Allergy :(

Finally I got my cat back home.
Almost 2 weeks passed and everything was going well.
But 4 days ago I started developing a nasty allergy.
I'm not quite sure whether its got to do with seasonal changes.
My parents think the allergy is because of my cat.

So how can I tell if it's really the cat causing allergy? Seriously I don't want her to go.
And I don't think taking medication is something I want to rely on especially for long time.

I don;t know what symptoms your allergy is presenting with, but I would have thought an allergy to your cat would show up pretty immediately when the cat arrived in your home.

For people I know who have had allergies to my cats they respond within minutes, certainly within an hour, or coming in to my apartment.  This has been both where they have had a known allergy and where someone has come in and reacted to cats for the first time.  Are there no other changes that might be causing your symptoms, or possible illness?

I agree with MServent if you had an allergy to your cat I would think the symptoms would happen pretty much straight away no longer that a couple of days anyway

Allergies can develop over time; it isn't always an immediate reaction. I don't know where you live, but here where I live in southeast Georgia allergies are at an all time high right now. Lots of people including myself went from sinusitis to ear infections to bronchitis all starting from allergies. While I am allergic to cats, what's going on with me didn't start with the cats.

There's worse things than taking an antihistamine daily. . And even then, there's still other allergens to contend with and sometimes in amounts that bother people without allergies.

Do either of your parents have allergies of any kind? Specific allergies are not heritable, but the tendencies to have allergies are heritable.

You say back home, where was the cat?  If outside it could have outside allergies on fur(pollen or something liike that)

I have allergies and have since I was a baby yet I have 2 dogs and many cats with minimal issues.  Keeping the areas clean and anything washable washed helps ALOT.

catsallaround said:

 
You say back home, where was the cat?  If outside it could have outside allergies on fur(pollen or something liike that)

I have allergies and have since I was a baby yet I have 2 dogs and many cats with minimal issues.  Keeping the areas clean and anything washable washed helps ALOT.

Click to expand...

Great tip!  I keep throws on my couch and recliner because it's easier to wash those than vacuum the couch and chair.  I still vacuum them occasionally, but not as much since using the throws idea.

MServant said:

I don;t know what symptoms your allergy is presenting with, but I would have thought an allergy to your cat would show up pretty immediately when the cat arrived in your home.

For people I know who have had allergies to my cats they respond within minutes, certainly within an hour, or coming in to my apartment.  This has been both where they have had a known allergy and where someone has come in and reacted to cats for the first time.  Are there no other changes that might be causing your symptoms, or possible illness?

Click to expand...

Symptoms are stuffy nose, puffy eyes and sometimes itching especially face and the dry parts of it..
And I'm really trying to figure it out whether I ate something odd or applied something odd on my skin....past few days I was using acne removal cream.

catsallaround said:

You say back home, where was the cat?  If outside it could have outside allergies on fur(pollen or something liike that)

I have allergies and have since I was a baby yet I have 2 dogs and many cats with minimal issues.  Keeping the areas clean and anything washable washed helps ALOT.

Click to expand...

She was at someone else's home...with another cat. Now that just rang a bell, maybe it's the other cat? But why would some cats cause allergy let alone the amount of fur? Anyway I guess I should have given her a bath at first though I'm confident the other home was clean.

Hygiene at home isn't an issue as the whole house constantly uses detergents...but not every single day of course.

Fur isn't really what causes the allergy, it's the dander - and the cat's saliva. When they groom, it stays on their fur and flakes off when they are dry.   Some people are allergic to all cats, and some just a few cats. The cat I have now was the first cat who didn't set me off within 30 mins of being near. In fact, other than the odd burning of my hands if I pet him after he's groomed (fur still wet), I suffer nothing, luckily.

I would wait it out if you can. Normally a allergy happens quite quick and I would check to see if it's not something else setting you off first. We also can be lucky and build up an immunity to our pets. I grew up with dogs which always make me itch and sneeze for the first couple of weeks then my body took over and I could even bury my face in their fur without suffering! I wonder if you'll be lucky for this too.   Good luck and please don't make any decisions straight away, you might turn out fine :-)

Thanks! Glad to see that someone else already experienced this.
And I'm not in rush at all to make this heart breaking decision which my parents are already suggesting.
I always thought amount of fur correlates with amount of saliva on it. Yeah I'm still so dumb with Maths. Anyway. -__-

I meant that her fur had picked up allergens like dust, pollen, something in air.  I would not bathe her.  If your parents want her gone now they will flip if she bites or even scratches you and many cats will if not raised used to a bath.

You can also use wipes to keep down saliva and oils as well as dander on furniture and around doors and corners where cats rub past.  A damp microfibre cloth can lift oils and stuff from walls and skirting and also does a fine job of giving your cat a once over without bathing so you can do it pretty much daily.  You just damp wet the microfibre cloth or small microfibre towel, rub your cat as if stroking and then as if subbing dry to ruffle up and rub down all the fur, and then you can just cuddle normally if you want with a dry towel if the fur is still damp.  It will lift a lot of the saliva deposits and oils off and keep any deposits around the house to a minimum too.

Thanks guys for all those awesome answers.
Yes I did little more searching this morning and decided to go for wipes.
I don't know where I was readin and doing my search in the first place for my cat.
Just getting all useful info in one shot now.

Here's an article that may help as well:

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/living-with-cat-allergy

Good luck!