Oh my gosh, I can't even visit a house where a cat lives right now. Allergies are really awful for some people, me included.

Moni

I'm also allergic to cats. And dogs, dust, dust mites, mold every living thing that grows outside, etc. lol I have two prescription nasal sprays and Allegra. I also get allergy shots. I'm posting because as of 1 or 2 days ago you can get prescription strength Allegra at Walmart for $24 for 45 pills. I was paying $56 for 30 pills and my prescription plan refused to cover them. I even verified with the pharmacist that it's the exact medication. I'm am so, so, so happy. If you can take Allegra it should help with being around cats etc.

Thanks Kat for that info. I forwarded it to my allergic daughter. :)

I do have a pretty good insurance plan right now, and get my refill tomorrow. Only got three pills left.

Moni

I wish I could, Alisande, but I won't even chance it. I developed asthma as a teen when I adopted two stray cats. Actually one was a stray, and the other was a little abused kitten we found with his tail cut off and both back legs shattered. It took about a year to figure out the attacks were from the cats, which were a black and white and a tabby. Don't worry, we gave the cats to my spinster Aunt, and they were the love of her life and both lived to be close to 20.

It doesn't matter the kind of cat, I will break out in hives and my eyes will get horribly full of fluid so that I look like a monster (not lying about that). But the worst thing is the asthma. But thanks for the info.

Oh, and that's the reason we initially got poodles. They are a non-shedding "hypoallergenic" dog, although my vet tells me there is no such thing. But they don't make me wheeze in the least.

That is a shame! I should stop whining about my solanine allergy, which makes it impossible for me to be around raw potatoes (or eat potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, artichokes, or--sigh--blueberries). At least I can have cats (knock wood).

I love your cat rescue story, though.

Katlan, I'll mention Allegra to my SIL, who is so allergic to dogs that he avoids coming to my house. Or maybe he avoids coming to my house for reasons unknown to me. LOL

I am deathly allergic to cat. I ended up in the hospital and my primary care dr. sent me to an allergist. The results was cat dander, but not dog dander. (that is when I got into doxies) I was very fond of my cat and ask the dr. (naively) if I could keep my cat but keep it outside. His answer to me was only if someone feeds it, I not touch it and it lives a mile away. Not beliving him (hardheaded) I went back into my home and I lost my hearing in my right ear from having such a bad ear and sinus infection. My eardrum burst. My husband immediately gave the cat away...plus we had to have a biologic cleaning in my home(I think that is what it is called..happened in the early '90's.) and my insurance paid for it thankfully. The dr. said that the dander would still be in the home and there is no way I or anyone else could clean it thoroughly. I do not even get around cats now.

Its the dander and oils that most people are alleric to; same for dogs. A member of my family is very sensitive to cats and dogs in general, but poddles are ok. She's also allergic to Mississippi mud and dust, the stuff found on the shores (sand bars) of the Mississippi river in Iowa.

I am allergic to most animals. I have to be careful not to pet the cats then touch my face. Short hair cats are better than long hair. I can't help but snurffle my sisters himalayan, even though it makes my eyes burn and face itch and lips get bumpy, and my chest tightens up.

Skywalker only just started shedding so I wasn't allergic to him YET but it's probably only a matter of time. I am also allergic to the dogs.

And poodles? Not hypoallergenic for me....my mom's and sister's poodles make my eyes water and my chest tighten. Although the poodle-yorkie? Nuttin'.

Heck, when I would let the hamster crawl on my arm I would get hives everywhere it touched!

Dances - who just sniffles and sneezles and wheezes away with animals all over the place ;)

I have had indoor cats all my adult life. I am highly allergic to house dust. I take medication for asthma and allergies but twice I have gone without owning a cat and found no difference in my allergies. There was a time in my early 40s that I was very allergic to other people's cats. I would get an asthma attack if I were at someone's home where a cat lived. It was so bad that I would have to leave in the middle of a party or potluck. That just lasted maybe 2 or 3 years. Very strange.

