Posts Tagged ‘Cat’

Cat Symptoms – Coping With Cat Allergies

Friday, October 16th, 2009

Before making any decision to get a cat, you should look into whether you and your family members are allergic to cats. Many people are allergic to cats, some more so than others. Too often, people bring home a pet only to find out later that they or their children are allergic to cats.

Although pet allergy symptoms can be keep under control, in many cases for some allergy sufferers, the various sneezing, stuffy nasal passages and itchy, watery eyes become too much to bear. Eventually, it becomes virtually impossible for them to stay with the cat.

As a result, many cats are sent to animal shelters each year as their allergic owners can no longer bear the severity of their allergy symptoms.

Even if you do not suffer from cat allergies, consider others close to you who may no longer feel comfortable visiting your home because they are allergic to cats. It would be very unfair to the cat later on if you had to give it away just because your social life declines.

For those who are mildly or sporadically allergic to cats, you can follow these strategies in order to have cats living in the same household. As you know, most allergies occurred due to the presence of danger particles in the air, and to control these danger particles, just follow the strategies below:

1) Apply cat safe, anti-allergy wipes or sprays to the cat’s fur recommended by your vet

2) Use vinyl or leather furniture instead of upholstered

3) Replace carpets with hard floors

4) Prohibit your cat from entering your bedroom

5) Clean your air-con filters, furnace and ductwork regularly

6) Use an air purifier to eliminate the danger particles

7) Use hot water to wash your bed linens regularly
8) Wrap mattresses and pillows with plastic covers to prevent dander from settling in the bedding

9) Use distilled water to bathe the cat once a month

Allergies should be treated immediately to prevent weakening of your body’s immune system. Prolonging your treatment will lead to other problems, such as bronchitis, asthma, or sinus or ear infections. It may even lead to life threatening cases if allergic responses are severe enough.

If you are experiencing symptoms that would not go away, you should consult a doctor to determine the cause. A test can then be perform on you to determine the exact allergens that are causing your symptoms so that an appropriate treatment can be administer on you.

Cat Symptoms : Cat Allergy Symptoms

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

Cat Symptoms :

Cat allergy symptoms afflict many people. Sufferers are in real trouble if they happen to own a cat. This might not make sense to the ordinary person but to a cat lover it does. The symptoms may developed long after they have acquired their furry companion so getting rid of the rascal my simply not be an option. So for many cat lovers and owners living with cat allergies is a real problem that they have to live with.

Allergies in general are still not completely understood by the medical community. Inroads have been made but the fact remains that not enough knowledge has been gained on allergies to completely eliminate them. Some of the best experts on allergies in the medical community are themselves allergy sufferers. This in itself has allowed them to make the observations necessary to gain a better understanding of allergy symptoms.

Cat allergy symptoms can manifest themselves in many forms. They can appear singularly or in combination. They can come and go for no apparent reason. So you may have been mistaking your symptoms for a lingering cold and or a sore throat that comes and goes. A rash that sometimes responds to topical treatment and sometimes doesn’t. Sneezing fits that you blame on dust or pollen allergies.

Some of the symptoms are clogged and ringing ears. Sneezing fits. Red and watering eyes. Burning eyes. Skin rashes. Cold-like symptoms. Sore throat. Sound familiar? If you are a cat owner and you have these symptoms on a regular basis that you may be suffering from cat allergies. You can however take steps to reduce your suffering and still keep your beloved friend.

Until recently the actual cause of the allergy symptoms was a mystery. People thought they knew but in the end no one really knew for sure what in fact was on the cat that was causing the suffering. Hair?small skin flakes? The cat box? It turns out it is the cats saliva that is the culprit. By licking its hair, which is a cats favorite past time, your cat is spreading the stuff that is the root of your suffering.

The best method of determining if you are suffering from cat allergies is to remove your cat from the house for about two weeks and vacuum and clean anything your cat is in contact with and see if the symptoms disappear or are lessened. Not doing a thorough cleaning defeats the purpose of this test. This is a common test for most allergy sufferers. Remove the suspect material and see if it goes away.

Assuming that you have made a determination that you are in fact suffering from cat allergies then the next question is what to do about it. The easiest and most complete solution short of finding your cat a new home is to make it an outside cat. This might seem like a great sacrifice to yourself but your cat may love it once it has adjusted. A cat door can be installed on a side room or garage so it can still come in from the weather.

Other solutions can be had but they are not as completely as effective as putting your cat outside. Vacuuming and cleaning your house more often helps. It’s a lot more work for yourself but the allergen can be removed. Receiving medical treatment for your allergies can be effective if you respond positively to the treatment. Limiting your cats access to your whole house particularly your bedroom is a must.