Allergy to dogs: features and signs

Pets bring their owners a lot of pleasant emotions and joy from the time spent together. Unfortunately, all four-legged pets, without exception, can harm household members. Allergies to dogs are one of the most common problems that force people to give up their pet.

Today we will talk about why people are allergic to dogs, how to diagnose this disease, and also tell you whether allergies can be cured and reactions can be stopped temporarily or permanently.

Allergy to dogs

Allergies: why does it appear?

Allergy is a disease that received its name, description of the clinical picture and characteristic symptoms quite recently, about a hundred years ago. However, this disease was known back in Ancient Egypt, although the doctors of that time did not fully understand its causes. All this time, medicine is trying to find the most effective therapeutic regimens that would make the life of allergy sufferers easier.

The search for the “ideal treatment” is due to the fact that an allergy is a negative reaction of the body’s immune system to a substance that seems foreign to it. Therefore, there are thousands of types of allergies, ranging from reactions to dog hair or saliva to allergies to perfumes, plants, foods or medications.

A person can be allergic to thousands of substances

How does an allergic reaction occur? When a “harmful” substance enters the body, regarded by the immune system as foreign, antibodies enter the bloodstream, ready to fight the allergen. A similar process occurs when a person suffers from a real danger, such as an invasion of a virus or infection. If in the case of a disease the body’s reaction is justified, then in the case of allergens there are too many antibodies, and there is no need for them to enter the blood.

However, it has been established that over time the body learns to distinguish between “strangers” and “friends”. This usually happens with infants who are becoming familiar with the world around them. If the baby lives in a house where there are pets or a flower bed outside the windows, then there is a high probability that he will not develop allergies.

Children growing up with dogs are rarely allergic

Causes of allergies

To protect itself from allergenic substances, the body produces antibodies. Production occurs at the moment when the antigens acquire maximum concentration. It is then that a person begins to cough, sneeze, his eyes turn red and other unpleasant symptoms appear. Why do allergies occur?

Medicine distinguishes two types of provoking factors: hereditary and acquired, external. In the first case, the genes of the parents play a role. If the baby’s mother or father is allergic, then with a probability of up to fifty percent he will inherit a predisposition to this disease. If both parents suffer from allergic reactions, the risk of “rewarding” the child with the same problem increases to seventy percent.

There is a high probability that another allergy sufferer will be born into a family of allergy sufferers.

External causes of allergy development are associated with reduced immunity, severe illnesses, especially those that affect the respiratory tract. Also, provoking factors include poor ecology and bad habits - in particular, smoking, which destroys the body.

If we talk about allergies to dogs, then you need to understand that it is not only the animal’s fur that causes a reaction. Much more often, the body resists particles of saliva, dead skin of the pet, skin lubricant, and feces. Also, the cause of allergies is often the food that the dog eats, dust and other “bright” allergens that the dog simply carries on its fur and spreads around it.

Allergens “travel” with the animal

Symptoms of a dog allergy

Each organism is individual, and the clinical manifestations of an allergic reaction may differ from person to person, even if the allergen is the same animal. Usually the signs are combined, and the allergy sufferer exhibits two or three or even more symptoms at the same time.

Table 1. How can allergies manifest themselves?

Hives - allergic reaction

Symptoms

Signs of an allergy to dogs can occur upon contact with the animal, its toys, and grooming items. The disease can have different manifestations.

• From the respiratory system: runny nose, sneezing, nasal congestion, dry cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, suffocation.
• From the organs of vision: lacrimation, redness of the eyes.
• Skin: itching, hyperemia, peeling of the skin, rashes, urticaria.
• Systemic manifestations: fever, stool upset, nausea and vomiting, Quincke's edema, bronchial asthma.

In children, such reactions develop quite quickly, sometimes just a few minutes after contact with the animal. Manifestations of allergies in a child can be acute. These include impaired respiratory function, systemic skin rash, redness of the skin, sneezing, coughing, and swelling of the nasopharynx. Infants may develop atopic dermatitis, in which the rash affects the face and can spread throughout the body.

If symptoms become apparent in the spring or summer, it is recommended to undergo professional allergen testing. The reason for a specific immune reaction during this period may be associated with plant pollen, chemical elements common in the air. All these allergens settle on the animal’s fur during a walk and continue to irritate its owners upon returning home.

In children, dog allergy symptoms usually appear fairly quickly and are often severe.

Allergies do not always have clear manifestations. It can be hidden or disguised as other diseases, which makes diagnosis very difficult. If you still suspect an allergy, first consult a medical specialist.

Diagnosis of allergies

Even if characteristic symptoms appear in a person after interacting with a dog, it is not at all necessary that the person is allergic to the animal. An allergy sufferer who experiences a runny nose, a sore throat or itchy eyes when a dog appears, is in a hurry to “blame” their four-legged friend for this. This may be partly true, but there are nuances.

