My human dad went to his personal vet again today. He has to take all kinds of medicine, which is kinda neat cuz I get to watch HIM getting pilled. Doc says if he wants to feel better he’s got to get rid of me, or throw me outside all the time. I don’t want to loose my happy home. Now, they’re talking about they’re moving me to a new suite at the city pound.

I used to be Happy, but he turned Sneezy
So now I’m Grumpy

PS-Dopey, the dog, gets to stay.

Allergies are number one reasons why people give up their cats. When people start snorting and sneezing, first thing a human doc says is, “Get rid of the cat.”

But I think we need to get our facts straight before anyone packs their catnip. You may not be the one that needs to head for the slammer, cuz if you come from a bi-pet-ual home, you may not be the culprit at all.

Doctors used to think that folks were allergic to cat hair, and then they thought it was the dander, and then it was cat spit. Those smart university types may have finally figured out the puzzle. They now say that Fel d 1 (that’s the protein stuff people are allergic to) really comes from your sebaceous glands—those are glands at the base of the hair. From there it gets on the dander, and that’s a jet ride to any place in the house. Sometimes it jets right into your dad’s nose.

Those guys discovered that even if your Dad is allergic to your Fel d 1, it might not be making him as sick as he thinks it is. Unless he’s gone to an allergist for some needlework, his Mister Doctor may just assume he’s allergic to cats. But the real offender may actually be dust mites or pollen or even, dare I say it, Man’s Best Friend.

Those Ivory Tower types have been doing some nosing into allergies. A couple of years ago, a study by the Asthma Clinical Research Network put cats, dogs, dust mites, mold and cockroaches to the test to see how each affected 809 people with asthma. These bigheads at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center found out that even though more asthmatics are allergic to our Fel d 1 (72%), it’s not as bad as they thought. Fewer people were allergic to dogs (38%) but many don’t know they are and —here’s the injustice—those folks with dog allergies get lots sicker, but still the doctor’s blame Felix instead of Fideaux.

There, the truth is out. You read it here first. Okay, maybe not first since this study was finished in 2003. But at least you read it here.

See, allergies are like cats and dogs; they have different symptoms.

Tim Craig, D.O., professor of medicine and pediatrics, Penn State College of Medicine, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, and lead author for the study told Yours Truly, that dog allergies make people sicker. They learned this by turning the gurney and doing laboratory testing on humans. People with cat allergies only had problems exhaling. But humans with dog allergies not only had problems exhaling, they also had something called respiratory tract inflammation and more mucus. Yuk. It just goes to show that man’s best friend may be poor company for an asthmatic.

Dr. Craig said, “This may be surprising to many because it dispels the myth that cats cause more severe allergic reactions.” This suggests dog allergens irritate more than cat allergens. Give this guy a paw for revealing the canine conspiracy.

Before they toss you (or Dopey) out on your tail, Dr. Craig said there are some things they can try to help keep your human breathing easy.

**First thing: Grumpy, you gotta find another place to snooze. The human needs his own space—a cat (or dog)-free zone. So they gotta keep the door closed and you outta of the room. Bummer, but it could be worse.

**The humans will want to start by emulating you: washing everything—all the time. But they need to use hotter water than you got in your mouth. So their bedding, your bedding, everyone’s bedding gets the hot water treatment. They shouldn’t forget to clean the curtains and replace pillows regularly. Better still, replace the curtains with wood or metal blinds that can be wiped off.

**Carpet may make a great cat tree, but it’s a convention center for every mite, dust and hair shaft known to man (and cats). Your folks need to scrap the rugs; better still, you do it; just think how great your claws will look when you get done. But you’ll need to scrap them all the way to the city dump. Tile or wood flooring stays cleaner and besides, it’s fun to slide across. If they don’t toss out the rugs, then head for the hills, cuz someone who doesn’t have allergies will have to vacuum often with a sweeper that has a HEPA filter or with a vacuum that’s a double bagger. There’s going to be plenty of gunk flying around in the air, so a mask will keep dad breathing better until the dust settles so to speak. Steam cleaning the carpet regularly will help nuke dander.

**Washable surfaces keep it easier it is to keep clean. Wipe down walls, cabinets, and counters. Use those home steam cleaners to make short work of washable surfaces.

**Now it’s time to pay attention to you and your hair problem. There’s been this big controversy. One smart guy says that your people should wrestle you into a tub every week (call it a Saturday night bath) to get rid of your dander. But other guys say that just makes us cats want to bathe (the right way—with spit) even more and causes more allergens. When I first talked to Dr. Craig I thought he was taking our side by saying people shouldn’t bathe us too often cuz all that shampooing will dry out our skin. But he turned around and recommended rinsing you off with just plain water every couple of days. That means you probably get to keep your happy home, but you gotta get wet a lot.

**Heating and air conditioner filters need to be changed religiously, every month, and turn on a HEPA air filter in the rooms you like to hang out. And on nice days open the windows and air out the house.

It’s not all bad news for you. Even though you can’t sleep with them any more and you gotta get doused every few days, you win on a few points cuz they need to keep your litter box clean. Scoop it every day. Oh, yeah. Get rid of the clay litter (it doesn’t matter whether it clumps or not.) It’s made of the same stuff that causes black lung disease in miners. Try using a crumbled corn litter like World’s Best Cat Litter, a corncob litter or something made of wood or paper. You’ll like it better anyway. Forget the scent too cuz studies show commercial perfumes like the ones used in cat litter cause asthma in us kitties, so you know it’s bad for people too. Besides that, you know cats hate scented litter no matter how good it smells to humans. Keep the litter box away from the areas you spend time in, Fel d2 are in pee and poop.

People need to wash their hands after the pet you. Dr. Craig said that Claritin (loratadine) that you can buy at any store without a prescription can make your dad more comfortable. He said nasal steroids help with nasal symptoms, but not the asthma. After testing, your dad’s allergist can probably come up with some medicine that will help him live with you.

There are a wide variety of nasal sprays, antihistamines, decongestants, and inhalers that can help control his allergy symptoms. His allergist can help him choose the right medication.