Allergies and Vet Med

[Kiahak]

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Hey everyone!

So, I recently got accepted to Veterinary school, which is great! But I've also given in to the fact that I have an allergy to cats.

I wasn't allergic in the past, but while I was in my undergrad I noticed that my eyes became unusually itchy after playing with my cat when I would visit home. At first, it was just her and not other cats. Now, I've noticed more and more cats illicit the same reaction.

It's a small eye allergy, and it doesn't make my eyes puff up, but they itch like crazy and if I keep going at it my eyes will look slightly bloodshot by the time i'm done with it. Generally, washing my hands will stop it, but I have concerns of it getting worse with time.

So I was wondering how other people dealt with allergies to animals. It's a bit unfortunate but I'm still going to go through and become a Veterinarian. I just didn't know if this was an unusual circumstance or not. I've never taken allergy medication, and I guess i'm going to?

 

[CalliopeDVM]

It's not that unusual for vet students, or vets, to be allergic in some way to the animals they treat. I've met many small animal vets who have an allergic reaction to dogs or cats (or both), but - like you - in a small way that doesn't terribly interfere with their work or in a way that can be managed with occasional medication. I am allergic to cats and can't live with them (the one time I tried, I developed allergic apnea), but I have no trouble working with them. I occasionally (once a month or so) come upon a dog that makes me sneeze and makes my eyes water - but I take an anti-histamine and it's managed. And I wash my hands a lot (always a good habit, but having allergies helps me remember).

Yes, it might get worse over time, but in most cases it doesn't. No guarantee, though.

 

[Jamr0ckin]

I'm allergic to dogs, cats, cows, horses, and rabbits. Still own animals, and currently heading into clinics. Just keep allergy medicine and eye drops on hand, you'll be ok.

 

[jmo1012]

i've been allergic to clients before...no seriously, sneezing and itching in the room then fine in the back snuggling their animal... 😉

 

[peanutbutterjelly]

I'm allergic to dogs, cats, cows, horses, and rabbits. Still own animals, and currently heading into clinics. Just keep allergy medicine and eye drops on hand, you'll be ok.

I'm allergic to a lot of animals too. However I discovered about a year and half ago that you can get allergy shots, which IMO will save you life/career. Lol. I'm super allergic to cats. So my shots are for regular (hay, mold, pollen, etc) and then animal (specifically cats/dogs). They tell me that the other animals do not have shots available. However by minimizing your reaction to one/some it helps lower the totally body irritation you have to others.
I used to not be able to be in a room with cats without having the sinus issues start to pop up but now I can get scratched etc without having any issues (or in the case of the scratch, have my entire hand swell up).
It's a regular, weekly or monthly shot, but it's something that is necessary to pursue this career for me and it's worth it.

 

[Jamr0ckin]

I'm allergic to a lot of animals too. However I discovered about a year and half ago that you can get allergy shots, which IMO will save you life/career. Lol. I'm super allergic to cats. So my shots are for regular (hay, mold, pollen, etc) and then animal (specifically cats/dogs). They tell me that the other animals do not have shots available. However by minimizing your reaction to one/some it helps lower the totally body irritation you have to others.
I used to not be able to be in a room with cats without having the sinus issues start to pop up but now I can get scratched etc without having any issues (or in the case of the scratch, have my entire hand swell up).
It's a regular, weekly or monthly shot, but it's something that is necessary to pursue this career for me and it's worth it.

Yeah, i got allergy injections for a few years, but ended up having an anaphylactic reaction to them and would react to even low doses so I had to go off of them.

 

[hedgehogcatcher]

Try to remember to take allergy meds everytime you know you'll be exposed to cats before the exposure. i think that helps slow down the worsening of the allergy.

I know a number of students and vets that manage just fine this way with mild to moderate allergies.

