How to Recognize a Pet Allergy

Pets of all kinds can cause allergic responses, which can range from rather mild to severe—and which can possibly lead to other health problems as well. Reactions vary from one individual to the next, but the symptoms and causes of pet allergies are relatively similar in all cases.

Pet allergies are triggered by proteins secreted by oil glands in the pet’s skin and shed with dander (dead skin cells). These offending allergenic proteins are also abundant in the pet’s saliva, urine, feces, mucus, and hair roots.

Some pet owners who are allergic to their pets have no severe or immediate increase in symptoms when they are near their pets. Instead, they suffer from continual low-grade symptoms that clear up only after days or even weeks away from the house. The most common symptoms related to cat exposure are:

Animal dander can also cause what is known as perennial allergic rhinitis, the sneezing and runny nose that result from breathing in these airborne particles. Most people with this type of allergy don’t have eye inflammation, but they do develop nasal congestion that can also cause hearing problems, especially in children. Pet allergies can lead to other health problems as well, including chronic sinus headaches and infections or even asthma.

In the past, it was commonly believed that animal hair caused allergies, but with pets, the problem is not the hair itself. Though the substance responsible for symptoms is present in the fur, that isn’t where the substance originates. In cats, the protein that creates allergens is present in the saliva. This protein is known as Fel dl (short for Felis domesticus). When a cat licks herself, she deposits saliva on her fur, where it coats the dander, then dries, floats away into the air, and enters the nose of the allergy sufferer.

Dander is a major contributing factor in causing allergies, and it’s produced not only by cats and dogs but also by all birds and mammals, including people. Bits of cat dander are very small (10 times smaller than pollen or dust particles) and can stay airborne for hours—even in motionless air. These airborne allergens spread very easily and are the hardest to avoid. Cat allergens have even been found in Antarctica, where there are no cats living on the entire continent.

If you’re not willing to put up with dander but still want a cat, your best bet is to learn how to minimize and manage your allergies so that both you and your pet can live happily and well.