Coping with Dog Allergies Without Abonding Your Dog
It happens to everyone: You get up close to your dog, and your canine friend decides to lick your mouth and cheeks.
This display of affection may not seem harmful, but there are a number of risks associated with it. Can a dog licking your face cause pimples, acne and breakouts? The answer is: Yes, among other issues.
When an allergen test is done through a blood test, the allergen will traditionally be labeled with a Class 0 to Class 6 ranking.
Class 0 indicates that the allergen level was undetectable, while Class 6 indicates that the allergen level had a strong positive.
Allergen results are determined based on the number of IgE antibodies in the blood specific to that particular allergen.
For dog allergies, the IgE antibodies would correspond to proteins found in dog dander and saliva.
For most people, dog allergies are a mild source of discomfort. They cause runny noses, respiratory distress, sneezing, and watery eyes.
An allergic reaction occurs when a person’s immune system overreacts to an allergen. In cases of dog allergies, this allergen can be found in the dog’s saliva, urine, and dander.
You won’t find the proteins in the dog’s hair, although a dog’s coat can hold dander and other potential allergens.
When these allergen proteins come in contact with a person’s immune system, the immune system responds by releasing a flood of histamines.
Histamines, along with other chemicals, cause the classic allergy symptoms most people experience. They may have a stuffy nose, sinus pressure, watery eyes, or trouble breathing.
Severe allergies can be deadly, though. Even though a pet allergy doesn’t tend to be deadly on its own, a person could die if they go into anaphylactic shock.
Though there’s no such thing as a dander free dog, there are dogs that don’t shed often. Not shedding isn’t the same as being hypoallergenic, though.
Many people mistakenly believe that dog fur is what causes dog allergies. From there, the leap of logic is simple: If the dog doesn’t shed, you can’t have an allergic reaction. But this simply isn’t true.
So-called “hypoallergenic” dogs don’t shed as much dander as other dogs do.
Fur often catches dander and other allergens, so the lack of shedding means that less dander is released into your living environment.
It’s inevitable that there will be some dander, though, which means that you can still have an allergic reaction to a hypoallergenic dog.
Read moreAre Boston Terriers, Newfoundland Dogs, Shih Tzus Hypoallergenic?
Are you allergic to dog hair or fur?
Are you getting bumps on arms hands skin after petting a dog?
We’ve broken down some of the most commonly asked questions about allergies to dog dander: how they work, what causes them.
Is it possible to be allergic to dogs but not cats?
The short answer is: Yes. Someone can be allergic to dogs but not cats.
Even though both allergies are triggered by pet dander, the chemical composition of the proteins causing the allergy is different.
When you bring a baby into the household, you might be worried about how they’ll get along with your pets. One big concern is potential allergic reactions.
Allergies occur when your child’s immune system reacts to animal dander, feces, urine, or saliva.
When the immune system comes into contact with these things, it reacts by releasing histamine and other chemicals. Histamine causes inflammation of the nose and airways.
A furnace filter will help your home’s overall air quality. When the filter is maintained properly, it can cut the accumulation of dust while lowering your energy bill.
This reduction of dust will make cleaning much easier, since you won’t need to dust different home areas as often.
Furnace filters are ideal for allergy sufferers because they trap the majority of allergens in your home.
A HEPA air purifier will only work on one room at a time, while this type of filtration system moves throughout your entire home.
No matter what type of allergy you have, there’s a good chance that your carpet is trapping allergens.
Allergens can lurk beneath the surface of your carpet, unseen but still wreaking havoc on your body. If you’ve discovered you have an allergy, it’s time to do a deep cleaning of your carpets.
Multiple studies have been done regarding the efficacy of Allerpet.
One study was conducted regarding cats in 1995. In it, scientists measured the amount of allergy-causing protein found in the cats’ fur before and after treatments with Allerpet.
After two Allerpet treatments, the cats had significantly less allergens extracted from their coats.
The findings indicate that, while it isn’t a cure-all for allergens, Allerpet does help reduce the amount of allergens in an environment.
This is significant because cats produce a great deal of allergens. Unlike dog allergens, cat allergens are found in the sebaceous glands.
This means that they occur all over the cat’s skin and fur. Dogs, by contract, tend to only have allergens concentrated in their saliva and dander.