Dog statistics show that around 63.4 million Americans have at least one dog in their house. Where 10% to 20% of them suffer from dog and cat allergies, that is a public health concern.
So, if you want to be a pet parent, especially a dog, it’s important to learn if you have dog allergies or not. If you have, can you build up an immunity to dog allergies?
Immunotherapy is one of the medical allergy treatments that can help you increase allergen tolerance over time. So that you and your dog can live together, though you have dog allergies.
Here, we’ll talk about allergies, allergy symptoms, how to spread dog allergies, how to build immunity to dog allergies, how much time and cost it requires, etc. That means you’ll be a dog allergy-educated person when you complete reading this post.
What Is Dog Allergy?
In most cases, dog allergy is a reaction of your body when you directly come in contact with proteins found in oil secretion from your dog’s skin cells, saliva, fur, and dander.
Dog Allergy Symptoms
We don’t know if you are already informed about your dog’s allergies. That’s why here we enlist dog allergy symptoms for your convenience. So, if you notice any one or two symptoms when you come in contact with dogs, you can primarily consider that you have dog allergies.
Nasal allergic symptoms
- Runny nose
- Cough
- Sneezing
- Nasal congestion
- Postnasal drip
- Itchy nose
- Itchy, red or watery eyes
- Facial pressure and pain
- Frequent awakening
- Under eye swollen, or blue-coloured skin
Asthma allergic symptoms
- Difficult breathing
- Chest pain or tightness
- During exhale, create audible whistling or wheezing sound
- Sleeping problem due to coughing, wheezing or breath shortness
Skin allergic symptoms
- Dry skin
- Itchy skin
- Eczema
- Red patches of skin (hives)
How Long Do Dog Allergy Symptoms Last?
You have to know how long dog allergy symptoms last to determine your dog allergies. In addition, you may face some symptoms mentioned above due to your local weather, home environment, and other reasons.
If your symptoms last from 8 hours to 2-3 days and repeatedly back when you get in touch with your dog, you may consider it dog allergies.
How To Outspread Dog Allergies?
Besides knowing the dog allergy symptoms and how long they last, you should also know how it spreads. So, you can take steps to reduce dog allergies to minimize these sources.
Dog allergies are spread with his skin flakes, saliva, and dander found where he sits, plays, and sleeps. As dog allergens are tiny in size and require a microscope to see, they can easily become airborne, and the environment carries all of these contaminated particles. As a result, you receive those inflammatory things when you come in contact with these things and breathe.
Moreover, dog urine and solid wastage are also the sources of spreading pesky dog allergies.
Can You Build Up An Immunity To Dog Allergies
Yes, there are so many ways to build up immunity and limit dog allergies. Here, Immunotherapy is one of the medical treatments. So first, we talk about immunotherapy, and then we talk about natural ways to limit it.
What Is Immunotherapy For Allergies?
In short, immunotherapy is a medical treatment. It is also known as subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT). In immunotherapy, doctors push allergens in your body through injections to change your immunity system and increase new allergies and asthma. So that your body stops overreacting when it comes in contact with allergic things.
Allergy Immunotherapy Side Effects
There is no doubt that you love your dog, and to build up an immunity to dog allergies, you want to take immunotherapy. That’s absolutely fine. But, you should learn what side effects you may face from immunotherapy.
Generally, allergy shots to build immunity are safe with some side effects. The good news is that it won’t have any long-term and serious side effects.
However, it has some instant side effects that may be shown immediately after the injection and a few delayed side effects.
Instant immunotherapy side effects
- Feeling tired (fatigue)
- Fever
- Headache
- Diarrhoea
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Shortness of breath
- Weight loss
- Less appetite
- Feeling sleepy
- Less than 10% of the body blisters or rash
Delayed side effects
- Throat swelling
- Itching
- Wheezing or chest tightness
- Several hours bruising
- Low blood pressure
How Long Do Allergy Immunotherapy Side Effects Last?
First, everyone won’t see all of these allergy Immunotherapy side effects. Since the side effects vary from person to person, their lasting time also varies.
The short-term side effects will last around 4 hours to 3 days. As the delayed side effects are shown later, these may last one week to one month. But, the side effects can be resolved with proper treatment, which takes 1-3 weeks.
Allergy Immunotherapy Cost
You have to spend around $100 to buy allergy serum and $20-100 per visit for doctor’s fees based on the doctor’s efficiency and location. In addition, you must take allergy shots weekly, and it costs how much does it costs to foster a dog around $1000 to $4000 annually.
