Allergies...advice needed!

Hi everyone! Now that my husband is home and settling in we're starting to see more how the cats are affecting his allergies. He's on zyrtec now but still sneezes and the whole red eye thing some too. I brush the cats and bathe them too.

So I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to help him. I told him the next time he sees the doctor he needs to ask about different meds. He said he told them his main allergies were to animals and they gave him zyrtec.

We have an air filter in the bedroom that helps my allergies and the cats are not allowed in there. So I was thinking that maybe we should get a larger standing one for the living room/kitchen?

We didn't have any kitties for the first 2 years of our marriage and it was so tough. About 6 months ago Nathan saw a kitty in PetSmarts adoption center he wanted but I told him that if we adopted a cat I could not bear to give it up so he better be serious considering his allergies. So we kinda waited and the kitty was adopted so we got the fish. Then he had to deploy and we got Mooch and Noodles. I love them to death and they are not going anywhere. He loves them too. But he's suffering. I know how tough allergies are. Do you think over time he might develop some immunity to it or something? Please help! I'd appreciate any suggestions!

I use some homeopathic formulas , for me I work better than rx s

My mom got us two kittens when I was 16. Shortly after, she started having terrible allergy symptoms. She went to the doctor and found out that she had asthma, as well an allergies to the cats! By this time, Kingsford and Ashes were part of the family. Mom finally had to take allergy shots, it was the only thing that helped her.

Good luck to you and your husband!!

Don't forget your air filter to your furnace/AC if you have one. Getting a good allergen filter for that can make a world of difference too.

Most likely he will get at least some immunity to them, but depending on how bad his allergies are to them the symptoms may not go away completely.

I know it will be hard if they aren't used to it, but can you make your bedroom a "cat free zone"? I'm sure it would really help him to have a place in the house where the allergens wouldn't be so bad, and he could get a good night's sleep.

Originally Posted by valanhb

Most likely he will get at least some immunity to them, but depending on how bad his allergies are to them the symptoms may not go away completely.

I know it will be hard if they aren't used to it, but can you make your bedroom a "cat free zone"? I'm sure it would really help him to have a place in the house where the allergens wouldn't be so bad, and he could get a good night's sleep.

Click to expand...

They aren't allowed in our bedroom. It does seem to help. He's really good about changing the filters on our furnace so hopefully that is helping. I'm not sure if they are made for allergy reducing or not. I'll have to pay more attention to that next time we go get some. Our furance has an odd size so they can be hard to find.

A friend was in a similar situation with her husband and their parrots.
He refused to rehome the birds as he loved them as much as she did.
They removed all of their carpetting and bought two of those ionic breeze filters.
Birds and man all live happily under one roof now.

If you're in your own home, getting rid of carpetting will help a lot!

Good points Arlyn - that is my dream someday to have enough money to rip up the carpet and put down tile and stone flooring.

This also brought up another idea - make sure your vacuum cleaner has a good hepa filter on it too - and clean it regularly.

Note about the furnacen filters - the say to replace every 3 months.... for us though with the cats and birds, we usually replace every month - and it always looks like it needs it - badly!

I have had asthma since I was born and have terrible allergies. I have been on the shots, every inhaler known to man, all the steroids and crap, tried every allergy pill, nasal spray and everything!!! The only thing that works for me is Zyrtec, but in August it isn't enough. There is a grass called Timothy Weed that blooms in our area at that time and causes all heck to break lose in my eyes, lungs, nose, everything. This year one thing they did was have me take my Zyrtec as usual but ALSO take a singulair around like noon or one pm as well. It has helped immensly and there aren't any drug interactions between these two pills, nor does the singulair make you as tired as zyrtec does. I take my zyrtec at night right before bed and then the singulair the next day. That is how my eyes have even been open the last month at all. I also have to regularly take my inhaler at night now too in the past couple of weeks but that's normal for this season!!

Hope the doc can help him out, see if they can double up his dose with the zyrtec and singulair like mine has and that may help if the zyrtec isn't enough!!! Good Luck!

Silly Jilly

I am allergic to cats as well, and i was around 200+ everyday and gaining no immunity to them at all =\\ Reactine works very well for me. I tried Aierus but that didnt work at all. But Reactine might be worth a shot.

I have allergies and asthma also and take zyrtec, Singulair and Flovent. I agree that this time of year is bad no matter what. I also get very bad right around Christmas. After almost landing in the hospital a few years back, no more real Christmas trees for me

I also occasionally take an extra Zyrtec in the morning if they are real bad. Abby is not allowed in the bedroom at all. This house has hardwood floors, but the last house was carpeting. Washing the carpeting and furniture regularly helps a lot. I bought one of those Bissell cleaners that looks almost like a vacuum.

Does yuor husband ahve a chair he sits in all the time? It's best to put some type of throw on it, for when the cats are on it, then he shoudl take it off when he sits down.

Also, if he does any of the housework, dusting, vacuuming, etc - it's best to wear one of those hospital-type masks. I know it looks foolish, but it really does help. I try to do this when I do a big cleaning.

You do build up a bit of an immunity after a while, but never 100%.

Oh, and he needs to be vigilant about washing his hands after petting them or touching anything of theirs. Make sure the cats have never been on him wearing the clothes he wears to bed - you would just contaminate the bedclothes.

I know it sounds like a pain, but after a while it becomes second nature. I keep doing this so I can have a cat in my life. Unfortunately, one cat is my limit. I wish Abby could have a friend.

Good Luck!

I was in a similar situation, my daughter's allergies were terrible because of the cats. I found out about an air purifying light bulb called Ozonelite. I decided to order one and try it out. Within a few weeks, my daughter was not suffering nearly as much. I was suspuscious at first but it turned out to be a really great product. I ordered it off their website www.ozonelite.com.