Living With Cat Allergies

datagrrl

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Good Morning,

We recently got a cat. My husband is allergic to cats, like many others it totally depends on the cat. His allergies have also gotten better over the years. He goes into people's houses for a living, cleaning their furniture. He would come home in the past and get very sick after some cat exposure. Now he rarely has that kind of response. Most cats barely bother him.

I have taken to vacuuming every day, we are seriously talking about getting rid of the carpet. Once she has free roam of the house we will try and keep her out of our bedroom. I also plan on changing the furnace filters once a month (worst job on the planet, because of the morons who installed our furnace).

I also use the Febreeze for allergens. He has a year supply of allergy meds, but can't use anything with a decongestant.

Any other suggestions? Is anyone else living with cat allergies and a cat?

Our cat is a female ginger. I read that light skinned girls produce less of the protein. I also read that getting her as a kitten might desensitize him. He has some sneezing on day two, but we were moving furniture also, so it might have been dust. Other than that nothing.
 

red top rescue

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I have a friend who has cat allergies and has always had cats.  She takes a daily allergy pill and tries to remember to wash her hands after touching the cats and before touching her face.  The cats sleep with her and her husband and it doesn't seem to be a problem.  They have had the same two cats for several years and the allergies did get less severe over time, as if she was getting allergy shots specific to her own cats.  Hers are both Maine Coon type cats (no pedigrees, just large, longhair brown tabbies). There are cat wipes you can use on the cat once a day that can help remove dander and cat saliva.  Feeding the cat a high quality diet helps a lot too as it reduces dander and shedding.  There is lots of information here under the NUTRITION Forum that you should find useful in choosing the best diet for your cat, knowing it will be best for your cat AND your husband.
 
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catwoman707

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I actually think what he has been doing is probably the best thing to do, gradual exposure seems to desensitize the allergies.

Some people this doesn't work well on if they are allergic to the point of asthma and breaking out in hives/blisters, but you haven't mentioned these at all, so the exposure thing will help him work through this.

Plus too, this is very true, some cats are much more prone to trigger allergies than others. I know long haired cats are notorious for this.

Good luck! 

Oh, not sure that a monthly change is needed really, but vaccumming the furniture will help, as well as emptying the bag very often so as not to spread the dust back throughout the house everytime it's run.

Vac bags aren't cheap either so I just carefully open the bag, empty it and re-seal it with a stapler.
 

rachelinaz

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We eere told by an allergist, over time you will get use to your cats (6 months or so). It does not mean you will get use to other people's cats. Just your orwn.

My husband takes his allergy meds for now. He eas complaining today, it might be the cats, but Arizona is dry and dusty and a lot of pollen. I am going to guess for him it is more so that, because before today, he was ok... unless it got really dry and dusty. Not to say our cats couldn't give him issues.
 
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datagrrl

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How often do you get shots?

My husband refuses to take an allergy med daily, or even as needed. He is being a bit of a jerk about that.

By the time she starts bothering him I hope he becomes so attached he will change his mind.
 

AbbysMom

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For me, the shots started off once a week, then once every two weeks, etc. I go every 6 weeks now, but I have been getting them for years. Something else to try is having him rinse his nasal passages with a neti-pot. It will help get the allergens out of his nasal passages.
 
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datagrrl

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I was in Arizona two years ago today, I don't really have seasonal allergies and I was sick as a dog. The office where I worked had all of these yellow trees, I still remember it because I had to meet all of my coworkers and I was so sick.
 
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datagrrl

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I actually think what he has been doing is probably the best thing to do, gradual exposure seems to desensitize the allergies.

Some people this doesn't work well on if they are allergic to the point of asthma and breaking out in hives/blisters, but you haven't mentioned these at all, so the exposure thing will help him work through this.

Plus too, this is very true, some cats are much more prone to trigger allergies than others. I know long haired cats are notorious for this.

Good luck! 

Oh, not sure that a monthly change is needed really, but vaccumming the furniture will help, as well as emptying the bag very often so as not to spread the dust back throughout the house everytime it's run.

Vac bags aren't cheap either so I just carefully open the bag, empty it and re-seal it with a stapler.
Thanks @catwoman707 I actually bought a bag less vacuum, which is gross in itself. I need to buy better filters for the furnace/AC. I just had someone out to service it and they said fixing it so I can change the filter would be $500. The guy who installed it made it so the slot for the filter faces the wrong direction. No human being can get to it, since my furnace is in the attic and this is basically facing the back wall instead of the entrance. Needless to say I have only been getting to it once or twice a year. This is better than my previous unit, which was installed so you couldn't even change the filter at all. Every time I change it I get covered in fiberglass insulation. Ow. No amount of clothing seems to help.

We have mostly leather furniture so at least I have that going for me.
 
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