# human allergies



## corysibal (Nov 16, 2007)

I am new here and am looking into getting a Havanese. The one problem is that my partner who lives with me has some allergies to some dog more them others.
As much as I just want to get the dog and say tough to him I can't. Has anyone met someone who is allergic or has had some allergens to dogs in the past but not to the havanese? It's not the saliva, it seems to do more with the hair. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you -cory


----------



## DAJsMom (Oct 27, 2006)

My daughter has tested allergic to dogs, and has allergies to a friend's laborador retriever, but is not bothered by our havanese, in spite of rubbing her face in Dusty's fur on a regular basis. Probably the best thing to do is to try and find a havanese you can "borrow" so you can see if it causes allergies or not.


----------



## Cosmosmom (Jan 12, 2007)

My daughter in law has allergies - she is very allergic to Bella their cat but they love her anyway and tolerate her .. She is fine with the dogs she has never complained once .. 
I have some allergies but not to pets


----------



## whitBmom (Nov 27, 2006)

I have allergies to doggy dander. But when Oreo was a little pup I was reacting to his urine, as we were using puppy pads in the house until he was trained to go outside. I am finding I am managing my allergies very well and I am not nearly as bad as I have been with other dogs even when I rub my eyes after petting him. I can actually take a big whiff of Oreo and it doesn't do anything. As long as I keep him well bathed (as I have seasonal and dust allergies) and if he needs major grooming I leave it up to the groomer because I react a bit the next day. I missed having dogs in my life and I am so happy I can share my life with one now. I hope it works out for you and your partner.


----------



## The Fussy Puppy Gang (May 21, 2007)

I am allergic to both dogs and cats. 

Whenever I brush or bathe our big dogs (golden retrievers & others), my skin welts up in painful hives. It's really awful. My DH usually does the bathing to keep my breakouts to a minimum. 

However, I can and do bathe and groom Pepper (our Hav) by myself and have not had a reaction to his fur, dander or saliva. I can bury my face in his fur with no allergic response. If I try it with the other dogs my face will itch and burn until I can wash it off. 

I also found out that dirty dogs make my skin breakout much worse than clean ones. 

For sneezing and itchy eyes I found that over the counter Claritin worked wonders for me. I took it for years so we could keep our pets and, amazingly, I have not needed it for the past few years. 

Your partner needs a hands-on meeting with a few Havs to see how it goes.

Good luck! I hope it works out.

Wanda


----------



## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

I have 3 cats and I have to wash my habds after petting them. If I don't and I touch my eyes, I get a reaction. I was not allergic to my other dogs, and I am not allergic to my Havs. But other dogs will make me sneeze or break out in a rash.


----------



## ChristineL (Aug 31, 2007)

Havs are perfect for people with allergies - they're hypo-allergenic, I think the word is, as they don't have traditional "dog" hair.


----------



## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

My husband has bad allergies, if he is in a home even a clean one with a cat, he will have a runny nose within seconds, within a few hours, he can't breath. He likes cats but just cant be around them. He isn't as severe to dogs but usually runny nose- his parents have a corgi that has to be put in the basement when we visit. The maltese and Havanese don't give him any trouble but then again he never grooms them!

Amanda


----------



## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Cory, your partner may do well with some Havanese and may be sensitive to others. Unfortunately, the only way to tell for sure is for you and your partner to go meet some and find out. When it comes time to pick a puppy, you'll know when you go meet him/her. 

If you would like assistance in meeting some, I'm willing to help you find some closer to you and I'm sure others will too.


----------



## Lina (Apr 26, 2007)

My fiance is allergic to dogs and cats. Even his parents' dauchsunds will give him a runny nose and they are short haired dogs. However, he has never experienced a single allergy to Kubrick since we got him.

I agree with Kimberly, though, and make sure that you have your partner meet a Hav and make sure that he really is not allergic before you go off and get one.


----------



## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

Hi Cory, welcome to the forum. I am off the scale with allergies, pollen, foods, dust, mold, and all animals. But I have two Havanese and I am OK with them. My Brother's family has a Hav and as a puppy I was fine with a two hour visit - but I waited til their Lucy grew up and then I borrowed her for two weeks in my house- I was a little sniffy at first and then I was fine. We borrowed her again for two more weeks to make sure and then I went looking for my first.

With both my Hav's I was worse with them as puppy's. Urine is a very big allergen and of course puppies pee everywhere and it gets on them more. But as they get more reliably trained I have had no problems. I also welt up if most dogs or cats lick me or scratch me- But I do not with my Havanese.

