Allergies
Allergic to cats?
Maybe the Siberian is the cat for you...
It is a very common misunderstanding for people with cat allergies to think they can have a Siberian cat, unfortunately this is not totally true.
The majority of people with an allergy can tolerate living with a Siberian, but there are still people that will have a reaction, everyone has a different tolerance level which is why I always advice that prior to purchasing a Siberian, you visit a Siberian breeder and spend time in their environment. I do have allergy visits in my home as all my cats and kittens are raised indoors as part of our family, therefore there will be dander present in our hom
Please remember that when you do an allergy visit and successfully spend time with 4 or more adult cats, and sometimes kittens and have no problem – some people find it is the following day that they start showing symptoms, I always advise to wait at least a day or 2 to see how you feel after your visit.
In the past sending 'fur samples' to potential new owners seemed a good thing to do - but to be honest as soon as the hair is brushed off, the allergen levels start to wear off immediately. By the time the sample arrived at your house after 2-3 days, the allergen levels are almost down to nil, therefore a fur sample test to me personally is not accurate in deciding whether you can tolerate a Siberian – spending time with the cats in their environment would be far more accurate
What is a cat allergy?
One misconception is that allergies are caused by cat hair, which is why a lot of people do not believe a semi-long haired cat such as the Siberian, can actually be 'hypo allergenic' All cats produce a protein in their saliva called Fel-D1, during daily grooming seasons - this protein is deposited on the coat, this dander becomes airborne and inhaled causing the problems many people experience when around most cats. Siberians produce much less of this Fel-D1 allergen protein than any other breed and because of this, they are often a good choice for allergy sufferers but Siberians do have some level of allergen – they are 'hypo-allergenic' and not 'non hypo-allergenic' – there is a difference
If you do decide to buy a kitten you also need to remember that your body will need time to adjust to this change in your environment. You go from living in a house with clean air - to living in a house that suddenly has low levels of cat dander, your body is not used to this and will need time to adjust. In some cases you may experience some allergy symptoms for the first few weeks, but eventually this reduces as your body becomes accustomed to your new addition in your home
There are products available now that can be used together or alone, which reduce dander in the air and on the cats coat.
Petal Cleanse is a non-perfumed clear liquid specially formulated to remove dander on the coat and is applied on a cloth and wiping the cats coat once a week. (please look on helpful links for further information)
Wooden floors, air-purifiers, hepa-solution vacuum cleaners will help reduce dander during the time your body is adapting to the changes in your environment - in some cases simply taking an anti-histamine has helped new owners while their body adjusted
Many of my kittens now live happily alongside allergy sufferers – for some they have 2 Siberians, if there were any initial reactions at the start – this soon reduced and the Siberian addiction started – after all there is only one thing better than a Siberian “TWO Siberians”
Please contact me if you would like to arrange an allergy visit
(there is now a small charge for allergy visits - if successful this will be taken from your deposit)
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