Search Results for: blog pets have allergies too

Developing Cat Allergies in Adulthood

Here’s an even better reason to expose your children to pets at an early age: adults never exposed to them have a higher chance of developing allergies if they get pets. A team from the University Hospital of Verona (in Italy) studied more than 6,000 adults twice in nine years. It found that people who had never lived with cats before, and then adopted them in adulthood, doubled their chances of becoming allergic to the cat. The chances were even higher if the adults had other allergies or asthma. The process of becoming allergic to something when previously you weren’t … Continue reading →

Don’t Ignore Allergies

Allergy season has officially hit at the Williams’ house and it is definitely not very fun! Our days are filled with runny noses, sore throats, and itchy eyes. Tissues are in short supply and it tends to make us both a little grumpy. It can be easy to mistake your child’s sniffles for the common cold, but if the symptoms persist for more than a couple weeks you may want to talk to your pediatrician about the possibility of testing for allergies. If left untreated allergies can make children more susceptible to ear and sinus infections and can even cause … Continue reading →

Pets Have Allergies Too

It’s that time of year: my car, porch, deck, and even some of my plants, are covered in a yellow dust. Pollen season is upon us, and for many unfortunates that means it’s time to suffer through allergies. As is true with many things, humans aren’t the only ones that might be affected by the dreaded plant powder. All this past week my dog has come in with her snout, muzzle, and sometimes even her eyes, covered in pollen. She didn’t seem any different than normal, however, which leads me to believe that despite her many itching problems pollen is … Continue reading →

Grain-Free Food Can Improve Behavior and Allergies

I started an experiment the day I took Chrestomanci to the vet: I put all of the animals on grain-free food. I’ve always wondered about whether or not I ought to take my pets off of corn-filled kibble, but the extra expense has always given me, and especially my husband, pause. When I asked the vet about Chresti’s dandruff problem she said that wetter grain-free food might help. A locally-owned store next to the veterinarian’s office sells a variety of such foods, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to at least go in and get a bunch of samples. I … Continue reading →

Gadgets That Can Help Children With Allergies

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Warm weather means there is a lot more pollen in the air than we were exposed to a few months ago. If your child has severe environmental allergies, then you probably have noticed that he or she is suffering from symptoms right now. Unfortunately, there isn’t a cure for allergies, but there are some devices that you can use to help make your allergic child a bit more comfortable this allergy season. One of the most useful things I have found that really helps my allergies is an air cleaner, or air purifier. These devices clean the air in your … Continue reading →

Cleaning Carpets Minus the Chemicals

In a previous blog I shared my experience dealing with the aftermath of vacuuming foam carpet cleaner before it had a chance to dry thoroughly. According to one reader, scrapping wadded up lint and gunk from the underbelly of my vacuum with a wooden chopstick is nothing compared to the negative impact foam carpet cleaner has on the human body. Do tell… The crux of the reader’s email was to inform me that chemical carpet cleaners are toxic and can cause a variety of health problems, plus they pollute the environment. Apparently, most foam carpet cleaners contain perchloroethylene, sodium hydroxide, … Continue reading →

Ask a Pets Blogger: Helping Pets with Flaky Skin

My cat has terrible dandruff… at least I think it’s dandruff! She’s always got flakes on her skin and in her coat. What can I do to clear this up? This is a conversation I get to have often at the cats-only boarding facility where I work. As part of our check-in process, we give each cat a quick brushing with a very fine-toothed comb. Our goal is to check for fleas, but we often end up talking to owners about skin and coat care… and dandruff. Dry skin can be a seasonal problem, especially in the winter months when … Continue reading →

Ask a Pets Blogger: Why Flea and Tick Prevention Fails

I treat my cat regularly with Advantage, but she keeps turning up with fleas! Why won’t they go away? You’re not alone with this problem — flea and tick management can be a constant battle. Here are some things that might help turn the tide in your favor. Make sure you are applying the medication correctly. The liquid needs to go on the skin, not on the fur — hair won’t absorb the medication. Make sure you place the medication in a place your pet can’t reach to lick off. Be sure to apply ALL the medication! Make sure your … Continue reading →

Pets on Steroids

Last week, I took my dog Lally to the vet for help with a major allergy attack. She had been itching her face so badly that the hair around her eyes was gone and the skin was raw. Benadryl alone wasn’t doing enough to relieve the itching, so the vet brought out the big guns: steroids. Steroids are very useful for reducing inflammation, and they’ve really helped Lally with her allergy attack. Almost immediately she stopped scratching at her face and ears! She’s got a ten day course of prednisone, and the vet told me to keep up with the … Continue reading →

Blogging Your Health

We live in an age of information. Sometimes, it seems harder to disconnect from phones, email, and computers than it is to stay connected! So how much (or how little) personal information and experience do you put out there? Social networking sites have made it possible for anyone and everyone to find an audience of friends, family, coworkers, and even relative strangers. Again, the question of how much do you (or don’t you) say about your everyday life is important. This sort of thing is on my mind lately in regards to health. Do you talk about your health or … Continue reading →