"I'll buy Tim a dog for the New Year", - emphaticallysays my friend Katya. "How so?" He's got the same allergy. Cured? "- I sincerely wonder. Katya is not at all like a mother who will expose her child to even a ghostly danger. "They did not cure yet ... But they found a hypoallergenic dog!" - triumphantly declares Katya. What kind of miracle is a hypoallergenic dog? Such in general happen? Maybe they mean those who do not have wool?
Children's love for animals is truly limitless. Photo: GettyImages
Dog as a miracle
“It’s not dog hair that causes allergies,it is generally accepted, and the protein contained in the skin, saliva and urine of the dog, - explains immunologist Ksenia Chernykh. - Therefore, it is naive to think that a hairless dog will not cause an allergy. However, there is also intolerance to wool. But this is an individual feature of the child. Intolerance can be caused by a certain breed of dog. Or even one specific animal. So what, all this talk about dogs that get along well with allergy sufferers in the same house is just fiction? "There really is no such thing as an absolutely, 100% hypoallergenic dog breed," confirms our concerns veterinarian Ilya Igumnov. - But there are those that cause allergies less often. Such breeds include dogs without flews - they have reduced salivation. In addition, hypoallergenic dogs do not have dandruff, and they practically do not shed. Bonus - dogs of such breeds do not smell like a dog. The downside is that their fur requires very careful grooming, otherwise the dog will become covered in tangles. Here are 10 of the most popular of these breeds. 1. Bichon Frise - small, fluffy and very glamorous. 2. Schnauzer - this breed has three varieties. Small - Zwergschnauzers, medium - Mittelschnauzers, large - Riesenschnauzers. 3. Irish Water Spaniel - the largest of the spaniels, curly and very smart. 4. Maltese, or Maltese lapdog - small as a cat. 5. Yorkshire Terriers - tiny funny dogs that look so good in bows. 6. Pomeranian Spitz - the smallest of the Spitz family. Its main job is to evoke affection. 7. Poodles of all sizes - these dogs are "prescribed" for asthmatics. 8. Shih Tzu - they love children very much, enjoy playing with them. 9. Samoyed - despite its fluffiness, it sheds almost nothing and never suffers from dandruff. 10. Puli - Hungarian shepherd dog, the same dog with dreadlocks that lives with Mark Zuckerberg.
Bullets, Mark Zuckerberg's dog, is considered hypoallergenicPhoto: facebook.com/zuck
Forewarned - armed
“Despite the hypoallergenic reputation of thesedogs, before buying it is still better to get to know them better. That is, direct contact with the animal is needed,” warns Ilya Igumnov. In addition, you need to take some precautions when the dog has already appeared in the house: - limit the child's communication with the pet. And it is better to let the baby's bedroom be a "clean" area where the dog is not allowed; - do not allow the dog to lick the child; - wash the pet once or twice a week, at least; - carry out wet cleaning daily; - the smaller the dog, the fewer allergens; - make sure that the child washes his hands after each contact with the animal. And one more thing - children often outgrow allergies to animals: their immune system strengthens with age. In addition, experts say that animals can treat children for asthma. With moderate contact with an allergen, the body learns to react to it, and then completely transfers the reaction. However, it is better not to conduct such experiments. After all, there are animals to which allergies occur extremely rarely – for example, chinchillas or turtles.
