Pet Allergies

March 14, 2000

Did you know that over 100 million homes in the United States have pets? We love our pets, but unfortunately, sometimes they make us sneeze and wheeze! Read on with this dynamic husband and wife duo, allergist Anton Dotson, MD, and veterinarian Kathryn Schrader, DVM, in an informative discussion about how to live in harmony with your pets and your allergies. There are things you can do besides giving up Morris!

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Gazoontite: Hello and welcome to gazoontite.com's expert chat with allergist Anton Dotson, MD, and veterinarian, Kathryn Schrader, DVM. In response to the overwhelming number of inquiries about pet allergies that we receive at gazoontite.com, we asked this husband and wife duo to host a question and answer session about the best ways to prevent, avoid, or manage allergies to pets. Please welcome Dr. Dotson and Dr. Schrader

Dr Dotson: Howdy! We're both glad to be here, and hope we can be of some use.

Sigmagirl: What exactly is pet dander, and what about it causes allergies?

Dr Schrader: Pet dander is the normal shedding of skin cells and saliva, and any secretions from an animal.

Dr Dotson: What makes it an allergen is that particles can float around in the air and land on people's mucus membranes. When they land on the mucus membranes the immune system recognizes them as a foreign invader, and mistakenly try to fight it off.

Washerman: I read somewhere that most allergies are actually reactions to dust mites. Is this true? And if so, what is the best treatment for them?

Dr Dotson: Dust mites are a very common indoor allergen. Some people are allergic to dust mites, some to animal dander, some to pollen, so it can vary from person to person. There's no way to effectively kill dust mites, so in many parts of the country they're an unavoidable household member. They're microscopic insects that live by eating microscopic skin scales that fall off people. The skin scales accumulate where people spend the most time--for me, it's the couch--but also in bedding--pillows, mattresses, and comforters. In return for us providing the dust mites with food, they pay us back with poop. And it's the protein coat around the poop, which of course is even more microscopic, that people are allergic to. The way to avoid exposure is to place barriers between the source of the allergen, and the person. The most effective barriers are for pillows, mattress, box springs, and comforters. These barriers are placed on the bare mattress or the bare pillow, and then the normal bedding can be placed right on top. These covers never come off, and the fountain of allergy particles is turned off. In conjunction, two other things are important. Number one is 3 percent tannic acid spray. This dissolves dust mite and cat protein on contact. It's one hundred percent safe, organic, and should be sprayed on carpeted areas monthly. Number two is people should make sure their vacuum cleaner says HEPA, which means High Efficiency Particulate Air Filter, to make sure that when they vacuum they are actually removing allergens rather than recycling them. Regular vacuum cleaners, the new micro-pore vacuum bags, can be almost as effective.

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