Not coping: Allergies and guinea pigs.
So I have six piggies - a group of 4 girls and a pair of boys. They live in a 6 x 2 stacked C&C - girls on the bottom, boys on top - and I use fleece liners for their bedding. They are in the room across from my bedroom. I absolutely adore them, love watching and spending time with them, but the thing is is that I seem to be becoming increasingly allergic to (them and) their hay. I currently get my hay - meadow hay - from Hay Box, which is dust free… but I seem to be even more allergic to it! And it’s just getting worse as time goes on. Obviously, I can’t just stop giving them hay.
I’m getting to the point where I’m constantly sneezing, especially in the mornings, get a heavy chest, itchy skin/nose/eyes, find it hard to breathe sometimes, and it’s triggering my anxiety and adding to my panic attacks. I sneeze that much at the moment that I seem to be continually pulling muscles in my chest, and it’s impacting on my sleep. I’m limited in what antihistamines I can take (current ones don’t seem strong enough, sadly) and the option of being on antihistamines long term is simply not there. I have an immune system that tends to overreact to things (previously have had to have long term immune suppressants, radiotherapy, etc, in an attempt to shut it down when it decided to attack one of my eyes), and I’m worried that this is what it’s starting to do again. I’ve had guinea pigs previously (we’re talking over ten years ago) and never showed any sign of allergies, then. But, as I’ve got older, new allergies have developed. Doctors have said the best long term solution is no guinea pigs.
Obviously, the thought of this is utterly devastating to me, and just writing this has me in tears. I’m wondering if there’s any solution people who also have/had allergies can think of. I keep the door to their room closed and open the window whenever I can (making sure it’s not too drafty for them), but still find that the hay gets to me. I’ve tried different types of hay - I love how fresh Hay Box is, but find myself really struggling with it- but I obviously don’t want to compromise on the quality. I make sure not to touch the hay with my bare hands (it makes my skin itch). I’m also slightly stuck on where to store it. I keep it in boxes in their room currently, was thinking perhaps of storing it in the garage, but the only thing there is the garage can get quite damp and it’s also where my car lives. I’m worried that the hay would absorb the fumes from the car. I also don’t have the space to move them from the current room. Sadly, there isn’t any room in the garden to store the hay in a storage box, or to move the piggies out there.
I’m at a loss as to what to do, and currently feel like both a failure and like I’m massively failing them. I’m getting increased pressure from my mum to rehome them because of the impact it’s having on me, but, of course, I’m horribly attached to them, care for them a lot, and that’s the last thing I want to do. I haven’t even had them a year yet, and have always felt like when you decide to take on a pet, you commit to them for their life. They mean the world to me, and I really don’t know what to do.
So I have six piggies - a group of 4 girls and a pair of boys. They live in a 6 x 2 stacked C&C - girls on the bottom, boys on top - and I use fleece liners for their bedding. They are in the room across from my bedroom. I absolutely adore them, love watching and spending time with them, but the thing is is that I seem to be becoming increasingly allergic to (them and) their hay. I currently get my hay - meadow hay - from Hay Box, which is dust free… but I seem to be even more allergic to it! And it’s just getting worse as time goes on. Obviously, I can’t just stop giving them hay.
I’m getting to the point where I’m constantly sneezing, especially in the mornings, get a heavy chest, itchy skin/nose/eyes, find it hard to breathe sometimes, and it’s triggering my anxiety and adding to my panic attacks. I sneeze that much at the moment that I seem to be continually pulling muscles in my chest, and it’s impacting on my sleep. I’m limited in what antihistamines I can take (current ones don’t seem strong enough, sadly) and the option of being on antihistamines long term is simply not there. I have an immune system that tends to overreact to things (previously have had to have long term immune suppressants, radiotherapy, etc, in an attempt to shut it down when it decided to attack one of my eyes), and I’m worried that this is what it’s starting to do again. I’ve had guinea pigs previously (we’re talking over ten years ago) and never showed any sign of allergies, then. But, as I’ve got older, new allergies have developed. Doctors have said the best long term solution is no guinea pigs.
Obviously, the thought of this is utterly devastating to me, and just writing this has me in tears. I’m wondering if there’s any solution people who also have/had allergies can think of. I keep the door to their room closed and open the window whenever I can (making sure it’s not too drafty for them), but still find that the hay gets to me. I’ve tried different types of hay - I love how fresh Hay Box is, but find myself really struggling with it- but I obviously don’t want to compromise on the quality. I make sure not to touch the hay with my bare hands (it makes my skin itch). I’m also slightly stuck on where to store it. I keep it in boxes in their room currently, was thinking perhaps of storing it in the garage, but the only thing there is the garage can get quite damp and it’s also where my car lives. I’m worried that the hay would absorb the fumes from the car. I also don’t have the space to move them from the current room. Sadly, there isn’t any room in the garden to store the hay in a storage box, or to move the piggies out there.
I’m at a loss as to what to do, and currently feel like both a failure and like I’m massively failing them. I’m getting increased pressure from my mum to rehome them because of the impact it’s having on me, but, of course, I’m horribly attached to them, care for them a lot, and that’s the last thing I want to do. I haven’t even had them a year yet, and have always felt like when you decide to take on a pet, you commit to them for their life. They mean the world to me, and I really don’t know what to do.
If you need transportation arrangements, I can help. 