I also have asthma and use Advair for that. My daughter has two cats and I can visit for maybe 2 days and it starts to get me. We have a 14 year old dog and my allergist said get rid of it. Yeah, o.k. Not getting rid of the family member, he'll be gone soon enough on his own. She also said get rid of ALL carpet, and don't open your windows, use the ac. So far only took the carpet out of my bedroom and it's helped. I wear a mask to run the sweeper and dust, and if I don't, I pay for it.

Alisande, I feel bad complaining also, because it could be so much worse. But I have to say, there are times when my head, face, eyes, temples, neck, ears hurt soooo bad I think I'm going to lose my mind. It's rarely like that since I've found the right combo of medications. I hardly ever even sneeze anymore and I used to sneeze 100 times a day. Truly, that's no exaggeration.

I am allergic to everything with fur, dust mites, numerous trees and other plants (other stuff too). Have been since I was a little kid. I take Advair, Fexofenadine (generic Allegra) and Singulair every day for years. I have also been doing allergy shots for about a year. The prescriptions make a huge difference and make me able to tolerate cats, but I still get a bad reaction from dogs (without the pills I'd be in the hospital after exposure to a dog, now I just sneeze. That assumes I wash my hands after touching it, don't sit on upholstered furniture, and shower as soon as I get home.. Some dog breeds bother me less, but there is no such thing as a hypoallergenic dog. You can be allergic to the saliva, the fur and the dander/skin oil. Unless the dog has no saliva or skin an allergy is possible. Some dogs with "hair" (Standard Poodles, Welsh Terriers) bother me less. But others, like Maltese, are really bad because they are lickers. That said, I have "met" an occasional dog I am not allergic to. It doesn't seem to be based on breed, it seems to be a fluke with that individual dog (probably something about the dog's protein, the vet said). My father is allergic to Siamese cats, but apparently no other breeds.

I have two long haired cats and the only time they bother me is when I brush them (I wash my clothes and shower right after). But I am diligent about taking my meds. If I am late I can feel the insides of my ears start to itch.

Animal allergies can be very socially isolating. When I was a kid I couldn't go to many sleepovers. I couldn't go away to camp. DH and I often had to skip parties at houses of people who have dogs. Just being near someone at school or work who has a dog would cause my asthma to flair up.

I would take the meds even if I didn't have my two kitties. If I had a child with allergies I would get them on shots as soon as the doctor would allow it.

Interesting thread, we have 4 house cats, that I love dearly! Just recently got put on allergy medication and nasal spray for allergies. DH is not convinced it is allergies but 2 different doctors say it probably is. I am supposed to not take the allergy medicine for awhile now to see if it gets worse, gonna start today not taking it. Will be interesting to see what happens.
What you your guys symptoms? I get this tickle in my throat which makes me cough, sometimes I cough up some phlem, not alot and not that often. Sometimes my eyes start watering just out of nowhere. I don't sneeze too much, I do have some nasal congestion and when I was first diagnosed with allergies, I had a sore throat for 5 weeks, which was making my voice raspy, I had also had 3 colds in 3 months.
Even if it is cat allergies, I don't think I have it so bad to get rid of the dear cats, they are like my children, love them so much.

Symptoms:

starts out with tickle in my throat
moves to
phlem to cough up and spit out (caused by nasal drainage going down your throat)
runny nose
watery eyes
itchy eyes
itchy wet ears
coughing a lot
sore throat to the point of feeling like it is on fire

finally drained of all energy

I get re tested for allergies about every 5 years. Am upgraded now to two allergy shots weekly.

take Fexofenadine in the evening and Nasonex nasal spray in the mornings

When it gets really bad, like right now in Oklahoma I also take a Mucinex in the mornings for the last 4 weeks, and severely limit my outside time to the point of not leaving the house unless "REALLY" necessary. It's worse to me than being snowed in.

