Severe Cat Allergies

Originally Posted by miao_kitty

Do you think that taking an allergy pill everyday helps build it up in your system? And should he try different brands like zyrtec, claritin, allegra, etc? or are they pretty much all the

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I know Allegra-D is a prescription, but I would recommend that your boyfriend see an allergist/immunologist to figure out which medicine would be the best for him as some meds have different strength levels.

Originally Posted by Lynsey

I would recommend that your boyfriend see an allergist/immunologist to figure out which medicine would be the best for him as some meds have different strength levels.

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Also, just a reminder there are 2 ways an allergist MD can test us.

1. testing via blood draw (better/more in-depth IMHO) (I don't remember the official medical name)
2. testing via skin reaction (not as good IMHO) (again, I don't remember the official medical name)

IIRC, I think the first one requires the patient to not eat before the blood draw or something. Check with a doctor or nurse. These are the 2 ways I'm aware of. I got the first one.

Made any decisions? Just checking in.

Originally Posted by furbum

....One suggestion I have if you're absolutely sure he's worth it is to give your cats weekly baths and to keep them out of the bedroom. Of course they will not be pleased about this so I am only suggesting it if you're certain he's good.

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I've seen several people recommend bathing the cats weekly. I just wanted to point out that actually bathing the cats completely defeats the purpose and is counter-productive for people with allergies. The cats should be brushed daily and wiped down with distilled water.

Cats bathe and groom themselves primarily to rearrange scents. Licking themselves helps create the dander - the bit of saliva that sheds with the skin and hair - which is the problem for people with allergies. Those who are allergic are not allergic to "cat hair," they are allergic to cat dander.

Bathing the cats is counter-productive because when bathed, cats completely lick themselves all over. At least ours do. Completely defeats the purpose!

...So we brush them daily to reduce the amount of hair that sheds (shedding hair spreads dander), and we wipe them down with distilled water to "pick up" whatever dander we can. With the quick wipe down - using distilled water - the cats are not left feeling the need to clean and lick themselves - like they are when bathed.

Originally Posted by LDG

I've seen several people recommend bathing the cats weekly. I just wanted to point out that actually bathing the cats completely defeats the purpose and is counter-productive for people with allergies. The cats should be brushed daily and wiped down with distilled water.

Cats bathe and groom themselves primarily to rearrange scents. Licking themselves helps create the dander - the bit of saliva that sheds with the skin and hair - which is the problem for people with allergies. Those who are allergic are not allergic to "cat hair," they are allergic to cat dander.

Bathing the cats is counter-productive because when bathed, cats completely lick themselves all over. At least ours do. Completely defeats the purpose!

...So we brush them daily to reduce the amount of hair that sheds (shedding hair spreads dander), and we wipe them down with distilled water to "pick up" whatever dander we can. With the quick wipe down - using distilled water - the cats are not left feeling the need to clean and lick themselves - like they are when bathed.

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^^ I agree!

Hi guys

Sorry it's taken me so long to get back on here, but work has been a nightmare lately....

Anyway...I bought the Furminator brush and have started using that on my cats as often as I remember. I'm looking into buying more air filters for other rooms, but that'll have to wait until i have some extra cash/.

I need to get a system in place where I am on a routine vaccumming/laundry schedule which I think will be kinda hard b/c I'm really busy and when I'm home I'm usually almost comatose. Also, i don't have a washer/dryer right now so I am taking things over to my bf's house to wash. But i will probably try to get some of those sheets bags and store my linens in there when they're not in use.

My boyfriend has agreed to start taking daily allergy pills -whether he comes over that day or not and would probably be interested in trying allergy tests though i haven't talked to him about that in a bit. (I've been kinda nagging him to get to the dentist b/c he had a roller-blading accident last month and kind of chipped his front teeth...plus he's been kind of a slacker on that front anyway...but he finally made an appt so I figure the allergy test thing can wait a bit so's I don;t overwhelm him.)

Mostly right now i've been just trying to get into the routine to brush/wipe down my cats and vacuum more frequently. but I will definitely keep this page book-marked and hope to refer to it in the future!

Thanks for all your advice and please feel free to post or PM me if you think of anything else!

Iove animals and all my i think your boyfriend is more important i mean geez this guy cant breathe he could die from allergies i think he id more important and if u dont think. So he needs to find another womam that loves him more than an animal

rainbowbrite said:

Iove animals and all my i think your boyfriend is more important i mean geez this guy cant breathe he could die from allergies i think he id more important and if u dont think. So he needs to find another womam that loves him more than an animal

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3 yr old thread

rainbowbrite said:

Iove animals and all my i think your boyfriend is more important i mean geez this guy cant breathe he could die from allergies i think he id more important and if u dont think. So he needs to find another womam that loves him more than an animal

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You won't find many, if any, who agree with you that the "boy friend is more important" here. Pets are for LIFE. You don't dump one, just because someone comes around who is allergic. Fortunately, it sounds like the OP has found a good guy, since he appeared willing to work around the problem. I hope they are all still together making it work.

