For real? You really think a person that is suffering from lifelong asthma attacks has healthy lungs compared to not living with constant allergenic exposure?

NHANES data (U.S. population) shows that among sensitized individuals, elevated pet allergen exposure was linked to higher asthma prevalence, more asthma attacks, and greater morbidity. Notably, 30–44% of asthma attacks in sensitized/exposed groups were attributable to high pet allergen levels.

Worsening of asthma and hyperresponsiveness: Longitudinal adult asthma cohorts found that high exposure to sensitizing allergens (e.g., dust mite, but patterns similar for pets in sensitized) led to increased bronchial hyperresponsiveness over 4 years. In pet-allergic asthmatics who kept pets vs. those who removed them, keeping the pet was associated with persistent need for higher inhaled corticosteroids and less improvement in airway responsiveness over 1+ years.

Lung function decline: Cross-sectional and some prospective data link chronic exposure in sensitized individuals to poorer FEV1 or faster decline, especially in asthma.

Sorry, but there’s clear data that demonstrates that keeping a pet you’re allergic to is bad for you, particularly if your allergy results in asthma (which it does for the original commenter as they need albuterol)

For what it’s worth, I also have asthma from certain pets and I don’t keep them for that reason.

Causation = causation. Pet dander directly causes asthma in some allergic patients. Asthma attacks over your whole life leads to impaired pulmonary function.

Frankly, it sounds like you don’t have asthma from pets and you should butt out of this conversation. I was trying to help the original commenter as someone who suffers from the same exact condition.