Being a cat lover and allergic to cats must be such a nightmare for some people. Many can avoid cat allergies by avoiding contact with cats.
However, we can provide you with a number of options if you hate to part from your pet cat.
First, let’s get to know about the cat allergies, commonality, and possible symptoms.
Symptoms of Cat allergies
Cat allergies can be known by the following listed symptoms down below:
- Red and itchy eyes
- Coughing and wheezing constantly
- Hives or rashes on body parts and face
- Redness on your skin where your cat has touched or bitten
- Runny, itchy, and stuffy nose
- Sneezing constantly
- Fever and chills
- Nausea and vomiting
- Difficult in breathing
- Asthma attack
Why are cat allergies so common?
The most common allergens are cats and dogs. Also, people tend to suffer from cat allergies twice to the dog’s ones.
The reason behind cat allergies is the protein found on a cat’s skin called Fel d 1.
As for its commonality, it is because of the size and shape of the protein molecule.
The protein molecule in the cat’s skin is so tiny and light. It is actually about one-tenth the size of a dust allergen.
Due to its lightweight, it can stay airborne for hours, unlike dog allergen which is heavier than cat allergen. Specialists reported that cat allergens can be found in places with no cats too.
And the tiny structure of the cat allergen aka Fel d 1 gives it a chance to enter deep inside the lungs of humans.
Similarly, Fel d 1 is more sticky, easily attachable to human skin, clothes, and other stuff.
According to studies, male cats produce Fel d 1 more vigorously than female ones.
Male cats produce the hormone testosterone which increases glandular secretions i.e More Secretion of Fel d 1.
What can help with cat allergies?
Avoiding contact with cats can come up as an option to help with cat allergies.
However, if you can’t bear staying away from your pet cats, then you can get allergy shots called immunotherapy.
For that, you have to get small injections from time to time which can help you to build immune system tolerance over time.
According to allergy specialists, to reach the maintenance level it might take roughly six months of weekly injections followed by three to five years of monthly injections for the therapy to attain complete efficacy.
However, to lessen any of the medical hassles, we will provide you with some of the possible ways or tips to get rid of cat allergies.
10 Tips to Help with cat allergies naturally
Here are the 15 tips we have listed to help you with cat allergies naturally
Don’t let your cat sleep on your bed
Loving and caring for your pets is one thing and keeping your health first is another more important thing to do.
However cute and bubbly your cat might look to you but never make the mistake of keeping your cat on your bed if you are allergic to cats.
You can instead prepare separate bedding for your cat which has to be a little far away from your bed or room so that your cat won’t come running to your bed.
If your cat can’t stay away from you, then just keep some clothes or blankets that smell like you beside your cat’s bedding to avoid any chances of your cat coming for you in your bed.
Wash your bedsheets and pillow covers frequently
As already mentioned, cat allergens are likely to stay in places for a while as they are airborne.
So, to avoid any future problems, it’s better to wash your bedsheets and pillow covers more frequently after having cats around your home.
Dust your room and vacuum 2-3 times a week
Dust and dirts in your room can worsen cat allergen reactions. You could even get serious allergic reactions when cat allergens are mixed with dust.
So, you should consider dusting your room 1-2 times a week and also vacuum it 2-3 times a week.
Just be careful to use masks and gloves to avoid getting allergic reactions from the dust and allergens present in the room.
Use anti-allergen sprays
You can always get anti-allergen spray products from a local pet store or shop.
Generally, those sprays are safe to use but always be careful to read the instructions in the spray bottle.
Use those prays as per the instructions given all over the room surfaces.
Use air purifier
Air purifier can help you purify the air around you eliminating all the dust and allergens present.
So, you can get an air purifier from a local store or online too and use it to prevent cat allergens to get airborne and spread all over the room.
Bathe your cat and keep them neat and clean
Keeping your cat clean and bathing them from time to time will be the great idea to prevent the Fel d 1 spreading around your room.
Cats tend to shade their old skin and due to that the protein molecule Fel d 1 can spread and wander around the room causing the allergic reactions.
You can consult a local veterinarian for the shampoo products to use to bathe your cat.
You should at least bathe your cat 1-2 times a week to avoid the cat allergen from getting to you.
Clean out the litter box and bedding of your cat more often
Not only keeping your bedding is necessary, but you should also keep your cat’s bedding neat and clean too.
Dusting and cleaning the bedding of your cat one to two times a week can prevent the allergen from spreading around the room.
Also, you should clean the litter box of your cat more often.
The litter box contains stools and urines of your cat with their allergens too.
So, you should clear out the litter box two to three times a week and keep it more clean to reduce the allergen contamination.
Always wash your hands after you pet your cats
Petting your cats and directly using your hands could worsen your allergic reactions.
Hence, it will be the best to always wash your hands properly after you touch your cats.
You can use anti-bacterial soap or handwash to wash your hands thoroughly.
Use a neti pot to remove allergens
When you get contaminated with cat allergens, you can remove it with the use of a neti pot.
Take a cup of water and a half teaspoon of salt and a half teaspoon of baking powder.
Mix the mixture well and pour it in a neti pot.
You can simply drip the mixture in your one nostril and let the mixture drain out from another nostril or your mouth.
Just repeat the whole process 2-3 times a day and see the magic!
The mixture will help you get rid of stuffy nose and ease mucus buildup.
Use natural antihistamines or artificial ones
Antihistamines can be used to treat many allergic reactions.
You can find them naturally in several veggies and fruits.
Veggies and fruits like broccoli, apples, grapes, etc. will be quite useful for treating allergies and asthma problems as they contain a pretty good amount of Quercetin which reduces allergic reactions.
Or, you can simply use antihistamines meds such as diphenhydramine (Benadryl), loratadine (Claritin) or cetirizine (Zyrtec).
Also, you can have stinging nettle capsules to reduce the symptoms from the allergy. However, it will be better to consult your doctor to get those capsules as per the prescription to avoid any possible side effects.
What can a cat take for allergies?
One of the possible ways to reduce cat allergies is to get your cats neutered or spayed.
Having them neutered will stop the glandular secretion reducing the production of protein molecule aka Fel d 1.
Neutering your cats will also save you the time and money following all the other remedies.
Final Takeway
Allergic reactions can get severe anytime. So, you should never take them lightly or as a joke.
It will be the best for an allergic person to stay away from cats, and if not then you can attentively follow all the tips and instructions we have provided you so far.
So, don’t make your allergy severe and follow precautions if you don’t want to say goodbye to your favorite pet!