 

[battie]

I have been allergic to animals (worst are dogs, cats and horses) since I was a child and have worked in pet stores and vet clinics. My allergies can be severe to where my face swells and I tear up uncontrollably. To counter act this, I take the maximum dosage of allergy meds when starting at a new animal related job and then slowly lower the dosage until I don't need to take the meds at all. My body acclimates. Granted, I do this over the course of several weeks to several months. I was thinking about doing the allergy shots if I get into vet school and even had the allergy test done. The poor nurses thought my hives were atrocious, but I couldn't even feel them.

 

[Capucinus]

Hey everyone!

So, I recently got accepted to Veterinary school, which is great! But I've also given in to the fact that I have an allergy to cats.

I wasn't allergic in the past, but while I was in my undergrad I noticed that my eyes became unusually itchy after playing with my cat when I would visit home. At first, it was just her and not other cats. Now, I've noticed more and more cats illicit the same reaction.

It's a small eye allergy, and it doesn't make my eyes puff up, but they itch like crazy and if I keep going at it my eyes will look slightly bloodshot by the time i'm done with it. Generally, washing my hands will stop it, but I have concerns of it getting worse with time.

So I was wondering how other people dealt with allergies to animals. It's a bit unfortunate but I'm still going to go through and become a Veterinarian. I just didn't know if this was an unusual circumstance or not. I've never taken allergy medication, and I guess i'm going to?

It's really not that bad taking allergy pills. I take them daily during the summer and sporadically during the winter. I am allergic to just about everything, all animals with fur - especially rabbits which give me pretty bad asthma. Usually I decline to hold the rabbit (in favour of the tech) or if I must I wear mask + gloves and immediately wash my hands and face afterwards. I wear long sleeves to prevent hives from touching certain breeds of dogs and I wash my hands a lot. I also never ever touch my eyes after touching an animal with fur. This helps considerably as you can imagine.

I have started to take the allergy shots (2x/week for ~4months and then 1x/month for up to 5 years) for hay-cat-dog allergies. It costs me 200$/year, mind you I live in Canada so going to the doctors twice a week as a walk in is free. So far so good (3 months in).

I would seriously recommend that your first step is consulting with an allergy specialist. You should narrow down your allergies and you can get specific tips from the specialist for your case.

 

[peanutbutterjelly]

It's really not that bad taking allergy pills. I take them daily during the summer and sporadically during the winter. I am allergic to just about everything, all animals with fur - especially rabbits which give me pretty bad asthma. Usually I decline to hold the rabbit (in favour of the tech) or if I must I wear mask + gloves and immediately wash my hands and face afterwards. I wear long sleeves to prevent hives from touching certain breeds of dogs and I wash my hands a lot. I also never ever touch my eyes after touching an animal with fur. This helps considerably as you can imagine.

I have started to take the allergy shots (2x/week for ~4months and then 1x/month for up to 5 years) for hay-cat-dog allergies. It costs me 200$/year, mind you I live in Canada so going to the doctors twice a week as a walk in is free. So far so good (3 months in).

I would seriously recommend that your first step is consulting with an allergy specialist. You should narrow down your allergies and you can get specific tips from the specialist for your case.

Good recommendations. In addition to the shots I forgot to mention I also do allergy meds every day and take a Singular the night before I'll be working with animals.

I went to see my allergist today, and he mentioned that very recently there was a study (but with only 8 ppl) who were given a trial horse allergy shot and they noticed a difference. So just a heads up for anyone that might need that.

 

[natjoygreg]

I also got recently tested because I noticed a ton of congestion every time I would visit home during my undergrad. When I actually moved back home with my parents after graduating this May (we have 3 dogs) I was pretty much continually congested for about 6 straight weeks! Turns out I am allergic to cats, dogs, horses, guinea pigs and hamsters. I'm currently getting allergy shots on a weekly basis. The injections I receive contain the cat, dog and horse allergens. I am not often around horses currently (I start vet school this August at Purdue) so I have no way to gage the effectiveness on the one. So far I haven't noticed a difference with my cat or dog allergies either but I've only been getting the shots for about 4 months so i'm just hopeful that they will help!!