issues with my cats Boo and Ditz growing up. I was mostly fine (unless they were shedding) until I went away to college. Then whenever I came back to visit - wham! I'm a believer in the idea you can build up an immunity to your cat, and I think that with a little time, I'll adjust to Orion as well.

My cat Mellow - is it the idea of taking medicine that's the problem, or the idea of swallowing a pill? Claritin makes these dissolvable tablets called Redi-Tabs... you put them in your mouth and they just melt. I don't know if they would help or not, but I sympathize with your phobia and just wanted to offer it as a suggestion!

I'm allegic to all 6 cats, I love my Zyrtec!

I am allergic too many cats ... I take homeopathic allergy med s works for me ..

I just have to say THANK YOU to all of you who are allergic and are taking methods to treat your allergies without giving up your cats.

Drives me nuts when ppl 'develop' allergies then have to give away their cats. If I ever had allergies, I would do whatever I could to control them, or just live with them.

hmmmm speaking of vacuuming, I need to go do that b4 hubby gets home!

Originally Posted by snowmeow9

My cat Mellow - is it the idea of taking medicine that's the problem, or the idea of swallowing a pill? Claritin makes these dissolvable tablets called Redi-Tabs... you put them in your mouth and they just melt. I don't know if they would help or not, but I sympathize with your phobia and just wanted to offer it as a suggestion!

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Its the idea of the whats in the pill and the chemicals and stuff...altho I am no better with natural stuff....I also freak out with pepper, nuts and and seeds, so I dont eat fried food incase it is sunflower oil, I always have food without seasoning in restaurants, I used to be like it with icecream, but i have had chocolate and vanilla icecream now in the last month so I am getting over it slowly!

One day we will probably see a hypnotherapist or something to see if that helps.

Oh and whats really silly is I used to take claritin all the time, but then after i developed the phobia i just couldnt face any of it!

Well, I'm not allergic to my cats, but I am allergic to pretty much everything else. I seriously have no idea how it is that I'm not allergic to animals...the only thing I can figure is that God knew that was one thing I couldn't handle.

Talk to your doctor. There are lots and lots of options for allergy relief out there now, and your doctor should be able to help you find a non-pill method of managing your allergies. If your doctor won't help you, won't understand that you can't just give up your cats, or isn't understanding of your phobia...find a new doctor.