Is it possible to be more allergic to long-haired cats than short-haired?

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   Victoria Lynnposted 12 years ago

   Is it possible to be more allergic to long-haired cats than short-haired?
   
   I've been keeping my friend's cat, who has really, really long hair. I know that outdoor allergens are bad right now, but I have been experiencing worse than usual allergies, including violent sneezing! I've read that it's not the pet dander that people are allergic to, but something in the saliva? Is that true? If that's the case, long-haired cats have a lot more hair to spread that saliva on.
   What say the animal experts out there? Dr. Mark? alexdry?

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   Grammagillposted 12 years ago

   Length of fur isn't really the issue, because cat allergies are caused by the body's reaction to proteins in the cat's saliva, skin and urine. Hope this helps.

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   Theophanesposted 12 years ago

   Allergies are most commonly caused by proteins in the cats saliva. A cat that grooms more often or has more hair to spread its saliva on might provoke more of a reaction. That being said the only breed of cat known not to produce this protein are Siberians and they have long hair!

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      Victoria Lynnposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      She grooms her long hair all the time. I can prove that with the huge hairballs she coughs up!

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   fpherj48posted 12 years ago

   Not an animal expert, Vee.....but I have cats and my son has cat-allergies.  He only visits once in awhile since he lives in California...BUT.....he's done a lot of research because of his allergies.  He did find that his allergy symptoms can become worse with "different" types of cats....I'm going to blow your long haired theory out of the litter box though...because I have had numerous cats through the years...and he could not be near any of them except...THE ONE AND ONLY LONG HAIRED CAT I HAD....and my son could actually PET him and hold him without one single problem.........Go figure.   That's all I can tell you from my cat house....Ooops!!! LOL

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      Victoria Lynnposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Wow, that is interesting, Effer. I wonder what about the cats makes people allergic. Blow out of the litter box--you're funny!!!!

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   Astralroseposted 12 years ago

   Like Grammagill says length isn't the issue. I think being allergic to cats is due to non-exposure to them. Your body is not immune to their presence so your body reacts to this new thing that is present in the environment.
   
   I had my first cat only in April. Though I was exposed to them before never had I touched or groomed them myself, only recently. So I had a very mild fever and some sneezing. Later on, they're gone and I'm fine.
   
   Just keep on washing hands after touching your cat.

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