If you are allergic to dogs, or someone in your family is allergic, and you have a dog anyway, could you please tell me about it?
Long version:
We are on a waitlist to get a dog in February (kids don’t know), but I confirmed today at the allergist that I am allergic. I had hoped that they could tell me about the severity of my allergy, but he said there’s really no way to predict how I would react. We had golden retrievers growing up, and I tolerated them, but I haven’t tried living with a dog full time for many years. We are having my sister-in-law‘s two dogs stay overnight at our house in a couple weeks, so that will be interesting. And my neighbors just got a puppy I can try playing with, but the fact is, every individual dog is different, And I would also develop some tolerance overtime. So it’s just hard to predict what would happen if we got a puppy.
Any anecdotes from your real life situations???
Fwiw, it is a more “hypoallergenic” dog (from a very good breeder I researched a ton). I’ve done lots of research on both dog breeds and breeders, and I realize this is definitely not a cure-all, but the allergist himself said today it would be the best way to go for us, due to both dog and environmental allergies and reducing spread of allergens around the home. The whole reason I would be going this route is because of allergies with the goal of risk reduction.
I already planned not to have the dog in our bedrooms, and not to let it on the furniture except maybe one couch.
This is the ultimate “everyone is different,” but I’d love to know how your situation is working out. Does the allergic person take OTC meds? Does that help? Are they able to tolerate everything just fine? Did you have to try shots? God forbid, get rid of a pet?
I’m trying to be really thoughtful about this and give us the best possible chance of success. We could back out on this plan, but I really wanted my kids to have the experience of having a dog. They really, really, really want a pet, and I really want this for them.
Post by expectantsteelerfan on Oct 27, 2022 9:54:10 GMT -5
I'm allergic to dogs but have 2. I basically keep the dogs downstairs (they do come upstairs to wake the kids up in the mornings but that is basically it) and definitely out of my bedroom, and I take allergy meds year round (flonase and zyrtec), but I would probably do that even if I didn't have dogs. Dogs aren't a HUGE trigger for my asthma or else I wouldn't be able to have them (cats are, and when I go to houses where they have cats I can tell immediately no matter what I take). Their saliva affects me more than anything, so if they lick me or even put a wet nose up against my bare skin, I basically have to wash myself with soap and water right away or I get itchy hives right away. I also have to be careful to wash my hands before touching my eyes and whatnot or else those will get red/itchy.
My dogs aren't 'hypoallergenic.' I haven't found that hypoallergenic dogs affect me any less than other dogs, although there are some breeds that do affect me more than others (basically really shaggy dogs that are covered in hair that if I'm near them I get covered in hair immediately too, like golden retrievers).
expectantsteelerfan, thanks. This is really helpful, because you sound somewhat like me, but like a level worse. I don’t have asthma, but I can also generally tell right away if someone has a cat. There’s no way I could get a cat. I know I react to the dog’s saliva somewhat, but not to the point of getting actual hives. Like they can lick me and that’s fine, but when I got a little scratch from a puppy tooth, it was itchy and red/raised.
Post by definitelyO on Oct 27, 2022 10:26:18 GMT -5
our good friend is very allergic to dogs. In fact wouldn't stay the weekend at our mountain house b/c the dogs had been in the house. They recently got 2 hypoallergenic / standard poodles. He had to start getting allergy shots as OTC meds weren't enough.
My SIL is allergic to dogs (we have a lab and a rescue terrier). she's okay with daily OTC allergy medicine when she's over - but if she forgets to take one her eyes water, etc....
Meeting dogs of other breeds isn't going to tell you much, I don't think. Can you visit the breeder and meet your potential puppy's parents? If you don't react much to them, I would guess you'd be ok with one of their puppies.
ETA: Although it's probably a good idea to see how severe your reaction is to non-hypoallergenic dogs, since your dog will likely play with other dogs at some point and may have some of their dander in his fur/paws.
I had an allergy test done and was surprised to find out I was allergic to dogs since I've had them my whole life. I have always been aware that their nails will cause hives, but don't have respiratory responses. For that reason I have never taught my dogs "high five" or any of the other paw games (I hate it when dogs paw at me anyway), and I MUST wash my hands/arms immediately after dremeling nails. I've also used an allergen spray that can be used in the air, surfaces, upholstery, carpet when people come over who are typically affected.
