I would really like to get a dog, but I’m allergic to them. My allergies would probably be considered moderate (a few hours with a dog means several hours of sneezing the next day).
I’m interested in hearing from allergy sufferers that own dogs. What breed of dog do you have, and how do you deal with your symptoms? Are there any sort of shampoos, otc medication or anything that help?
Note: I wouldn’t buy an animal then get rid of it later, so no need for anyone to go in that direction. Also, I know that there are lists of dogs that are ok for allergy sufferers out there but I’d like to hear some personal experiences.
My brother and my father are allergic to cats and some dogs. We were able to have poodles, though, without any problems, because they don’t shed. They also come in a variety of sizes.
He is not allowed on furniture (sofas, desk chairs, etc) and the second floor of the house is absolutely off limits to him. When inside, he is kept in the kitchen for the most part (linoleum floors), and it is swept regularly. The carpets are vacuumed regularly. After playing with or rubbing him, I have to wash my hands and I use a hand sanitizer. If I don’t do this right away, and I rub my eye or something, it will swell shut in about 5 minutes, and itch like crazy.
I have gotten more and more used to it over the past couple years, and now my biggest symptoms are 3-4 sneezes and wheezing (Primatime mist clears that right up) if there’s fur flying around, like after a grooming.
I don’t let him jump on me or lick me, and I try to bathe him once a month (I heard that since labs are water dogs, they secrete an oil for their coats, and washing them too much dries out their skin). I do pet and rub him quite a bit, but as long as I wash my hands afterwards, I’ve been okay.
Totally allergic to dogs. Well, to their saliva. I also groom some of the neighbourhood dogs here - and many of their owners are actually allergic to them, which is why they come to me…
Here’s what I do to minimize the impact on me:
When I get a new pup to train, I know I’ll be sniffly for a couple of weeks. I get rashes when they lick me, and so forth… but I eventually get desensitized to my own dogs. With time.
One thing I found helps a GREAT deal is to keep them clean and tidy ALL THE TIME. This means they get a bath once a month (with professional grooming shampoo and conditionners - there are great online suppliers for this…) and brushed/groomed at least twice a week. It keeps the loose hair down, keeps me from sniffling at the saliva in the coat and so forth and so on. Some of my grooming clients are on a monthly program too and they have noticed a serious improvement in their reaction to their own dogs.
To each his own, I suppose… all that said, there are breeds out there that have a form of hair rather than fur - great if your allergy is actually the fluff… not so much if it’s the doggy drool.
My husband had a mild dog allergy when we first got together. After a while, it seems that he got “used” to my dog-- the symptoms don’t bother him as much as they did at first. Five years later, he has barely any trouble.
Actually that’s not true, I have a bit more to say, when my boy was a bit younger, we bought him a pair of rats. Cue lit’le buggers too. Rose and Daisy were their names.
About six months after we brought them in I began noticing my asthma worsening. I went to the doc and he boosted my meds. That worked for a few months, until I got a cold. My lungs filled and I couldn’t recover. this went on for over a year. it got to the point where I couldn’t blow out a match. My doctor diagnosed COPD and told me to get ready for the worst.
Then the rats died. (they only live a couple of years) after six months I started to improve. Then rapidly, a year later I was back to full lung capacity.
Seems I was mis-diagnosed, I was allergic to rat dander.
This is what I’m hoping will happen to me. My parents always had at least one dog when I was growing up. No problems with them at all until I went to college. Came back home for the summer to find that the same animals that I’d been with for years gave me a neverending cold.
I can’t believe it. You are willing to take on a daily regimen of medication just to accomodate an animal in your house?
That’s what will happen if you don’t magicly recover from your allergy. Read up on them. You stated that you were exposed to dogs earlier and have just developed an allergy.
I took quite a few immunology classes in college, and kind of picked up on how allergies work:). Some people enjoy animals and will attempt make changes in their life in order to have one. I’m not going to kill myself in order to get a pet but if I can do something to maintain the lifestyle I was raised in without much discomfort, then I will.
It’s not something you would do? Okay, more power to you.
I am allergic to cats and dogs, and we have both. However, I don’t react anymore to “our” animals. My uncle, StarvingArtist, is the same way. He used to have to take a Benadryl after even coming in the same house with them, and now he doesn’t even need to wash his hands before wiping his eyes.
I am allergic to cats and some dogs. If I stroke a cat I will get a minor rash on my arm. I can stand being in a cat/sog home for a day provided the owners keep the place very clean, however. The only dogs I know I don’t react to are dachshunds. I have 2 wieners myself. They can lick my face, I can put their fur in my face and breathe and there are never any problems. The breed is a very clean breed. They only begin to stink after about 2 weeks of not washing, and that frequency may be related to the enjoying rolling in worms.
Hopefully you get used to your own dog, if your allergies aren’t too severe. If I’m away from my dog (or dogs in the past) for a week, I’m usually sniffly for the week I get back. One plus re dandruff/hair with my current dog is that he loves hanging outside when we’re not doing anything. Especially in the winter- he’s a Siberian Husky. In addition to the breeds mentioned in Casey1505’s link you might look into dogs that enjoy being yard dogs if you have the room.
I’m allergic to cats and dogs - eyes water, hard to breath. I think I’m a lot less sensitive now. I have a border collie / cocker spaniel mix, which I’m fine with, and we’ve raised black labs, yellow labs and golden retrievers for guide dogs, none of which have bothered me.
They are all taken with the understanding that they go back if it bothers me, but it never has.
I’m apparently allergic to cats. I found this out after some 33 years of being a cat mommy. So my monthly drug cocktail includes cat serum and I take a Zyrtec every day…
Personally I think I’m far more allergic to the green plants growing around my city than the cats in my house…
I have a dog breed called a Coton de Tulear- they’re rare, and pretty much a mix between a Maltese and a Bishon. My brother is incredibly allergic to everything, especially dogs, but he’s fine with her. The only problems we have is that she gets pollen and other allergens in her fur when she goes outside and brings them back into the house.
