Question about allergies to dogs...

[Upendi&Mina]

Does anyone know if there is any way I could possibly have developed an allergy to dogs after not having been without one since I was born 19 years ago? I still have hives, but nothing in my routine has changed as far as soaps, foods, detergents, etc. go (I've even cut peanuts and other tree nuts out of my diet to see if that's it) and I've now had them going on almost a full month. I have to go to my doctors next week for an allergy scratch test, but I'm just curious if anyone thinks it could possibly be the girls.

No need to fear though, even if it is dogs I have no intention of giving either of my girls up. I will work around it with extra baths, vacuuming, blanket washing, medication, etc. if that's the case. I think it's more likely due to stress, but one never knows and I know nothing about allergies and when they can be developed.

I was on one medication that cleared the hives up, but within 24 hours of being off of it they were back. I do have two more meds that I need to pick up tomorrow to try and clear them up. And on the bright side, I'm getting used to the hives and the itching doesn't even really bother me (it's so constant it's like it's not even there) so I'm quite sure I can deal if need be.

 

[lizzybeth727]

I do know that allergies can pop up out of nowhere, and they can get worse as time goes on. I've heard of vets becomming allergic to animals, sometimes to the point where it ends their career. Anxious to hear how the allergy test goes next week.

 

[Upendi&Mina]

I'm really hoping the hives are just from stress with the new job and everything else that's been going on.

Even if it does come back positive for dogs, I WILL be keeping my girls. Like I said I've been reading up on managing a dog allergy, and I also know the one med they had me on cleared them up. So if nothing else I can go back on that on a more permanent basis.

 

[Izzy's Valkyrie]

Hmm I'm a little of the opposite, been allergic to anything with fur (dander really) my entire life but having pets in my apt/home actually helps them die down due to constant exposure. With any luck, it's the stress lowering your immune system and giving it a reason to pick on your allergic reactions.

There are plenty of great allergy meds out there (allegra for me) that will eliminate your hives altogether without any extra effort on your part to keep the girls spotless so if they are the cause, it's something to look in to. Good luck!

 

[Doberluv]

Allergies are so weird and unpredictable. It can go both ways. You can "out-gow" allergies. I know I have. And your immune system, later in life can decide that some harmless thing is something to get worked up over and you develop a new allergy. I hope it's not your dogs. But if it is, you're like me. When I was a teen, I was quite allergic to my horse, but only when he was shedding in spring. It was fairly severe and the doctor said to my Mom and me, "You'll have to get rid of the horse." Well, if you knew how much I loved my horse, you'd know that I made it perfectly clear that that was not going to happen. LOL. I use to be very allergic to cats. If I so much as went into a house where a cat had been, but wasn't present at that time, my eyes would swell, itch, tear up. I'd get blotchy all over. Now, I only get a little itchy and red in the eyes IF I touch a cat, then touch my face. And some cats more than others. My allergy is almost imperceptible now. And some dogs would do that to me too, but to a much lower degree. I was also allergic to goose down. I'm not anymore at all. I love my goose down coats and blankets. LOL.

My brother in law, years ago, touched a woman's mink (or some kind of fur) coat, admiring it. He had an extreme allergic reaction. He didn't have anaphalaxis, but he got hives and welts all over and his eyes swelled up like crazy. He never touched another mink coat until years later. And when he did, nothing happened. He apparently got over it.

My son, it appears had a similar things with bee stings. He would swell up like you would not believe when he was little. He got stung on his thigh. And his scrotum, his whole leg, up into his abdomen was red and hugely swollen. I mean it was defnitely an allergic reaction, again, thankfully without anaphalaxis. Several years later, he got stung and he just had a normal reaciton.

Anyhow, allergies are interesting and annoying, sometimes dangerous. I hope that yours will subside and hope it's something you can eliminate, like the wrong kind of laundry soap and not your dogs. But if it is your dogs, yeah.....it's pretty hard to have to get rid of them. I couldn't either.

 

[colliewog]

I'm allergic to cats, although I had had them since birth. It is to the point now I can't own one and if I visit someone who owns one, I have to take meds before I go.

I've also run into problems that at certain times of the year my dogs bring in allergens on their coats, thus making me allergic to them in a sense. I have to wash (or at least towel them off) daily when I'm having a problem and that helps.

I hope you find out it's something besides the dogs ... that sucks! Good luck!

 

[Bailey08]

I don't have much to add, other than I'm sorry you've been feeling crummy, and I hope that the scratch test shows that it's something other than your girls.

I, too, am allergic to cats (though we had them when I was young and I had no reaction). I've owned them successfully while taking appropriate measures, including daily allergy medicine. It's interesting, though, that since they've been staying with my parents for a few months, I'm a lot more allergic to the cats when I visit than when they were living with me full-time.

I'm super allergic to horses, too, but I'm around them very little so I can just super-dose myself with drugs in advance.

 

[Upendi&Mina]

Thanks for all the input guys. I have good news to share! I woke up this morning with NO hives, it seems they're finally gone. I still have no idea what caused them in the first place, but with their sudden disappearance I think it may just have been stress.

I'll still be going for the scratch test, but as of right now I'm extremely happy!