I have a question for you! I have recently brought an adult male cat into my home who has been stray. I have three other cats. Years ago, I had allergy problems but no more.  Perhaps I've developed immunity to my specific cats.? I do have them all on Wellness canned food, which may have helped.

My question is: is it possible that after I improve the diet and health of this cat my allergies may improve? I know you are not a medical doctor and my question is probably moreso: if his health improves through diet, will he secrete less dander or allergens? I want to give him every chance for a home, but don't want to be unrealistic. Any advice on minimizing allergens would help. 

Thank you for reading my question!
Debbie

Hi Debbie,

So glad you wrote because I think I can put your mind to rest about whether the new cat will stir up your allergic reaction.

I think you are right on the money about why you no longer have reactions to your cats - the cats themselves have cured you! By being around felines you have challenged your body in much the same way an allergy doctor would with injections, subjecting your body to the very elements that it is allergic to so that it no longer creates that histamine reaction. And no, it is not just to those three cats, it would be to any cats.

You are also correct that feeding cats wet food - (remember - no dry at all) will reduce the dryness of their skin, and often the amount of dander they produce. But it is often the dried saliva in the air that causes people to be allergic - cats lick themselves constantly and the saliva dries and becomes airborne, There are ways to reduce that, too. There are actually a lot of things you can do to reduce the allergens that cats produce and many ways to keep your house clean of them. My book THE CAT BIBLE has an extensive section on this because I am so worried about people giving up cats unnecessarily because someone in the house hold has allergies. Because you are now going to be adding even more potentially allergenic substance to your house with the new cat, I'd advise following as many of those suggestions in THE CAT BIBLE as you can. (If you want a personalized bookplate to put in the front of the book dedicated to your kitties, just send me their names and your mailing address and I'll send it with some surprises.)

Take care - and thanks for adopting those kitties!
Tracie