Oh, lets not forget the air purifier. At first I ran it only at night in the bedroom, but I am now running it all day long in the living/dining room as well.

Really, as bad as the outdoor pollen is right now, I can not be around any pets.

When the outdoor pollen isn't as high as in the last four weeks, I take all those meds to be at a friends house where pets live indoors.

Allergies suck! Even going somewhere in the car with the air turned to "inside air only", makes all symptoms worse.

Down with Cedar trees (the "bad allergy source" right now)!!!

Moni

I've always had cats. But my boyfriend was allergic, so I'd lock mine in a bedroom when he came over. We got married and DH almost immediately went to an allergist and began a long series of shots to become desensitized. He got shots for literally years. But it was his best ever gift to me. And at the same time DH got his spring and fall hay fever "cured". We now live healthily with one dog and one cat.

You are right, Sue, about allergies being socially isolating. I would have to ask people if they had a cat if I was attending a function at their home. I would invariably hear "You'll be ok, I'll put him in the bedroom". Or they would be offended and seemed to think I was implying their home was dirty. It doesn't matter where the cat is, as long as hair and dander are there my lungs will know it.

Minrose did your dr. do allergy testing? Two rows of 20 on the inside of each forearm. Then I had about 25 more done on each shoulder. That tells them what you are allergic to. I've tried everything over the counter and many different prescriptions til I got on Allegra (fexofenadine), Astelin, Rhinocort and Advair. My dr. gave me my life back!

I have all the same symptoms that Moni listed and when it gets really bad, like with a cold it feels like nails being driven into my temples. That's my sign that both ears and sinuses are infected.

Good luck to everyone in finding the right meds, it really does make all the difference.

I have had this allergic condition for over 20 years. I have been on just about every medication from nasal sprays to flownase to Beconase (steroid nasal spray). Beconase being the worst with the exception of a nasal spray (can't remember the name) I was on about 15 years ago which I believe caused me to have a ministroke, I was on absolutely no other medication at the time and while driving a car my eye began to twitch for 15 minutes and then my hands went numb and as I spoke to my friend who was in the passenger seat my words began to slur so I stopped the car, found a water hose and rinsed out my sinuses and walked about 10 blocks until I started to feel better. Back to the subject. As I have stated, for over 20 years I believe what I have is a cat allergy. Whenever I'm around cats my face turns red, my throat begins to swell, the glands in my neck enlarge, my ears itch, my body feels as if it is overheating, and this will continue sometimes for hours until I cough up not dander but an actual strand or multiple strands of whatever type of fur happens to come off of said cat. Once I have cleared the fur from my throat all of the allergic reactions seem to rapidly dissipate. All of the articles I have read about cat allergies state that it is not the fur, it is the dander that is supposed to be causing this reaction. I have never coughed up a ball of dander. As I have stated before these allergic reactions continue until I cough up the fur and then rapidly dissipate. I have a few questions. First, am I crazy? Second, does dander ever naturally separate from the fur or is it fully integrated with it for life? Third, if it is the dander and not the fur itself why does my allergic continue until I actually cough up fur and then my allergies rapidly dissipate (within a minute)? I am 40 years old, can ride a mountain bike up to 100 miles within a days time, do pushups on my thumb tips, and I'm extremely fiscally fit for my age at 5' 10" and 165 pounds. Please post if you can scientifically explain the relationship between fur and dander. Oh, and as for medication, I gave up on that a long time ago. The best thing I have found for when my allergic reaction is at it's worst to this cat dander/fur is either a pure saline solution (warm salt water) or just sniffing salt by itself.

I found it very interesting what James said about salt and salt water and his allergies. I am reading a book right now that claims dehydration is the cause for allergies/asthma and a host of other health issues. I don't have any severe allergies, but do have other health problems so I do plan on following the recommendations in "Water: For Health, for Healing, for Life: YouâÂÂre Not Sick, YouâÂÂre Thirsty!". Recommendations which include sea salt and lots of water.

Here is a link that might be useful: Can water cure your disease?