Fido, Fluffy, and Max stole your heart as puppies and kittens, going home with you and completing the  family. Their sweet, fluffy cuteness enchanted everyone, even your teenage daughter who seems more interested in her phone than engaging with you. Already firmly planted members of the household, the dander begins to kick in, and half the house is sneezing and wheezing.

Having an allergy to your pet, or, more likely, your pet’s dander, doesn’t necessarily mean you have to part ways with your beloved fur baby. The first step is to go get tested and see exactly what you are allergic to, because it could be a variety of things and not solely your pet’s dander.

Understanding Your Allergy

Visit your doctor and get an allergy test. Be sure to let your allergist know what type of pet you have, and the breed, because this can affect the results of your test. It may turn out that you aren’t even allergic to your pet, but to some tree pollen collected from outside and brought into your home on its fur.

There are as many varieties of pet allergies as there are breeds, and some types of cats and dogs are considered to be hypoallergenic (low risk of allergy). Talk with your allergist about these different breeds, and beware of the breeder claiming their breed won’t cause any allergies. Even hairless breeds can cause an allergic reaction. Some dogs like the Havanese or Standard Schnauzer are less likely to cause a reaction; just be sure to spend some time with the different breeds before you make a commitment. 

What is dander, anyways? It’s not your pet’s fur or hair, but the dead skin that can become airborne when they scratch themselves, or during a brushing. It gets on furniture and clothes, and into your airways. Just like people, dander varies from breed to breed and, obviously, pet to pet, which is why it is important to give all the information you can to your allergist before adopting a new family member.

Keeping Dander Down

Besides choosing an ideal pet and breed, there are many things you can do to keep the allergens from permeating your home. First, create allergy free zones such as your bedroom. Ideally, you spend at least 8 hours a night in there, so making it dander free will help alleviate your allergies. Using an air purifier with a HEPA filter will keep the dander out of your bedroom.

In combination with an air purifier, use allergy bedding items such as pillows, mattresses, and duvet covers that will reduce dander as well as dust mites and other triggers that can affect your allergies. Washing your bedding regularly will also keep it down; in fact, we recommend doing the same for curtains and other fabric décor around your home.

While it may seem like a daunting task, bathing your pet weekly or every other week can also limit the amount of dander released into the air of your home. Cats can grow to love bath time! Consult your vet about shampoos and soaps that are safe for your fur babies, as you don’t want to cause them to have an allergy or any kind of reaction from cleaning them on a consistent basis.

Allergy treatments such as immunotherapy or antihistamine nasal sprays can allay the effects from pet dander. Be sure you talk with your allergist, and make sure they are on the same page as you, in that the goal is to keep your pet by seeking ways to keep pet dander down in your home.

If you have carpet in your home, using a vacuum designed for pet fur and dander removal can have a big impact on your allergies. Using a HEPA filter with a vacuum designed for high powered dirt and dust removal will suck up all the unwanted stuff from your floors. Most vacuums have attachments that will work for drapes and upholstered furniture, too, greatly reducing the dander collection in your home.

Just because you or someone in your family has an allergic reaction to your beloved pet, it doesn’t have to be the end of a beautiful relationship. There are many ways to go about keeping pet dander down, resulting in relieving your allergies and your heart, knowing you can keep your fur babies.