I'm allergic to my pigs :(

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hoyles10

I have 2 piggies at the moment called Bertie and Pinky and they are the best little piggies ever but the only thing is i'm allergic to them. If they are near me for any length of time my eyes go all red and my nose starts running like mad. Luckily my wife is fine with them so she does all the handeling of them.

Has anyone else been through this and does anyone know if it will go away the more time I spend with them?
 
hi,

I used to be allergic to my pigs, its not nice is it! :(

I found that the more i spent time with them the more it didn't affect me but I am sure it is different for different people.

Hope it helps! :)
 
Yes thank god it does!

I had this problem badly a few weeks ago and was convinced it was the hay. In the end tried everything hoping it wasn't the actual pigs. But it definately is as only happens when I handle them or clean them out not when I put in fresh hay etc!

When ever I have them on my knee for lap time I sneeze for about 30 mins / 1 hour later. Also when I clean them out I sweep and all their hair etc must fly up and my nose streams all the way through and can't stop sneezing.

I didn't clean them out for about 4 days the other week and when I came home from work a kind of cloud of "them" hit me and my eyes were and nose was running etc.. I had to go upstairs for a while.

I'm much better now so it is wearing off. I think I am allergic to tiger in particular as had george a lot longer and wasn't as bad when I first got him.

I'm sure in time it will wear off just be careful not to rub your eyes if itchy after handling them as I made that mistake a couple of times and then they got more irritated and wouldn't stop pouring & itching for ages
 
My OH is allergic to my piggies :( He can't handle them for long periods of time and comes out in blotches as well as sneezing and watery eyes. This is one of the reasons why they live in our outhouse.
 
Are you allergic to the hair or the dander (urine) I am allergic to the dander but it has eased off this year so I am thinking I have become immune to it now if that makes sense.

There are antihystimenes you can take I used to take telfast which was a godsend but only available by the doctors prescription in the UK in America you can get it over the counter!

Hope your symptoms ease soon, it isn't nice at all. :)
 
Crikey Lou, never heard of 'dander' before! I've heard it called plenty of other things, but never 'dander'. lol x
 
SunshineAndTwinkle said:
Are you allergic to the hair or the dander (urine) I am allergic to the dander but it has eased off this year so I am thinking I have become immune to it now if that makes sense.

There are antihystimenes you can take I used to take telfast which was a godsend but only available by the doctors prescription in the UK in America you can get it over the counter!

Hope your symptoms ease soon, it isn't nice at all. :)
Click to expand...

I am supposed to take telfast as have an allergy to the cold (yes acutally to cold temperatures) I come out in hives but I am naughty and haven't got a repeat precription for a while (i have been told I need to take them constantly incase I fall into any icy water as could die, but never go near any and always rap up warm).

Will def get a repeat precription if it will help with guinea allergies too! I have just cleaned out their cage and have a slight rash on my arm from touching the wee on vet bed need to be more careful and wear gloves I think **Sneezes**
 
I don't think dander is urine, but stuff that comes off animals similar to dandruff, like minute scales of dry skin and hair. At least, that is what we tell people at the cat rescue I'm involved with, when they ask about being allergic to cats. Maybe it's different with piggies?
 
My OH is allergic too. I was convinced for a while that he was just using it as an excuse not to clean them (!), but it turns out he's actually pretty badly allergic to the hay.

I know that was not very helpful, but it could be something piggy related that you are allergic to, and not the actual piggies!
 
Oh well you learn something new everyday haha! :) It was on some guinea websites calling it Dander probably me just getting confused. It said that when it releases in the air it is called Dander.

I never get allergies from the actual pigs so can't be dander then. Probably a mix of hay and guinea smells from urine etc. I know I can't house my pigs on hay alone it just kills me nose! Fleece all the way here and regular cleaning which is ideal for the pigs, its a win win situation. :)
 
Allergies to the urine and hay are more common than allergies to the dander. I am allergic to Timothy hay but am okay with other hays and everything else.
 
Happily, I am not allergic to my piggies or bun x) but I know how you feel as I am horribly allergic to cats. When I visit my mum, she has to shut the cat in the bedroom :))
 
I have a fabulous eye mask in turquoise which makes me Leonardo out of Ninja Turtles - have to keep it in fridge and if a longhaired comes in and I cannot ship it to Graham or a fosterer quickly - then I have to wear it when in the guinea pig room.

Hee hee.

H.
x
 
I also have the same problem with running nose and itchy eyes. I have 3 boars and I am particularly allergic to Custard....I don't seem to react as fast/severely with the other two. Sometimes my hands go itchy after touching them and a lot of the time I change my top after handling which helps to settle the symptoms. I cannot possibly go without handling the little fella's.....I just bear with it. Saying that I do get bad Hayfever in the Spring so I though maybe the Hay was the problem, as I get itchy hands when I am putting the Hay in the hutches. Best of luck finding a solution.
 
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