If he couldn't deal with the allergies, hopefully he did move on and find someone else. What is more important is that the kitties kept their home.

odiakkoh said:

3 yr old thread

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That doesn't matter. The subject is as important now as it was three years ago.

rainbowbrite said:

Iove animals and all my i think your boyfriend is more important i mean geez this guy cant breathe he could die from allergies i think he id more important and if u dont think. So he needs to find another womam that loves him more than an animal

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otto said:

You won't find many, if any, who agree with you that the "boy friend is more important" here. Pets are for LIFE. You don't dump one, just because someone comes around who is allergic. Fortunately, it sounds like the OP has found a good guy, since he appeared willing to work around the problem. I hope they are all still together making it work.

If he couldn't deal with the allergies, hopefully he did move on and find someone else. What is more important is that the kitties kept their home.

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The other side to your statement, rainbowbrite, is that the boyfriend loves animals (and his girlfriend) enough to find a solution that works. That's the kind of man I'd want to marry, not one that asked me to give up my animals for him. If he doesn't think they're family, then we don't see eye-to-eye on something pivotal in my life. (And thankfully I am married to such a guy. :lol3: ).

After years of having two housecats, my husband developed allergies.  He was terribly sick all the time and none of the prescriptions from the doctor would work.  We finally had to put the cats out of the house.  We lived in the country and we fenced in part of the back yard.  Then we bought what is called a cat fence in system which attaches to the fence.  It kept animals out and our cats inside.  We built a new house and moved and still use the same system for our two cats.  We live in a far more rural area now with much more wildlife.  Because of predators, our cats only stay outside during the day and only when we are here.  The rest of the time, we leave them on a screened in porch with water, litter, ceiling fan and lots of cushy chairs for them to sleep on.  At night they sleep in our heated and air conditioned garage in a large animal cage.  Yes, it is not as good as if we could live with them in the house, but it didn't work.  As much as I loved my cats, and he did too, I love him more and it was awful seeing him so sick all the time.  I dusted, cleaned, mopped, washed linens, all the things some of you have written about, and it still didn't make life tolerable for my husband.  So we have adjusted to this arrangements and the cats have too.

otto said:

You won't find many, if any, who agree with you that the "boy friend is more important" here. Pets are for LIFE. You don't dump one, just because someone comes around who is allergic. Fortunately, it sounds like the OP has found a good guy, since he appeared willing to work around the problem. I hope they are all still together making it work.
If he couldn't deal with the allergies, hopefully he did move on and find someone else. What is more important is that the kitties kept their home.
That doesn't matter. The subject is as important now as it was three years ago. 

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Agreed otto!  I didn't adopt animals just to give them up if it became inconvenient for me.   I would never do this to a child I adopted or gave birth to, so why do it to an animal?  They are just as dependent on you as children are (some may say more so because they never grow up and move out!  ).  The kitties did keep their home and I kept my man.  We recently got married and his allergies are getting better - though he still hasn't started getting allergy shots.  He's really great about it and doesn't complain and we work together so that everyone (including the kitties) are happy. 

LDG said:

The other side to your statement, rainbowbrite, is that the boyfriend loves animals (and his girlfriend) enough to find a solution that works. That's the kind of man I'd want to marry, not one that asked me to give up my animals for him. If he doesn't think they're family, then we don't see eye-to-eye on something pivotal in my life. (And thankfully I am married to such a guy.

).

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He does love animals (he's a vegetarian too) and even though he likes to pretend that he only "puts up with" the cats, I can tell that he has grown to really love them and they him. 

Thanks to you both!

miao_kitty said:

Agreed otto!  I didn't adopt animals just to give them up if it became inconvenient for me.   I would never do this to a child I adopted or gave birth to, so why do it to an animal?  They are just as dependent on you as children are (some may say more so because they never grow up and move out! :lol3: ).  The kitties did keep their home and I kept my man.  We recently got married and his allergies are getting better - though he still hasn't started getting allergy shots.  He's really great about it and doesn't complain and we work together so that everyone (including the kitties) are happy. 

He does love animals (he's a vegetarian too) and even though he likes to pretend that he only "puts up with" the cats, I can tell that he has grown to really love them and they him. 

Thanks to you both!

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CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! What happy news!!!! :wed:

Congratulations!!

My DH is allergic; but  not severely.  WE didn't have any cats when we first got married.  My last one from growing up passed a few weeks after we got married.  I missed them terribly!!!  We make it work now too.

miao_kitty said:

Agreed otto!  I didn't adopt animals just to give them up if it became inconvenient for me.   I would never do this to a child I adopted or gave birth to, so why do it to an animal?  They are just as dependent on you as children are (some may say more so because they never grow up and move out! :lol3: ).  The kitties did keep their home and I kept my man.  We recently got married and his allergies are getting better - though he still hasn't started getting allergy shots.  He's really great about it and doesn't complain and we work together so that everyone (including the kitties) are happy. 

He does love animals (he's a vegetarian too) and even though he likes to pretend that he only "puts up with" the cats, I can tell that he has grown to really love them and they him. 

Thanks to you both!

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Thank you for the happy update and congratulations to you both on your marriage!

sorry for jumping in out of nowhere but I was wondering bout ur symptoms. So u had mild allergic reactions that after a while just went away? Coz with my new kitten I just fell in love and I cant imagine giving him away. I do have mild symptoms like runny nose at times, sometimes lil itchy eyes but not severely. With the other cat I usedt o have skin rashes which I don't have with Richi. I am also hoping that those symptoms will go away after a while as in my body getting used to him. We do have a big air purifier that supplies the whole apartment so Im hoping thatll help.

Much luv n meow.Kat