Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffPet allergy occurs when your immune system reacts to certain animal proteins. This reaction triggers inflammation in the lining of your nasal passages (allergic rhinitis), causing sneezing, runny nose and other signs and symptoms usually associated with hay fever.
For some people, pet allergy may be the primary cause of inflammation and contraction of airways of the lungs (asthma), resulting in wheezing, shortness of breath and other breathing difficulties.
Any animal with fur can be a source of pet allergy, but pet allergies are most commonly associated with cats, dogs, rodents and horses. Although pet allergy, or animal allergy, is most often a "household problem," it can also affect people who work with animals on farms, in laboratories and in zoos.
If you have a pet allergy, the best strategy is to avoid or reduce exposure to the animal as much as possible. Medications or other treatments may be necessary to relieve symptoms and manage asthma.
Symptoms- Ferguson BJ. Environmental controls of allergies. Otolaryngology Clinics of North America. 2008;41(2):411-417,viii-ix.
- German JA, et al. Environmental control of allergic diseases. American Family Physician. 2002;66(3):421-426.
- Spitzauer S. Allergy to mammalian proteins: At the borderline between foreign and self? International Archives of Allergy and Immunology. 1999;120(4):259-269.
- Airborne Allergens: Something in the Air. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Bethesda, Md.: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; 2003.
- Fletcher R. Patient information: Rhinitis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 24, 2008.
- National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Expert Panel Report 3: Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma - Summary Report 2007. Bethesda, Md.: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/asthma/asthsumm.htm. Accessed Oct. 8, 2008.
- Tips to remember: Allergic skin conditions. American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. http://www.aaaai.org/patients/publicedmat/tips/allergicskinconditions.stm. Accessed July 14, 2008.
- Platts-Mills T, et al. The role of allergens in asthma. American Family Physician. 2007;76(5):675-680.
- Tips to remember: Indoor allergens. American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. http://www.aaaai.org/patients/publicedmat/tips/indoorallergens.stm. Accessed Oct. 7, 2008.
- deShazo R, et al. Patient information: Trigger avoidance in allergic rhinitis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 24, 2008.
- Simpson A, et al. Pets and the development of allergic sensitization. Current Allergy and Asthma Reports. 2005;5(3):212-220.
- Takkouche B, et al. Exposure to furry pets and the risk of asthma and allergic rhinitis: A meta-analysis. Allergy. 2008;63(7):857-864.
- deShazo R, et al. Epidemiology and clinical manifestations of allergic rhinitis (rhinosinusitis). http:/www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 24, 2008.
- deShazo R, et al. Diagnosis of allergic rhinitis (rhinosinusitis). http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 27, 2008.
- Tips to remember: What is allergy testing? American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. http://www.aaaai.org/patients/publicedmat/tips/whatisallergytesting.stm. Accessed Sept. 16, 2008.
- Tips to remember: What are "allergy shots"? American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. http://www.aaaai.org/patients/publicedmat/tips/whatareallergyshots.stm. Accessed Sept. 16, 2008.
