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Recently several people have reminded me that Christmas will be upon us before we know it. Thanks for the reminder! Exactly who took my year and will they please bring it back?
If you are expecting guests allergic to your pet, its time to take action!
Holidays are a great time. Family and friends gather together for good conversation, good food, and good company. But if you have pets and your guests have allergies, wheezing, sneezing, and a grab for the rescue inhaler can put a damper on the fun.
It doesn’t have to be like that! If you do a little advance planning and work, you can invite guests allergic to your pets to safely share the holidays with you and your pets.
In this post, I am going to focus on the “day” guest. This is a person that will be coming into your home for a few hours, but not spending the night. I will cover overnight guests in another post to come.
There’s no time like the present
The time to start preparing is now! The first thing you must do is understand what is the cause of pet allergy. Then you will understand how to control it.
Cats, dogs, and other furred animals secrete a protein in their saliva and urine that commonly misidentified by the immune system of a person with allergies.
Every time the animals grooms itself or empties its bladder, bits of this protein stick to the skin and fur. It dries up and flakes off, either on its own accord or is shed with that bit of skin or fur. Once it is off the animal, it becomes airborne and is inhaled by the allergic person.
The immune system of the allergic person has previously misidentified this protein upon a prior encounter with an animal. The immune system thinks the protein is a germ.
It has created a specific IgE for that protein and upon every subsequent exposure it thinks it is fighting the same germ again and again. The mast cells start producing histamine and it just goes downhill for the allergic person from there.
So, step one is complete! You now know why the animal makes the allergic person feel sick. The second step is to identify where the allergen has collected in your home and the final step is cleaning it up.
Game plan
Look around the rooms where your guests will be hanging out. Note upholstered furniture, rugs, carpets, and draperies. These fiber surfaces collect these shed bits of protein and when they are disturbed, they release the allergens back into the air.
Start applying Allerpet solution for cats or dogs about 2 weeks before your guests come to visit. Just wipe the animal down with this mild denaturing agent. It will stop the animal from adding to the allergen level that already exists in your home. Do this at least once a week.
About a week before the big visit day, start spraying all the fiber surfaces with a denaturing agent like ADMS Anti-allergen Spray. While primarily marketed for dust mite allergy, this product works great on allergens from cats, dogs, molds, pollen, cockroaches, and all the other common household allergens.
The day before the guests arrive, dust the room and vacuum all the fiber surfaces thoroughly and then spray them down one more time with ADMS.
Special Note: You don’t want to vacuum just before your guests arrive. Most vacuum cleaners will just send the settled allergens up into the air, where they will be more easily inhaled by your guest.
The morning of the big day, reapply Allerpet to the animal (as an added benefit this is a great-coat conditioner so you pet will look great for the guests!) and lightly spray down any areas where the pet sleeps.
Relax and enjoy
Now, go knock their socks off with your awesome culinary talents! Whether you order in or go all out cooking, your guests will be comfortable, your pet will be shiny and you will be thankful you read this post today!
Till next time
Cheryl
P.S. Allergy elimination is about eliminating the allergy-causing substance in your home the best you can. To learn more please click here to download your free copy of" You Can Do It! Allergy Free Living.