Rattie allergy help needed ASAP (Update on my Allergies)

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B

Bren

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2007
Messages
63
Location
Rainy Washington
Hi everyone,

I just picked up my pair of girl ratties Sunday and I seem to be badly allergic to them, these are my symptoms:

* Little red welts on skin (when they crawl on me)
* Red itchy swollen eyes
* Wheezy breathing
* Itchy nose & throat

I have had one rattie in the past he was with me between 2000-2002 about a year after I had him I started getting these same symptoms except for the welts and also my asthma symptoms became sever, but I always thought it was from the cat I had got at the time.

I don't use any kind of bedding, it's done all in fleece, so I can just take it out, replace it and wash the dirty set, so it's not the bedding thats bothering me. I don't even have to actually touch my girls for most of these symptoms to start in (I'm about 4 1/2 feet from their cage and the symptoms are starting again)...I need immediate help please, can anyone here that happens to have these same allergy symptoms from their Ratties please help me...my girls keep looking at me like why aren't you putting your hands in our cage anymore and it's breaking my heart :tearful:

Would someone please help with suggestions on what to do

Giving back my girls is NOT my first choice :tearful:

Thanks for any help you may be able to offer


Update 2/4/08:

Hello everyone,

Well lets see, I now wear a dust mask when cleaning the girls' cage, have took out all fleece floor liners and replace them with news paper topped with plain white printer paper, wear long sleeves when holding my girls, wash my hands after every touching of my girls and take a shower after long play time with the girls.

I have also started taking the new over-the-counter Zyrtec allergy pills and got some prescription strength allergy eye drops as well...

I am happy to say, doing all the above seems to really be helping and I have all of you that help to thank for it and Katt & Sparkles thanks you as well :D

I have also started my own website, dedicated to all 4 of my fuzzykids, I have a page for each of them...finally got new pics of Sparkles (awake...lol)

FuzzyBlessings
http://www.fuzzyblessings.net

please keep in mind that the site isn't the best in looks and isn't finished either :)
 
oh god.... my mom is highly allergic to rats. same symptoms..... It resulted in her becoming deathly allergic to them over time.... I moved out with my rats to my grandmothers....because of it.. I feel bad for you. But allergies develop And get worse over time......:( Chances are you will either have to give them away to a good home, or try some clariton or reacton. Diddnt work for my mom. but it might for you :cry: Im so sorry to hear this....I really am.....I hope all works out... If you have anymore questions about it pm, me i will give you some deteils about the docters opinion about it also.
 
I have all the same allergy issues, but yours sounds pretty bad. I'm sorry.

Keep your skin covered when you are playing with them. I find it is both their claws and tails touching me that will give me welts. I cut the toes out of a pair of long thick socks and slip them over my arms when I am wearing a short-sleeved shirt. You can get a dicky or buy a turtleneck shirt and cut it just above where the arms start to cover your neck and shoulders if they go on your shoulder.
Don't put your hands near your face after you've touched them until you wash your hands with soap.
For your breathing - I keep allergy pills in the house to take when I start having a breathing reaction (you may have to take one every day when you are going to be in the same room if your allergy is bad) I also use my inhaler. Do you have an air purifier you can run?
 
Bren said:
Hi everyone,

I just picked up my pair of girl ratties Sunday and I seem to be badly allergic to them, these are my symptoms:

* Little red welts on skin (when they crawl on me)
* Red itchy swollen eyes
* Wheezy breathing
* Itchy nose & throat

I have had one rattie in the past he was with me between 2000-2002 about a year after I had him I started getting these same symptoms except for the welts and also my asthma symptoms became sever, but I always thought it was from the cat I had got at the time.

I don't use any kind of bedding, it's done all in fleece, so I can just take it out, replace it and wash the dirty set, so it's not the bedding thats bothering me. I don't even have to actually touch my girls for most of these symptoms to start in (I'm about 4 1/2 feet from their cage and the symptoms are starting again)...I need immediate help please, can anyone here that happens to have these same allergy symptoms from their Ratties please help me...my girls keep looking at me like why aren't you putting your hands in our cage anymore and it's breaking my heart :tearful:

Would someone please help with suggestions on what to do

Giving back my girls is NOT my first choice :tearful:

Thanks for any help you may be able to offer
Click to expand...

Bren, I too am asthmatic and suffer from the same allergies.

Here is some of what I do to help:

- If you are asthmatic, speak with your allergy specialist about upping your meds. I take Advair and Nasonex with Albuterol for emergencies.

- wear only certain clothes when playing and wash your hands IMMEDIATELY after playing with your girls! Get out of the clothes when you have put them in for the night! Better yet, take a warm shower (not hot! Extremely hot showers tend to exacerbate already allergic eyes and noses according to my own experiences).

- For itchy noses and throats, get yourself a bottle of Vitamin C CRYSTALS! (not the tablets!) One teaspoon of Vitamin C taken with either juice or water (preferrably juice as Vitamin C Crystals do not taste good!!!) will alleviate the itching.

- Get some good quality eye drops. I have an emergency bottle in my bathroom and it has worked wonders for me.

- I use paper grocery bags and plain paper towels to line the bottom of the boys' cage and I change the paper towels out EVERY DAY. The grocery bag gets switched out weekly unless there is a reason for doing so more often. Fleece and materials will absorb everything from urine to animal dander so unless you are changing them out daily, this will add to your allergic reactions.

If you are getting allergy shots, to treat your asthma, make sure you inform your doctor of your current symptoms. He/she may decide to up your dosage. Do NOT let them talk you into getting rid of your girls unless your situation is really that critical! Trust me, they will try! My doctor went to the end of the planet to try talking me into giving Ben and Basil back... FORGET IT MISTER! THEY'RE STAYING... YOU'RE MY ALLERGIST... WORK WITH IT AND LIKE IT! (ok... so you have to get a little anal sometimes but it worked with him!!!)

