Dog Allergy Testing?
When it comes time for you to welcome a new family member into the home, particularly if you have kids you are quite likely to consider buying a dog.
However, before you do so – and I’m in no way trying to put anybody off buying a dog! – you might want to check if anybody in the family has any allergies.
Many people are allergic to pets, but not everyone is allergic to dogs. And just because you might be allergic to cats or cat hair doesn’t mean that you’re automatically allergic to dog hair too because dog hair is completely different.
To check if you are, you could go and visit a friend and sit with their dog for a while, but that’s not always possible or practical, and it’s also not always the straightforward answer either because different dog breeds have different types of hair and skin. For instance, a work colleague of mine is allergic to cat hair but only certain types of dog hair, so the best way for you to tell might be to use an allergy testing kit or see somebody for allergy testing. It isn’t usually the dog hair you’re allergic to anyway but the skin cells that are shed when the hair is shed.
If it turns out you are allergic, it’s not the end of the world. There are certain types of dogs that do not shed hair at all so if it’s the skin cells that you’re allergic to when they shed, you might be alright with these.
Dec 18, 2008 | 0 | Buying A Dog
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