What Is The Success Rate Of Allergy Shots To Prevent Dog Allergy?
Clinical studies have proven that if the shots are taken properly, their success rate is more than 90%. In addition, allergy shots can decrease allergy symptoms and build new allergies and asthma that help to stop allergic overreaction.
Is It Worth Getting Allergy Shots?
There are two variables to determine whether it is worth taking allergy shots or not. The first variable is its cost, and the second variable is its success rate. Considering both of them, $100-200 per dose of allergy shots, and a 90% success rate with proper treatment, it’s easy to say taking allergy shots is worth building up an immunity to dog allergies.
But, if you don’t want to spend $1000 to $4000 per year to take immunotherapy to build up immunity to dog allergies, there are a few ways to limit dog allergies spreading. Now it’s time to talk about these ways.
How To Get Rid Of Dog Allergies Naturally
Though you have dog allergies, want to keep a dog at your home. In this case, besides taking immunotherapy to builds up immunity to dog allergies, you must follow some basic rules and regulations. These will help you to decrease dog allergy particles spreading.
1. Washing your Hands regularly
Regular hand washing is good practice to keep you away from dog allergen particles. You should wash your hand with a gentle hand washer, after you play with your loving dog. If you have allergies, never kiss your dog.
2. Cleaning and mopping
Your couch, carpet, and blankets are some of the most common spaces for stuck dog furs, saliva, and dander. So you must vacuum the couch, carpet, and blankets daily. Mop your hardwood floor after vacuuming to limit doggy-related allergens swirling back in the air.
3. Washing upholstery furniture covers
Besides vacuuming the upholstery furniture, you should wash the couch and blanket covers where the dog sits and plays. The bedding, your clothes, everything is also a potential trigger to suffering from dog allergies. Regularly wash them with gentle laundry detergent to avoid harming the clothing’s fabric.
4. Replacing carpets
The carpet on your hardwood floor undoubtedly makes it aesthetic to look at. But, the dog allergens are easily trapped in the carpet’s fabric. So if you have a pet dog and allergies, you shouldn’t use a carpet for many years. Though replacing an old carpet is a slightly expensive option, if possible, do it.
5. Using easy to clean upholstery furniture
Some upholstery faux leather furniture is easy to clean and won’t trap dog allergens. So if you have less time to maintain regular cleaning, it’s better to use the upholstery furniture which are easy to clean.
6. Setting no dog zone
It sounds heart-breaking to set a no-dog zone at your home as a dog lover. But you must train your dog in some specific no-entry zone to keep him away from these places. So that you can ensure yourself and other members’ reprieve from allergens.
7. Installing HEPA filters and air purifiers
Some high-quality HEPA filters and air purifiers are found in the market, designed to remove airborne dog allergens and pollutants from that specific place. So if you buy and install these in some of your rooms, you can ensure no allergens particles in the air.
8. Taking medication
Some common medications are eye drops, antihistamines, inhalers, and nasal sprays. Those medications will help you reduce your discomfort with allergic symptoms. So you can consult with an efficient allergist to diagnose your allergy types, their severity, and what will be the best medication for you.
9. Grooming your dog
You can use a good and handy brush to groom your dog’s fur daily. So the loose and dry dander will fall, and the HEPA filter can remove these. Regular dog bathing will also help to wash your dog’s dander and minimize the dog’s fur and skin-shed falling. So dog dander, fur, and skin shed won’t fly in the air. However, you should bathe your dog once a week with a gentle shampoo to avoid suffering from dry skin.
However, on other days of the week when you don’t bathe your dog, you should keep it smell better. Here is another article on how to make dogs smell better without a bath.
Though you may find these cleaning and grooming tasks laborious, they are the best ways to keep your home environment clean and free from dog allergens.
Conclusion
It’s absolutely fun and enjoyable to own a pet dog, but dealing with dog allergies isn’t fun. Generally, it’s like a double-edged sword when you have dog allergies and want to keep a pet dog. You can’t ignore your passion for having a dog or your allergic reaction.
However, hopefully, now you know how to build up an immunity to dog allergies. So consult with an allergy specialist, and take immunotherapy according to his/her recommendation. Also, follow the basic guidelines for keeping your home environment clean. This is how you can own a four-legged pet dog with your allergy and keep yourself free from doggy-caused allergies.
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