You may also want to ask your doctor or pharmacist about good over the counter allergy meds. Trust me, millions of people have allergies to animals and millions of people have animals, just the same. It is simply a question of getting the right treatment. :)

Hang in there Bren. :hugs: If you don't yet have an allergist, please look into getting one. It is possible that you have other allergies which are increased through the girls. If you can tap the others, your symptoms may decrease. That was the case with me.
 
Some of us do not have allergies and have no knowledge in this area.
I hope the suggestions made by knowledgeable people help.

As previously mentioned, a hepa air filter in the rat area will help a bit. I don't have allergies but find my Honeywell hepa filter very helpful.

good luck
 
My eye is itching so bad already and all I've done is go to their cage to say hello.

Yes Fidget, I have a air purifier going and it's been going since befor I brought them home

at least I know the breeder is willing to take them back into his home
 
I have the same symptoms... what does help is taking allergy pills.

Also, you can desensitize yourself. Every day, go to the cage but don't touch them, only for a bit at a time, working on doing more and more each day. I had to do this with my oldest son. He is asthmatic and has quite a lot of allergies. But he was willing to do it. Everyday I had him go to the cage but only for about 10 minutes, I did this for a week, then the next week, he would stay longer. The week after, I would put a rat on him for only ten minutes, then longer. Finally, he no longer goes into full asthma attack when being near the rats, he also no longer has the itchy eyes and scratchy throat. But he will never be able to have rats in an enclosed room with him. Your best bet, have them in the open where there's lots of air circulation. Eventually, you should be able to deal with it, don't forget your allergy pills. Your body just needs to get used to the antibodies.
 
Thank you so much for all your help, jennifervb

yes I'm asthmatic, but unfortunately I now have no medical :cry: so when my old inhaler runs out I guess I'll have to try Albuterol and I need to find a really well working over-the-counter allergy med

I will definitely try changing clothes and showering after being around them and will try out the paper bags/paper towels lining. My cage is 4 levels which includes the cage bottom then 3 floors I made with peg board covered with plexi glass, so should I take the fleece off all floors and if so, what would you suggest to use for them curling up in for warmth/cozyness...are their fleece hammocks ok to use for that?

I will also give the Vitamin C crystals and a good quality eye drop a try as well

thank you again :)
 
I have pretty bad allergies to my ratties too :( Mostly from the boys but even my girls make me break out in welts and the itchies. We go through a lot of hydrocortizone cream in my place. Isn't it strange how many of us are allergic to our furkids? I use a lot of allergy meds too.
 
I can not explain how much hurt i feel for rat lovers who love them as much as me, to be allergic... I feel so bad for you. :( I really hope you find something that works for you bren. I really do. :)
 
I have the same problem too. My wheeze got so bad that I could not sleep the night after cleaning the cage. Meds and inhalers definitely help. You may also want to wear a face mask when you clean the cage, which will reduce the amount of dander/dust you breathe in. My mom sent me some masks lined with a layer of carbon filter from Taiwan. Those worked very well but I eventually ran out... :cry: I've tried the of masks available in stores here but they are either too thin or too stiffy and uncomfortable. I wear two layers of the thin paper masks, which still help a little I guess.

See if you guys have suggestion for good masks in the US?
 
http://ratfanclub.org/allergy.html

Here's some good news and advice from Debbie D. regarding rats and our allergies to them. Some good news from the page:

"When I first starting working with rats in the lab, my skin reacted to the rats all the time. Anytime I held them, my skin developed an itchy rash. As the years went on, my reaction gradually diminished. Currently, I only react if a rat actually scratches me, and then the scratch welts ups and itches."
 
My fiance is allergic to cats, rats and rabbits. We have 7 cats, and 3 rats, and he used to have 2 rabbits. Over time he has just kind of gotten over his allergies... but the rat ladies to make him itch if they touch his skin. :lol:

Hopefully you can adjust to them, and at least make your allergies less severe.
 
I have no real allergies to my girls, but their scratches still welt up and itch. It's the urine on their feet and tails that cause the welting/itching, not the scratch so much. Keeping them on a bedding that will fully absorb their urine and quickly, would be a good idea. I personally think changing out fleece every to every other day would be better and more economical than paper towels. Changing their hammocks and such out every couple of days would be a smart thing, too. I've heard taking OTC allergy meds, using fast acting inhalers, even wearing gloves and masks during cleaning can all work. I personally use hydrocortizone/Benedryl cream for their scratches.

Otherwise, I'm with most everyone else. If you want to keep them, you have to try and desensitize yourself to it. It may take a while, and it won't always be fun, but it's definitely worth it IMO.
 
What a nuisance and a worry for you! This is my worst fear, because I am allergic to just about every other kind of animal.

I ought to wear a mask when I clean cages, just to lower the odds of developing rat allergy. The other good thing would be to wear non-latex gloves when cleaning the cage. Good that you have an air purifier.

If you can find a good over-the-counter allergy medication that would make a huge difference. The trick is to find one that works and has minimal side effects. With cat allergies it is helpful to take the double-action meds like Claritin Sinus (has pseudoephedrine as well as anti-histamine), and maybe that would be the case with rat allergies also.

I keep some Benadryl cream handy to put on rat scratches after washing with soap & water. It makes the redness pretty much disappear.

I knew someone from Norway once, who was allergic to dust mites. The doctor had his mom gather up dust bunnies from all over the house and they made a special desensitizing liquid from it. But I imagine that there are commercially-available injectable products to help desensitize people to rodents. I understand that about 30% of people who work in rat labs develop allergies.

Good luck, keep us posted, hope it works out OK for you.
 

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