Firstly, an allergy can occur to a person who has interacted with a dog, but it is associated with pollen or plant spores carried by the animal, microparticles of food eaten by the dog, shampoo or other cosmetics used to care for the pet. Secondly, allergies do not always manifest themselves immediately - due to the accumulation of antigen in the blood, the reaction may be delayed. It turns out that an allergic person will react to the dog, forgetting that an hour ago he was walking in a flowery park. An allergy can also strike a person who communicates with a dog owner or is in a car or a room where the animal was previously located.

Before making a diagnosis yourself, you need to diagnose the cause of the allergy.

Accordingly, symptoms appear, but it is difficult to understand what they are connected with. In these cases, it is necessary to pay a visit to an allergist and visit a special laboratory where tests are done in order to find out with greater accuracy what triggers the allergy.

Skin tests

A simple and common method in Russian clinics for identifying the exact type of allergen that torments a person is skin testing. To undergo this research method, you need to visit an allergist who will prepare different types of allergens (in powder or liquid form). Then the patient's skin is lightly scratched to apply the allergen to the affected area, or the allergen is injected subcutaneously with an insulin syringe.

If a particular antigen causes a reaction in a person, it will appear within half an hour. Symptoms can vary from mild redness to severe swelling and bright hives. However, the method has complications that can be very dangerous.

Sample process

Some especially sensitive allergy sufferers experience a dangerous condition called “delayed-type hypersensitivity.” This means that the reaction can occur six to ten hours after the test and provoke dangerous symptoms, including angioedema. A person should remember this and be ready to seek medical help at any time.

Emergency care for Quincke's edema

Determination of IdE level

A more modern and complex diagnostic method, during which it is determined how much E-immunoglobulin is produced in response to a specific allergen entering the body. The initial check is carried out within the framework of test kits - they usually include common types of allergens: “Animals”, “Fruits”, “Herbs” and the like. If the reaction to any group is confirmed, a narrower and more precise analysis is carried out.

Immunoglobulins type "E" in the blood

Note that a healthy adult who does not suffer from allergies feels good when the amount of total E-immunoglobulin in the blood does not exceed 50 milligrams per liter of blood.

Table 2. Classification of E-immunoglobulin reaction to allergens

In children, E-immunoglobulin levels are less stable and depend on age

Other methods for detecting allergies to dogs

In order to learn more about the type of allergy and identify the provocateur with absolute certainty, you can undergo other types of testing.

Table 3. Tests that detect allergies to dogs

Drawing blood for testing

It is important to understand that provoking tests, as well as those in which the allergen is introduced directly into the body, are contraindicated in infants, elderly patients, and pregnant women. Also, distorted results and harm to health may occur in people undergoing hormone treatment.

Direct “aggressive” tests should only be carried out in equipped clinics that have an intensive care unit or intensive care unit. The fact is that allergies can manifest themselves as Quincke's edema, anaphylactic shock, as well as edema of the lungs and brain, which can lead to death.

Intensive care unit: general view

Child allergy test

In children of any age, the same methods of research and identification of allergy-provoking factors are used as in adults. The only thing you need to understand is that a child’s delicate body reacts more acutely to irritants, so allergy tests should be carried out as safely as possible for the baby.

Most often, urine and blood tests are taken from children to determine elevated levels of white blood cells, protein compounds and eosinophils. If the blood sample shows an increase in key positions, blood is taken from the child from a vein to conduct research in the laboratory. However, skin tests are also performed in children.

Blood sampling for research

Of course, tests that involve direct contact of the allergen with the child’s body are more gentle than those for adults. Depending on the age of the child, solutions or powders with allergens are mixed in weak proportions. But, despite all the precautions, before the tests you need to visit a pediatrician so that he can first examine the baby and rule out concomitant diseases or illnesses that can give the same symptoms as allergies.

Allergy tests are not performed for children who have recently had infections (flu, ARVI, bronchitis, etc.), as well as for children taking corticosteroids or who have received antihistamines. Tests are also not performed on children under five years of age, since the immune system is in the process of development and does not produce an adequate response. It makes no sense to test infants, since the body’s defenses act chaotically, regardless of the real danger, and the total E-immunoglobulin level is extremely unstable.

Direct allergy tests are suitable for older children

How to determine dog allergies by internal symptoms

How to determine a dog allergy by internal symptoms
The patient may not necessarily be bothered by the visible manifestations of the disease. You may also be tormented by general weakness and malaise, headaches due to a constant runny nose and lack of oxygen, which should flow to the brain. But this will not be the only sign of the pathology in question.

