How to know for sure if pet allergies are causing asthma?

[DisneyLovingMama]

So, DS's Dr. thinks he's allergic to our dogs, and that his breathing problems and possible asthma will only get worse. I've already removed all the stuffed animals, carpeting, etc from DS's bedroom and some of the other carpeting throughout the house. I'm not sure what to do with this latest idea by the doctor.

Is there any way to know for sure it's the dogs? If so, what should I do? I'm not really a dog person (they were soon to be ex-dh's brainchildren), but both kids love them. I vaccuum every day, but there is always hair all over the place.

 

[janette]

Without allergy testing you can't tell. My 11yo DD tests allergic to dogs and has asthma. We limit the house access (she's crated inside) of our one dog that sheds and the others are Bichon's so she tolerates them okay but I wouldn't attempt to have a shedding dog open access to the house.

 

[EthansMom]

Is there any way to know for sure it's the dogs?

Your son's breathing problems aren't being caused by the dog hair, but it certainly isn't helping any. You could get DS tested for an allergy to pet dander, but in addition to pet dander, the dog hair contains all kinds of molds, pollens and other allergens from the dogs going outdoors.

My brother has had allergies and asthma his entire life. For him, having dogs that live almost exclusively outdoors has helped. I've also heard of people that have shorthaired animals having less of a problem.

I understand where you're at right now. Both of my kids have bronchitis again right now. I want so much to be able to blame their breathing problems on some one thing that I could fix. In my case, since we live in CT, I'm convinced that we must have a mold problem -- well, it's Connecticut, who doesn't get mold? But, hey, if I could find lots of hairy mold spores in the attic and get it all cleaned out, my kids would get better right? (Plus, I love my cat a bit too much to consider that getting rid of her might help.)

In reality, asthma and allergies run in both side of mine and DH's family. Both my brother and Mom have nasty asthma. My brother is one of those people who gets walking pneumonia a couple times a year. His daughter has the same kinds of respiratory problems as my daughter.

It's odd to think how much we take something as basic as breathing for granted.

At any rate, I'll be up off and on for the next several nights giving DD her breathing treatments every 4 hours.

to you!

 

[nwdisgal]

Our allergist told us that it is not the particular dog breed that you are allergic to, but what the dog gets into that causes the allergy. I'd look into where the dogs are hanging out.

 

[DisneyLovingMama]

Unfortunately, these dogs will NEVER live outside. They start whining as soon as I put them out to do their business. I've never seen such indoor dogs. Since STB ex-DH is currently in hiding, maybe I should drop the dogs off on his parents' doorstep? Think that'll get them to give up his current location?

Grr...I just feel so bad for my little guy, but don't want to upset the household any more than necessary by prematurely putting the dogs up for adoption.

 

[RitaZ.]

Testing should definitely confirm it.

DH has asthma. I'll tell you about his physical reaction when he is exposed to dogs and cats, even though he takes his meds daily. If he pets a dog, even ones with short hair, the area that touched it will break out in a red, bumpy rash within a few minutes. When that happens, he has to wash the area and apply Benadryl ointment to stop the rash. If he is in a home where they have cats, he will begin to sneeze, then gets the runny nose, which has led to wheezing in the past.

We visited DH's sister recently, she has 1 dog and 3 cats. Within 20 minutes of being in her house, he began to sneeze. Again, he takes several meds daily, but these things definitely trigger his allergies. So, we avoid those situations as much as possible.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Several years ago my teenage son was tested for allergies and did come up positive for dogs. The allergist told us that the most important thing was to keep the dog out of his bedroom since a child spends so many hours sleeping. It's easy enough to keep a dog out of a room and it hasn't been a problem at all.

I'm a little confused--what is the dr basing his opinion on? Has your son been tested for allergies? I sure wouldn't base anything on an assumption on the drs part. I would find an allergist who is also an animal lover. Sometimes an allergy is severe enough to mean that getting rid of an animal might be necessary, but very often there are other less extreme measures that can be taken.

How old is your son?

 

[DisneyLovingMama]

The doctor just threw it out there today, at DS's checkup. He's still wheezing and has been on and off throughout his life (he just turned one). The doctor recommended an allergist, but said the tests aren't really accurate until children are at least 18 months.

The dogs do not go into DS's room. They aren't even allowed upstairs, where the bedrooms are. They ARE in the family room all the time, which is where DS walks, crawls and rolls around. Like I said, I vaccuum once a day and wash the rugs with Oreck's allergen remover shampoo at least once a month.

The dogs just hang out in my backyard, when they are outside. Not sure what's out there besides grass and dirt, especially in the winter.

I've had our ducts cleaned, use the allergen-removing filter in the furnace, dust all the time. I'm pretty sure DS is allergic to milk, so I watch his diet carefully.

He doesn't have a physical (meaning, rash or redness) reaction to the dogs, but he's perpetually wheezing and having a runny nose.

 

[Aidensmom]

You definately need allergy testing. For young children they can do a blood test which is a little easier on the child, though the test is a little less accurate. We recently had my 4 year old tested, and I had to request the referral from the doctor, though they had him on albuterol. Found out he is allergic to wheat and to environmental things (dust, mold, certain plants, etc). The dog and cat cause him no problems. He is now on Claritin daily for his allergies, and has had no asthma symptoms.

 

[Stacerita]

Get your son an allergy test. That should be your first thing. It will help you and your son figure out when he is coming into contact with the "triggers".

 

[nwdisgal]

Do you give your doggies a bath? I've heard that helps reduce the allergens.