Some tips if you do get a Hav. to help your partner. Probably best to keep them in a puppy cut- not because of the hair but all the stuff like pollen and dust that collects in a full coat. I feel better if I give them a bath once a week- and keep them brushed. I also found that simple solution allergy relief wipes work really well in between washings. 
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Simple-Solutions-10301-Allergy-Relief/dp/B0002APQ34"]Amazon.com: Simple Solutions 10301 Allergy Relief from Pets Wipes (8-9"x9" wipes): Kitchen & Dining[/ame]

In the interest of full disclosure- I am more reliant on my allergy medication than I was before, I really do need to take it daily where as before I was ok if I forgot it for a day or two or even three. Now I feel it if I skip one day.

But I have an hour limit in most peoples houses that have animals. And that is not the case with these guys. I am like a 12 year old with my first pet(s) 
I am totally enthralled with these guys and I would say 95% allergy free--

good luck and keep us posted.


----------



## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

My autoimmune system is totally shot and I have terrible allergies to animals, especially cats..but also some dogs! I am alot like Amanda's husband, I get an immediate reaction that lasts for days and then severe wheezing that I end up using my inhaler and asthma meds for DAYS after being around a cat.

I have friends that I won't even go visit, lol...the payback and not being able to breathe, is just too much for me.

I have no problems with my Havanese.

Although, she does get a bath every 5-7 days, and brushed daily. I like to keep her clean, because I know she picks up other allergens outside (pollen, grass, etc) Luckily, she has really tough skin and the frequent bathing doesnt' bother her. I assume keeping a shorter cut would probably help, too....but I like the long coat 

She sleeps in bed and is usually right next to me most of the day..so I'm sure its not an allergen to me.

I agree with the others who suggested visiting a Havanese and seeing if they trigger any allergies for your husband. I'm really glad I found this breed, there was a point in my life I was certain I would be unable to ever have a pet...I was wrong!

Kara


----------



## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Oh, and to answer your question, yes, I've met several people who are allergic to other dogs, but not my Havanese. One of my puppies was just adopted by a family in that same situation. They came over before the puppies were born and regularly during the first 10 weeks of their lives to make sure there wouldn't be any reactions.

On the other hand, I had a call from someone who wanted to come over to my house to meet my dogs because she was considering buying from a breeder that is a few hours away and wanted to see if she would react, but I told her that any reaction or non-reaction wasn't necessarily indicitive of how her body would respond to the other puppy. In addition, I have a cat and she is highly allergic to cats, so it would have been counter-productive anyway.


----------



## JanB (Oct 26, 2007)

Both of my kids are highly allergic to everything it seems, esp cats; there are homes they simply can't visit. However, they didn't react to our Sheltie and my DD is fine with Tessa. I'm sure DS will be too when he comes home for Thanksgiving.

My caution is if you go visit a Hav don't visit a breeder. My DD sneezed, eyes, teared up, the whole allergic reaction at the breeder's home. From past experience we knew she'd be fine once we got Tessa home, and she was. One Hav, maybe 2 are OK, but with many dogs all in one place it pushed her over the edge. We also bathe our dogs frequently, in fact, immediately after we got her home so the allergans from the breeder's were washed off. So visit a Hav in a private home first.

Good luck. No dog is truly hypoallergenic but a Hav is less allergenic than most, plus there are measures to help.


----------



## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

JanB said:


> Good luck. No dog is truly hypoallergenic but a Hav is less allergenic than most, plus there are measures to help.


 That is so true! There is always someone who will have a reaction to a Havanese.

Funny thing is that the family that adopted one of my last puppies that had a family member with dog allergies first met me at a dog show with a lot of dogs being groomed around us. Talk about a test! Granted, almost every dog was just bathed that morning or the night before, but still. We all figured that if there were no reactions at that point, it would be OK to pursue things later... and we did. Thankfully, there hasn't been a single sensitivity to their puppy since then.


----------



## Cosmosmom (Jan 12, 2007)

When I first found aout about Havanese through my friend Donnna - she bragged they were hypoallergenic !! She really wanted me to get one of these dogs .. I have had sensitivities to cats but no worries I still have had had cats and I have loved them to pieces ..
It is just hard to travel and have cats . I hated boarding them but husband would insist as he did not like ""strangers"" in the house .. Well we now have a wonderful stranger .. 
I agree that the puppy cut works better for the reasons citied .
My sister in law like Kara suffers from asthma as well . She has had problems with her immune system as well and has been on and off cortisone but she was never bothered by Asta and she would often petsit for me . Two dogs is a little much as she has cats and it is too hard for her as they have never been socialized with dogs ..


----------