Here are the main complaints and symptoms that arise from an allergy to a dog, which a person feels subjectively:

• symptoms of bronchial asthma (choking attacks, shortness of breath, wheezing, dry cough);
• gastrointestinal disorders (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea);
• Quincke's edema (swelling of the airways, tongue, face);
• anaphylactic shock (sharp drop in blood pressure, severe shortness of breath, suffocation, convulsions, loss of consciousness).

The last two points are very serious and the most dangerous among all the others listed above, since they usually develop very rapidly and can lead to death in humans. You should not wait until you have all or most of these signs of the disease. It’s better to play it safe and go to the clinic on time.

The patient may experience one or two signs of the disease, or most of the above. This is purely individual and depends on the time of onset of manifestations, the frequency of a person’s stay with an animal, and the amount of allergen. You need to undergo an examination by an allergist to ensure the presence or absence of the disease.

How to properly prepare for an allergy test?

Tests for an allergic reaction, like many other medical procedures, require certain preparation from the person. This is necessary to more accurately identify the problem and eliminate unreliable or blurred results.

A person visiting an allergist must exclude the presence of allergy-provoking factors and foreign allergens. So, if the road to the hospital runs through a flowering park, you need to wear a medical mask or try to arrive for the appointment in a car with the windows closed. The situation is similar with other antigens.

The patient is responsible for the purity of the allergy test

In order for the data received from an allergist to be as accurate as possible, a person must:

1. A few days before your appointment, avoid physical activity and avoid stress and overexertion.
2. Stop taking medications and dietary supplements, if possible; otherwise, you should inform your doctor about taking pharmaceuticals.
3. Stop eating any food 10-12 hours in advance, that is, the analysis will be carried out on an empty stomach (you are allowed to drink clean water from proven sources, preferably bottled).
4. For three days, avoid taking any alcoholic beverages; smokers should smoke their last cigarette no later than one day before the intake.
5. For three days, stop eating foods with a high allergy index (honey, chocolate, nuts, citrus fruits, eggs, berries, milk).

You must come to your appointment in a state of complete health. Even a minor illness can distort the results of allergy tests, so from the moment of recovery they wait three to five days and only then pay a visit to the hospital.

Products that most often provoke allergies

What to do if a dog allergy is confirmed?

A person who has been diagnosed with an allergy to a dog makes his own decision about further actions. It’s easiest for people who don’t have their own pet - they just need to minimize contact with animals, not come to visit friends who have tailed pets, and if a meeting is inevitable, they can take antihistamines in advance and then put on a respirator.

If the owner of a dog or someone in the household has acquired an unpleasant illness, there are two options: either you need to part with the pet, or you need to learn to coexist side by side, minimizing the symptoms of allergies.

Many owners do not agree to give up their dog under any circumstances.

If a person is not ready to part with his pet, he should take preventive measures aimed at alleviating his own condition. What to do in this case?

1. Pay attention to daily wet cleaning of the room: dusting, vacuuming, sweeping the floors. It is recommended to install an air purifier that filters even the smallest allergen particles.
2. Get rid of items that hold allergens: heavy curtains, upholstered furniture with voluminous covers, carpets, bedspreads with folds, etc.
3. Change bed linen weekly, washing it with hypoallergenic products.
4. Ventilate living rooms, constantly check that fresh air enters the room.
5. Limit the dog’s movements: do not allow the pet into the kitchen (or any other room where the allergic person eats), and also strictly prohibit the pet from getting on the bed.
6. Do not allow your dog to lick a person with allergies. In turn, an allergy sufferer should reduce contact with the animal; if this is not possible, use a respirator mask (for example, when washing a dog) and protective gloves (for example, when playing with a ball or a stick on a walk, so that saliva does not get on exposed skin) .

Along with the toy, the dog will also pass on allergens to the owner.

It is also important to regularly carry out hygiene measures for the dog itself and be attentive to its contents. The pet must be vaccinated and treated quarterly for helminths. If the dog is unwell, you need to show it to a veterinarian and follow all his instructions, since a sick animal has a weakened immune system and becomes even more allergenic to humans.

The dog needs to be washed more often, using special hypoallergenic cosmetics for animals. If the breed has long hair, you need to instruct a loved one who does not suffer from allergies to thoroughly comb the dog every two to three days. If funds allow, it is better to take the dog to a groomer, who will quickly and effectively rid the dog of the fallen undercoat and also give him a shorter haircut.

The help of a groomer is invaluable during periods of animal shedding.

Important point! Despite the assurances of unscrupulous puppy sellers, there are no hypoallergenic dog breeds. Yes, there are less allergenic breeds due to the lack of wool or its special structure, but a person reacts not only to wool. There are no dogs that do not salivate, have skin, or perform toilet routines.