 

[janette]

Is he taking any allergy medications? What preventative drugs is he on? It seems strange that you'd be taking steps to remove possible allergens especially a pet without any testing. My 11yo DD tested allergic to everything on the standard testing, except for dust mites. The removal of carpet and stuffed animals would do nothing for her. She will get welts when she rolls in the grass and has learned that that isn't a good idea.

The majority of her care has been with primary care Drs but they have been very informed of allergy/asthma treatments and we've had a pretty well regulated treatment plan.

 

[PrincessKitty1]

No flames here please , but I worked directly for children's lung specialists for a year (and with them indirectly--hospital rather than office nurse --for years), and I can tell you that I never heard of a single family getting rid of their dogs or cats due to their children's allergies. That would have to be a pretty extreme allergy (such as another person posted about her son's dog and cat allergy).

Although it's certainly possible your child's wheezing is partially caused by pet dander, I would recommend getting him to a pediatric pulmonologist to try to get the asthma under better control with appropriate medications. Most common allergy: dust mites. However, most kids have multiple triggers (allergies, cold air, stress, smoke, etc.).

Sounds like you are doing well with keeping the animals out of your son's room and getting rid of the carpeting.

 

[Kim in TN]

Depending on the breed of dog, I'd keep the hair groomed short, even pugs etc can be clipped and I'd have them bathed, by you or at your vets office, regularly to decrease the dander, I work at an animal hospital and have had clients swear by a product called Allerpet-c (for cat or d or dog) its a shampoo and apparently in the allergy blogs etc people love that product. Again, I don't personally have allergies but this is what the allergic clients tell us. Hope it helps.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Get your son an allergy test. That should be your first thing. It will help you and your son figure out when he is coming into contact with the "triggers".

Agree...As an allergy sufferer and one who is allergic to everything, get some kind of tests done. No matter if they are not accurate they will at the very least "red flag" highly allergic things. Get him tested for as much as possible.

 

[Aimeedyan]

An allergy to a dog can cause asthma issues, yes. But, you have to knwo WHAT he's allergic to. Dog saliva? Dog dander? Dog hair? Dog pee? Things from outside coming in on the dog? It could be so many things.

You're doing the right thing by limiting the dogs access to bedrooms and vaccuming. Regular bathing with an allergy reducing shampoo will help too, and if they shed I highly suggest getting them furminated - it will pull off the undercoat so there is very little shedding. You can keep it up at home, as well, though I would get it professionally done the first time.

My bloodtest came back positive for dog but they couldn't tell me what about the dog! I have a Shih Tzu that doesn't bother me and my 2nd dog hasn't made things any worse then before. I have to take meds for a slew of other allergies and asthma issues anyways so we bathe them regularly, keep the one that sheds furminated, keep the other clean and washed since he drags stuff in, and limit time on the bed.

Go for the testing just to give you a glimpse into things =) There's no way to know until then!

 

[ElizK]

As a small child I had severe asthma (stopped breathing once!) and was sick all the time. We moved when I was 6, and soon after that the cat ran away. Lo and behold, I was no longer sick, and only had asthma attacks occasionally! I am horribly allergic to cats. Getting rid of the cause of my problems made a huge difference in my health.

 

[Mandabella]

Also don't be surprised after doing everything that people have recommended in this thread to reduce the problem (if it is the dog), that your child still has problems with allergies and asthma because of the dog. I spent years campaigning for a pet dog, but never did get one. In hindsight, my parents were right....my allergies/asthma wouldn't permit me to live with a dog.

My parents thought the way to solve the "amandawantsapetdogeventhoughshecan'tbreathearoundthem" problem was to get me a guinea pig in high school. Despite containing it to certain areas of the house, its cage, and certain rooms, I still had problems because of that 3 lb adorable rodent.

Unfortunately, that has been my experience. I envy people who can take a pill and be okay with pets. Doesn't work for me at all. Sigh...this is why I like looking at people's doggie pictures on the DIS. Don't care for cats, they are worse for me than dogs and I hold it against them.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

My 3rd son had pretty bad asthma when he was a baby/todder. At the time we had cats and no dogs (this is not the son who turned out to be allergic to dogs). I really think the biggest cause of his problems was getting a bad cold as a newborn. I think with the teeny airways it doesn't take much for them to tighten up so it's hard for them to breath. He got much better by the time he was 3-4 years old and is totally fine now (he's 12yo) and has been for a couple years. It's very hard when our babies are sick and I totally understand. I'm glad that you are not rushing out and getting rid of your dogs. Your kids have had a rough enough time without making a change like that unless it turns out to be the only answer.

That's great that the dogs don't go upstairs. Have you thought about getting a Roomba for the hairs. I love mine and it does a great job on pet hairs. It could be run inbetween vacuumings.

 

[Nicolepa]

When my daughter was about a year old she got a runny nose, this lasted for a year (nonstop). We put her on they typical allergy medications which worked, but made her so sleepy she couldn't function, she had a catscan of her nasal passages etc. I had her tested for allergies as soon as she turned two and she came up pretty much clear.

Well I was sure it was our pets (we had a bird and a dog). So one time after we got home from vacation and the pets were at my dad's, I left them there for a month while I cleaned up the house. Her runny nose and sneezing went away. The dog came home first and she got a small runny nose no big deal, bird came back and all the symptoms came back.

I never had her tested a gain since we got rid of all the pets and all her "allergies" are gone. So I really don't put much faith in the allergy tests at a young age. I think if it's a severe allergy it might find it but a moderate one maybe/maybe not and trial and error are a better way to figure it out.