My DD1 did allergy testing when she was about 8. She was allergic to so many things, including dogs. At the time we had a dog, but she had always been fine with her. She ended up doing allergy shots. Since I had to be there with her I also got tested and did allergy shots. After 4 years of shots she has almost zero allergy symptoms. She used to have a really hard time in houses where there was a cat or multiple cats/dogs. Now she only has issues if there are lots of animals in a house.
She often has our dog (different dog than the one we had when she was tested) sleep in her bed and is fine.
Basically I highly recommend allergy shots. It’s a commitment, but they work.
My DD1 did allergy testing when she was about 8. She was allergic to so many things, including dogs. At the time we had a dog, but she had always been fine with her. She ended up doing allergy shots. Since I had to be there with her I also got tested and did allergy shots. After 4 years of shots she has almost zero allergy symptoms. She used to have a really hard time in houses where there was a cat or multiple cats/dogs. Now she only has issues if there are lots of animals in a house.
She often has our dog (different dog than the one we had when she was tested) sleep in her bed and is fine.
Basically I highly recommend allergy shots. It’s a commitment, but they work.
I was also going to come in to say that I did allergy shots for 4 years in the 90s and I often say that it's one of the best things my parents ever did for me.
Ds1 is allergic to dogs. It seems to ge a more mild allergy than cats (both showed up on his allergy testing, but when he’s around a cat he’s almost instantly, insanely miserable and nothing helps. We don’t notice the same extreme reaction with dogs). We got a non shedding dog to help with allergies through a breeder and had discussions with the breeder of how we would handle it if DS1 couldn’t deal (we had an 11 hour car ride home from picking her up so we figured we would know quickly!). It’s been fine. DS constantly has low grade allergies so it’s hard to tell what’s causing it (he’s really allergic to things like maple and oak, and we have those everywhere around us so it’s just hard to tell). He hasn’t had a bad reaction like he does to cats, he’s just always stuffed up and no amount or combo of allergy meds fully helps. I’m hoping he agrees to do allergy shots at some point. Our dog is a total joy so we are glad we took the rusk,
Post by emilyinchile on Oct 28, 2022 11:29:39 GMT -5
A friend discovered when she got her lifelong dream bulldog puppy that she was allergic to him. He wasn't allowed in the bedroom, they got an air purifier and vacuumed every day and washed his bedding regularly, and she washed her hands after every time she touched him (and I think took some meds too). She got two more dogs after he passed away, so clearly it was manageable for her. I hope it is for you too!
Not quite the same, but I am allergic to cats and have lived with them my whole adult life. I’m already on a bunch of allergy meds so that helps. I don’t pet them and then touch my face or my eyes will swell. Otherwise I have adjusted to them. If we go on a long vacation away from them I will have issues the first couple of days we get home but then I get used to them again.
That said, you don’t really know how you will react until you are actually living with a dog.
Post by midwestmama on Oct 28, 2022 12:36:30 GMT -5
I haven't read through all the responses, but some things to consider: less carpet might be better (although changing flooring is of course expensive), increased frequency of vacuuming (maybe a good chore for your kids or consider getting a robot vacuum), OTC meds as needed, limiting access to certain areas of the home (especially bedrooms), and air purifiers (e.g., main living area and maybe a small one in bedrooms).
My SIL and one of my nieces are allergic to dogs and they have two, so my suggestions are based on things my SIL has shared that they do.
Not me but my H. We have two dogs who are "more" hypoallergenic, as really, it can vary individual dog to individual dog. But, he does very well with them both. His sister, however, is very allergic still to one of them. He still plays with our neighborhood dogs like goldens but is quite allergic and has to really wash his hands, change his clothes, and maybe even shower before bed. Because it's fairly minimal, it doesn't take any medication to manage it.
One of my friends isn't allergic to the dander (is that it?) but is allergic to dog saliva. She has a lab/pit mix and just deals with the puppy kisses.
I'm allergic to dogs but have 2 dogs that don't shed and I'm fine. But we got our dogs from a rescue and I was able to visit them first to see how I did. We fostered a lab and it gave me annoying asthma.
In our rescue, we occasionally get doodles returned because the owner was allergic, so you just never know. It doesn't really matter how good the breeder is. I agree with PPs to see if you can spend some time around some "hypoallergenic" dogs just to see how you do, or could you actually visit the breeder?