HELP! My son is allergic to our cats...

[Natalya]

We just adopted two male cats for the shelter and we LOVE them so so much. They are the sweetest things, so cuddly and playful. BUT, I'm almost positive ds is allergic. Since we've brought them home he started to cough and sneeze, and now he seems to have a full on cold. It could be a cold, I'm hoping it is, but intuitively I'm feeling like it's not. We are on our way to the doctor to figure out what exactly is going on, but in the meantime, is there anything I can do? If he is allergic, do we HAVE to get rid of the cats? We're both already so attached.

[MamaMonica]

Until you find out, you can keep the cats out of his room and have him wash his hands after he pets the cats and before he touches his face. And vaccum with a Hepa filter vaccuum, if you have one.

You can also ask in the Allergies subforum for specific information related to cat allergies.

[Oubliette8]

They make some pet shampoos and sprays that are supposed to help control the dander and therefor help allergy sufferers. I'm betting your cats wouldn't enjoy being bathed, and it generally has to be done on a schedule, but it might allow you to keep them.

I also once met a family that had a cat and a daughter with allergies. They had installed a screen door on her bedroom which was pretty neat. It kept the cat out, but allowed her to leave the bedroom door open so the bedroom wasnt always closed off from the house.

I agree, keeping the cats out of the bedroom and vacuuming more frequently are important as well.

[HipGal]

I hope he really does just have a cold. If he is allergic, than I would say you really do need to find a new home for the cats. There are shampoos, etc., but really cat dander is a huge allergen. You don't want your poor ds to be miserable in his own home.

[Watershippy]

Dp is allergic to cats, but we have 2. While he still sneezes and gets red-eyed around other people's cats, he took some specific steps to acclimate to our particular cats and no longer has any allergic reaction to them. We started with one cat then added a second, and this method worked both times.

Like some of the previous posters have said, start out by washing hands and face after playing with the cat, and keeping the cat out of the bedroom (so that overnight can be a break from the allergen exposure). Make sure to wash face or shower off at night and keep pj's free of cat hair. Dp even took over the counter allergy pills on occasion. When he found he was no longer reacting to the cat when playing with it (this took a little under a month), we started letting her into the bedroom at night, too.

No guarantee this will work for your Ds, but if he is really in love with the cats (like my Dp is), he may be willing to try it. It took about 2 months for Dp to acclimate entirely to each cat and have no more reactions at all.

[Natalya]

Yay! You ladies are giving me hope. I will try all of the above and see what happens. Ds' "cold" seems to be better today, so who knows, maybe I have been overthinking and paranoid (i do tend to be this way! ) I'll let you know how it goes.

[Natalya]

wanted to update- ds seems much better, he is still coughing a bit and sneezing every once in awhile but he seems to be used to the cats now. we never did go to the doctor (i try to stay away as much as possible!). it seems like he and the cats will be able to be comfortable in their own home now! thanks everyone!

[RockStarMom]

Just wanted to add that I'm allergic to cats and have always had cats.