Kitty allergies!

Ultimanecat

I was just informed that new kitties have been added to my family (we've been skittish about having cats in our neighborhood for awhile because someone here doesn't like them - one of our cats was shot and two others disappeared).

While I do love kitties, I am mysteriously allergic to them. Whenever I'm near one, my chest tightens up and it becomes hard to breathe, and the allergy medications I've tried (benzadryl, claritin) don't seem to help much. Strangely enough, once the kitties become cats my allergy subsides and I only have problems when I bury my face in one (which I've been known to do), or rub my eyes after petting one.

Any ideas for what I can do for the next few months? Any OTC meds that could help? Or should I just spend as much time away from home as possible?

Trowizilla

I have a largely-contact allergy to cats as well. Just wash your hands after you pet them and keep them off your face.

You're probably having more of an allergy to the kittens because, like human children, kittens can be terrible at washing themselves, so they're getting more dander into the air. Have you tried using one of those allergen-reducing air filters? Wiping them down regularly with a damp cloth might also help, although they won't like it.

(Also, if they're in danger of getting shot, they shouldn't be going outside. If they're your family's cats and not yours, I know you might not have much say in it, but it's something to keep in mind.)

Ultimanecat

I'm with you, and we'll do our best to keep them indoors - but we have dogs that depend on dog doors for both their and our own sanity, and it seems that sooner or later the cats figure it out for themselves too.

Nobody

Ultimanecat wrote: »

I was just informed that new kitties have been added to my family (we've been skittish about having cats in our neighborhood for awhile because someone here doesn't like them - one of our cats was shot and two others disappeared).

While I do love kitties, I am mysteriously allergic to them. Whenever I'm near one, my chest tightens up and it becomes hard to breathe, and the allergy medications I've tried (benzadryl, claritin) don't seem to help much. Strangely enough, once the kitties become cats my allergy subsides and I only have problems when I bury my face in one (which I've been known to do), or rub my eyes after petting one.

Any ideas for what I can do for the next few months? Any OTC meds that could help? Or should I just spend as much time away from home as possible?

I haven't found any OTC meds that are really effective (Claritin worked a little, but wasn't that great). May want to just wash your hands after handling them and avoid getting your face too close to them (also make sure they don't sleep on your bed).

Quoth

You may also find that over time you become tolerant of your cats' specific dander. You develop an immunity, basically.

Useful things you can do include dusting and vacuuming frequently to remove the allergens, and making sure to change your air filter every month (buy an allergen-reducing one if you can). You can also have a non-allergic family member comb/brush the cats frequently to remove hair. If you want to go nuts, there are special wipes, kind of like baby wipes, that you can use to bathe the cats, which helps reduce the dander as well.

Good luck!

EggyToast

Well, allergies are an overreaction to an environmental element. Once your body becomes used to the irritant, you're no longer allergic (because by definition an allergy is an overreaction). So yes, it's quite common for people to become used to their own cats.

My personal advice as someone who was allergic to cats but owns 2 now with no allergy symptoms at all is to focus on giving them high quality food. A cat with high quality food will have a shinier coat, clean itself less, and have less bad stuff in its spit. They also seem to shed less (and smell better). It's amazing (yet, ultimately not that surprising) how much a high quality diet positively affects a pet.