Allergic to pets? The breakthrough guide to living with the animals you love

In an allergic person, the immune system learns to respond to one or more innocent foreign substances as if it or they were dangerous to the body. In the case of pets, for instance, the immune system perceives their dander and sebaceous gland and salivary and urinary extracts as threats. Pet allergens are usually considered airborne allergens (though rashes caused by pet licking and contact dermatitis from pet dander are examples of non-airborne allergic reactions)... Breathing them in can affect your entire respiratory tract...

The first step in the development of an allergic reaction is exposure to an allergen. Suppose, for instance, you have the potential to be allergic to cats. The protein cats produce that causes allergies in humans is called Fel d 1. Studies indicate that the sebaceous glands at the hair roots and the salivary glands are the most potent cat allergen sites. If you are a person destined to be sensitized to cats, when the tiny Fel d 1 protein comes in contact with your nose, lungs, eyes, or skin, your immune system reacts by producing specific IgE antibodies to this foreign substance.

Your initial exposure to the Fel d 1 cat allergen causes the IgE antibodies to bind in great number on the mast cells and basophils—many thousands may collect on a single cell—but you probably won’t experience any symptoms. An allergen does not provoke a reaction the first time you encounter it. The immune system is simply gearing up to defend itself against future invasions by that same allergen. At this point, however, you are sensitized to cats.

Sensitization, or the process that leads to development of symptoms in persons intolerant to a particular allergen, requires exposure over a period of time—anywhere from hours, days, months, or years—to develop. Consequently, the second time your body encounters cat allergen (or maybe the tenth time, or the fiftieth time, or even the hundredth time) a sequence of biochemical reactions will occur culminating in the classic symptoms associated with airborne allergies...

The union of an allergen and the IgE that takes place on the surface of the two cells is explosive... Depending on the tissue in which the “explosion” occurs, the allergic response differs. If the reaction to Fel d 1 occurs in the nose and throat, the responses can cause immediate swelling, itchiness, sneezing, a runny discharge, nasal congestion, an itchy or scratchy sore throat, and more. A similar reaction occurs in the lining of the eyes causing tearing, intense itching, and swelling. In the lungs, the muscles surrounding the air passages contract to make breathing more difficult, possibly starting the symptoms of asthma. If the reaction occurred from touching the cat, local swelling of the skin, itchiness, hives, or rashes may result...

The rest of this book will zero in on sensitivities to pets: which pets trigger allergies; the allergic symptoms they cause; how to care for dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, and rodents and reduce your exposure to their allergens; plus how to allergen-proof your house to substantially decrease the number of dust mite, mold, pollen, cockroach, and other allergens in the environment. While it’s impossible to rid your pet or your home entirely of animal allergens, you can significantly reduce their levels.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shirlee Kalstone has been an internationally recognized expert on pets for more than 20 years, and is the author of numerous books about dog and cat breeds and pet health care, first aid, grooming, and behavior problems. She is also a life-long allergy sufferer. Mrs. Kalstone has lectured on pet care across the U.S., Canada, and Europe, as well as in Argentina and Japan. She was the founder of one of the largest pet health care/grooming conferences in the world.

Excerpted from Allergic to Pets? by Shirlee Kalstone. Copyright © 2006 by Shirlee Kalstone. Excerpted by permission of Bantam, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.