Types of allergens that dogs carry

The main type of zooallergy is considered to be an allergy to dog fur. In fact, a reaction develops not only to dog fur, but also to a number of substances that it produces or carries:

• Intolerance to plant pollen during the flowering period. Dogs, after walking outside, collect pollen from various plants (for example, ragweed) on their fur. This allergy is seasonal in nature and is not associated with the animal’s molting period.
• Reaction to saliva. In addition to lysozyme, animal saliva contains many antigenic proteins. Allergy to saliva occurs regardless of the time of year upon contact with a dog.
• Sensitivity to epithelial particles and substances excreted on the skin. Particles of epithelium and skin secretions can also trigger an allergy to a dog.
• Fur intolerance. It worsens in the autumn and spring seasons (molting period). Rhinoconjunctival symptoms (lacrimation, runny nose) usually prevail.
• Reaction to care products (food, shampoo). It appears after interaction with care substances, in the form of contact dermatitis and other reactions, including anaphylaxis.

The exact causes of allergies can be determined using special tests for antibodies to typical allergens in the blood.

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How to treat dog allergies?

The best results are obtained, of course, by completely eliminating allergens. Reducing the antigen dose is a reliable and effective method that does not have any contraindications, restrictions or negative side effects. All allergy sufferers, no exceptions, are advised to purchase a high-quality air purifying complex. Modern air humidifiers operate silently and almost completely destroy bacteria, harmful bacteria and allergens. Their only drawback is their high cost.

An air humidifier almost completely cleans the room of allergens

Treatment of allergies with medications is very limited, since drugs generally do not stop an allergic attack, but only relieve symptoms to one degree or another. Also, for allergy sufferers, enterosorbents are used to remove harmful substances from the body.

Thus, antihistamines, including cortisone, theophylline, ketotifen and the like, block allergy mediators and prevent the activation of antibodies produced in response to invading antigens. In fact, this is not a treatment for allergies, but only a reduction in symptoms. Such drugs are used as first aid during an acute attack; often allergy sufferers with severe manifestations of the disease even carry syringes with a dose of the drug.

The most effective way to relieve allergy symptoms is by injection.

At the moment, a medicine is being developed that can instantly block an acute allergic attack. Doctors have already discovered a mechanism for interrupting the production of antibodies (action in one second); for this purpose, a special protein macromolecule has been created that stops the body’s immune response. Now this method is experimental, but on its basis it is planned to refine existing allergy drugs and create new ones.

There is also a method for treating allergies, based on the patient undergoing a course of injections with small doses of histamine, which increase with therapy. Doctors believe that this way the body reduces its susceptibility to allergic reactions, as it gets used to the flow of histamine and becomes resistant to this substance.

The dose of histamine is selected individually, based on a blood test

Another step familiar to every allergy sufferer is taking standard pharmaceutical medications aimed at mitigating or even completely eliminating allergy symptoms. If the attacks do not cause severe discomfort, a person can easily cope with them by purchasing an appropriate over-the-counter remedy at the pharmacy. Combining two medications, such as a nasal spray and tablets, is effective. Despite the harmlessness of such products, you need to obtain the approval of an allergist before purchasing them.

Table 4. Drugs that facilitate the relief of an allergic attack

Important point! Allergy treatment should not be left to chance, using available remedies that relieve symptoms. To prevent allergies from progressing and poisoning a person’s life even more, it is better to consult an allergist, undergo the necessary tests and identify what the body is reacting negatively to.

Perhaps the solution to the problem lies on the surface, and the dog is not at all to blame for the owner’s torment. The results of an allergy test may show that the owner only needs to change the brand of dry food or walk the pet away from flowering plants for the annoying allergy symptoms to subside.

Don't let allergies take their course

Let's summarize

Many people love animals very much, in particular dogs, and dream of such a pet. Unfortunately, allergy symptoms do not always allow you to enjoy communication with animals, as they cause real physical discomfort for a person. The situation is especially sad if the allergy appears unexpectedly, when the dog already lives in the family and is a dear friend for the household.

In any case, you first need to obtain medical confirmation that it is the four-legged pet that provokes the unpleasant reactions. After the diagnosis has been carried out, a person must make a decision - either enjoy communicating with the dog, as before, relying on modern methods of treatment and symptom relief, or get rid of the source of the allergy.

Dog allergy: how it manifests itself, its forms and signs

Give me your paw, friend, for my luck! How great is happiness when your beloved pet makes your nose run like a stream and your eyes water? If you have an allergy to a dog, how it manifests itself almost immediately after purchasing the animal. Your dream has come true, you have finally bought a dog of exactly the breed you wanted. But the joy from this fades away every minute, leaving visible manifestations of an allergy to animals. How to avoid such a course of events and get rid of such an insidious disease? We'll tell you further.