Hello there!

I decided to register on this forum because I have finally convinced my mom after years of begging to finally get a pet! I have visited two registered bengal cat breeders and I absolutely loved them. Only thing that is "holding me back" right now is my sister's skin condition. She has atopic dermatitis also known as eczema and she has been to an allergist who tested her for potential triggers for her skin condition. The tests revealed she is allergic to tree pollens and dust mites. My question is if cats in general usually carry more dust mites than any other stuff like pillows, rugs, etc. I've read that usually cat allergies are related to their saliva (Fel D1 if I remember correctly) and not with their coats and if so, would the allergist specifiy cats or pets in my sister's allergy report?.

I should also add that my sister came to visit both breeders with me and she held several cats on her lap and pet them and she had no allergic reaction whatsoever which is funny to me because I was the one who got a little bit of a itchy nose and I have no allergies that I'm aware of. I've been trying to contact the allergist for the last 3 days but without success so we have to wait for the 18th of September which is when she has an appointment.

At this point I am really anxious because I've been waiting for so long and I'm coming so close that I kind of just want to get this over with by either knowing if I will after all get a cat or not. So what do you guys think?

Thanks a lot for your time and sorry if I messed up my english too much.

Cheers

Hello and welcome!

If your sister was allergic to cats the report would have said so. She will have been tested for the most common allergies of which cats is one. Cat allergy can be from saliva or dander (skin) and Bengals seem to cause far less allergic reactions than other breeds. It is good that she has been to the breeders with you and showed no reaction.

I think you will need a little more patience until she has seen the allergist again.

Good luck!


Heather

Hopefully, you will find your sister is not allergic to anything cat-like and you can get your Bengal.

Thank you for your replies! By the way, I have to say that if Benji is your cat which I assume it is, it is absolutely stunning! I hope my future bengal comes as awesome as yours!

Allergies to cats and dust mites are two totally different allergies. If your sister had a skin prick test they probably tested for cat already and you will be able to find out if she is ok when she sees the doctor. Good luck! :)

So my sister and I just came back from the allergist and when we told her if it was okay getting a kitten she didn't look super fond of the idea even though she didn't mention my sister having any allergies to cats, she said some people report allergies to cats (I assume people with my sister's skin condition) which I find totally stupid and obvious to say. The fact is, she doesn't have any allergies to cats but still the doctor advised caution and that we should only get a cat from someone who would take it back in case she somehow reacts to it. It makes sense on one hand but I don't understand how an allergist which is actually based on factual science and not some voodoo new age medicine can be so subjective about this. We even told her that she has been multiple times interacting with dogs and cats and she had no reactions whatsoever to which she replied that it doesn't really matter and allergies can manifest some time afterwards. Should I also just stop leaving my house because I might make an allergic reaction to tree pollen? This is totally frustrating and leaves us in an even more difficult spot.

Cheers

Your sister is not allergic to cats, as the allergist would have said if she was.

Does your sister want a kitten as well as you? How old is she?


Heather

Yes she wants it as bad as I do. She is 17 years old. This is really confusing to me. It's like a doctor is saying "Yeah well she is not allergic to cats but she might be." Makes no sense whatsoever lol.

Read this about how to choose your breeder.

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11816

Go and find your kitten. Make sure that the breeder scans for HCM and PKdef and you are happy with how the kittens are socialised.

Come back and ask lots more questions BEFORE you commit to buying any kitten as there is so much help and advice available here.

You and your sister will deal with any problems IF they appear. Maybe the allergist just doesn't like cats!

Good luck,



Heather

Yeah I was a little bit pissed off yesterday but obviously my sister's health and well being is far more important than getting a pet. We probably gonna decide to get a cat from a shelter because most of them are able to accept them back in case my sister reacts badly. I have talked to 2 bengal breeders and they both said they're not able to take them back once we purchase them so yeah the only choice now is to get a kitten from a shelter which it's fine even though we fell in love with bengals. I'm sure we will find a kitten as awesome as a bengal would've been.

Thanks for all your replies. Much appreciated.

I know this might not be what you want to hear - but please please dont get a cat from a shelter if there is a remote chance that you may have return it.

The stress that a cat goes under loosing its home, finding another - having to trust people and then going back to a shelter is unimaginable.

I would strongly suggest that your sister spends as much time with cats and people in their houses who have cats to see if any reaction happens before you consider taking this any further.