All the Creatures

Today we have a guest blogger

Guest blogger Jamie Harless

According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, 6 out of 10 people in the United States come in contact with cats or dogs. In this country, the total pet population is more than 100 million which works out to four pets for every 10 people.  Allergies to pets with fur or feathers are common.  A high percentage of people with allergies also have allergic reactions to cats and dogs.

Cat allergies are about twice as common as dog allergies. Most of the time the culprit is the cat’s saliva combined with your cat’s dander.  The dander flakes off and the proteins get on your carpet, drapes, or other fabrics in the home.  People with dog allergies may be allergic to all dogs or to only some breeds.  Symptoms can include itchy eyes, a runny nose, asthma symptoms, a rash, or itchy skin.  These might seem trivial to some people, but they negatively affect your quality of life.

If you suffer with pet allergies, you do have some options besides getting rid of your beloved pets.  You definitely want to keep your pet out of your bedroom.  Keep your bedroom door closed.  You also can control pet dander around your bedding with mattress covers and pillow encasements.  This allergy bedding zips shut and keeps pet dander from sticking to your bed.   One great treatment that I have found for my pets is to wash them with an anti-allergen pet shampoo.  This treatment can help your pet’s skin and at the same time limit pet dander.  The pet dander is a major allergen for most people.  Finally, you definitely should consider a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter.  These filters can help remove pet dander from surfaces and from the air inside your home.

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You might have recently heard that OMG and LOL are now in the dictionary. That brings up something else that is just as interesting, pet owner lingo. Yes we have our own little language that can be quite confusing to those who don’t have pets or even a certain type of pet.

For example the word dutchmaster can conjure up cigars or paint for the non-pet owner, but to me it is the brand name of a prefabricated barn or the nickname of a warmblood, dutch bred horse used as a school master.  Another example would be the lingo used by dog owners. A “heel” might mean the part of a foot or a derogatory name for a person, but a dog owner would associate it with the act of taking their dog for a walk. To a non-horse person, the phrase “to stand a stallion” would bring confusion. The stallion is not “standing” but the owner is offering the stallion’s breeding services to mares.

I am sure you can think of many, many others. Why not leave a comment and list a few.

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My min pin just adores our cats. In fact the cats like him too. We have one cat that, if she sees my min pin outside exploring, will follow him around. My daughters cat plays with the dog. They take turns chasing each other around the house.

Despite the fact that the dog plays tag and the cats following him around, they do not sleep together or play rough. I think that the dog knows that the cats have claws and might use them if he got too rough. If they did start to wrestle or snuggle I would quickly grab my camera before the moment was gone. I can see it now, wrestling posters of my dog and cats with funny subtitles.

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