I had a dog when I was a kid and I’m looking to get one again as an adult. But I think I have developed an allergy to dogs since I had one (about 12 years ago). Anyone allergic to their pets but can still tolerate them with the help of allergy medicine? If so, what do you use?
Zyrtec works well. You can get a prescription for it from a doctor.
I used to take Claritin, which is now available over the counter, and it worked well for me.
Benadryl Allergy pills are great, and you can get them over the counter also. These are more for short term, I think, because you can take one every four hours, whereas Zyrtec and Claritin are only taken once or twice every 24 hours.
Also, I used to get allergy shots. The doctor will do a test to see what you’re allergic to (dogs, other animals, plants, foods, etc.) and then inject a tiny amount of those substances into your body. Each time you get a tiny bit more of the substances you’re allergic to, until you’re immune. I got allergy shots two or three times per week for about a year, and they really helped my allergies. I rarely have to take any allergy medicine (like Zyrtec) now. You might want to look into allergy shots, since you’d be around your dog all the time. After taking the shots for a while, you might be a lot more comfortable around the dog. (Maybe you could start getting the shots even before you get the dog.)
my husband is allergic to both dogs and cats, right now we only have a dog and the best thing that works on him is zyrtec. it is by perscription but it is the best he has used. it doesnt make him drowsy at all and works with in 30 mins or so from when he begins to sneeze. he tried allegra and it made him very drowsy and didnt work. he has also tried tylenol allergy sinus and it was ok too but not as good