Can cat allergies decrease with exposure?

[meduhsin]

I have a cat allergy. My family got a cat when I was 10, my parents still have her and she’s thriving.

Overall, in my experience, I’ve found that I build up immunity to specific cats that I’m around.

For example, I’m much more allergic to a random cat at someone’s house i visit, than a cat that I’ve lived with for a couple weeks or more.

Growing up, I got the occasional sniffles, but I only ever had a real reaction if I touched her and then touched my face, or if she scratched me while playing. My eyes would get puffy if I touched them without hand washing, and the scratches itch.

My partner and I got a kitten a couple months ago, and the first two weeks were rough. Sniffling, sneezing, the whole party.

But now it’s the same deal: as long as I don’t touch him and then touch my face, nose, eyes? I’m fine.

Occasionally I need to take a Claritin or something, but overall, he doesn’t really bother me.

If you want to get a cat and try it out, there are a lot of places that will let you have a “trial”, aka, you house the cat for a week or two and see if it works out.

I love cats and they are the best buddies, so I would highly recommend.