Sad day may have to rehome my babies

[skygirl]

So my boyfriend is highly allergic to the dust and the hay...ive been trying everything i could to ease his allergies but they have gotten so bad he cant even breath at times. I let me chinnies bathe outside (i use a secondary cage) so the dust doesnt get everywhere but it doesnt seem to be helping much anyone got any ideas?

:tantrum:

 

[greychins]

Some people let their chins bathe in the bath dust in their bathtub, that way any excess dust can be rinsed away.

As for the hay, have you tried different cuts of hay? I'm allergic to alfalfa and timothy, but the softer hays aren't as bad for me, and there's always hay cubes to try.

Any luck with an air purifier? I have asthma and while nothing will keep me breathing perfectly fine around the chins, the air purifier does wonders helping with that.

 

[Vcchinchilla]

air filter I was just thinking bout posting about
I got pretty cheap one with permanent filter that you can wash/clean
every 3 months are so(instead of buying new filter)
I didn't have a problem to start but boyfriend is fed up with sneezing

plugged it in for two hours+ and always on when they bath
the air is remarkable it's like really fresh and The air is so light and easy to breath
completely amazed!

if you'd like Yan also get the deluxe filter with UV light to kill germs

 

[RDZCRanch]

You don't have to use dust to dust your chinchilla. Many people with allergies have used cornstarch as an alternate and while it doesn't work AS well as dust, it doesn't matter for pet chinchillas. Try switching to hay cubes and bathing them in cornstarch. It doesn't matter where they are bathed, the dust gets deep into the coat and the lose some dust every time they jump which compounds the problem of allergies...the dust doesn't go away with the dust bath.

 

[AZChins]

What brand of dust are you using? I'm curious because there's a particular type that seems to cause more problems than the others. I hope you can keep them.

 

[skygirl]

I use blue cloud and ive used the blue sparkel in the past which the sparkle was worse on his allergies. Ive been looking at air purifiers, I was using hay cubes at one point but kept reading that loose hay is much better for them. I will try corn starch and see if that helps. Do you use the cornstarch the same amount of times a week as the dust? will it make my chinnies white? Oh one other thing do they have a shedding period because there is alot of fur on thier fleece not like fur clumps as if they were fighting just were they lay alot and I do see alot of it floating around in the air.

 

[AZChins]

Use the cornstarch two or three times a week for sure. It does make the chins white, but it absorbs oil very well.

Some chins will shed more at certain times of the year and it gets on everything!

 

[ChinnyMom]

another option that may make things easier for your boyfriend is to have the chins in their own room, and install a snugly fitting door on that room. this should help to cut down on the allergens floating around the house. I have my boys in their own bedroom, and i find that there isn't a whole lot of dust/chin mess that makes its way out to the rest of my apartment. while neither me or my kiddo have allergies to things like dust/hay etc, my dad does, and he comes to visit almost daily, and never has an issue with his allergies in my home.

 

[Anna]

I hope everything works out and I'm sorry you are faced with this decision. I too hope you can keep them!

 

[Lillybabe]

I myself am allergic to hay, dust and mold. I am actually allergic to dust mites that live in the dust which I think is part of the reason some hays and beddings bother me so much. I found switching to aspen litter pans and fleece has cut down on a lot of my allergies. Other than the dust getting into my nose and making me feel itchy when they dust, if I am too close, I don't usually have an issue with their dust. However, I recently discovered that one of the Oxbow hays is bothering me more than the others. It's the orchard grass hay. It's so bad I've contemplated throwing out the rest of the bags. Instead I'm feeding just it until it's gone as the girls gobble so much hay I hate to waste any. Since I bought it I've had itchy burning eyes, itchy nose and respiratory problems. Part of the thing I do to help this is I clean up the hay thrown around the cage more frequently. I am also wary of hay cubes as the girls do munch at them a bit but not like they do with the loose stuff. I also worry about the wearing down of their back molars. I really hope you find a solution and do not have to get rid of your chins. How do you store your hay? The amount of hay in the cage at a time might not be as bad on his allergies as the whole bag. For me as gross as it sounds I've actually had the most issues I think due to mold. My malo guy use to pee a ton in the same spots and I believe mold spores can grow very quickly, and not be obvious to the naked eye. Mold is everywhere. When I had him and he was on just the apsen I had to spot clean daily or it would drive my allergies up the wall. Apparantly whatever I'm doing is helping because I had a bag cough and chest congestion for a months and now it's finally cleared up. I am not sure if your boyfriend is willing to try this or if he has the insurance to cover it, but has he seen an allergist? Discussed allergy shots? I got these for about 3 years for animal allergies, dust and mold and after that time I could walk into the Humane Society and still breathe. I've regressed a little bit after being off them but they aren't very painful and really do provide a lot of relief.

 

[PetoftheDay]

Also have your boyfriend check with his doctor about asthma (you say he can barely breathe) or allergy drugs to help get his symptoms under better control. A dust allergy is one that's often difficult as dust and dust mites are everywhere. Make sure other sources of dust and dust mites are eliminated as much as possible. A mattress cover, washing sheets and blankets regularly, keeping pillows in two pillowcases and washing those often, and eliminating as much carpet and drapery as possible will help. He needs to knock down his histamine level in his system, that, combined with the changes others have recommended should help a whole lot! This is also a miserable time of year for seasonal allergy suffered, so that doesn't help!

 

[Lady Nox]

My husband and daughter have allergies to mold, dust, hay, cats dander etc.. ( break out the list they are allergic) I keep Lola in her own room. I use fleece liners with only a little bit of aspen in a dish for litter. I change it every day or every other day. I air out the room when they are not home ( because the hay tube still has the hay odor) I keep her door shut when they are home. Vacuum , sweep, dust every day. Allergies can be controlled with a OCD cleaning. I find Lola doesn't mind my cleaning at all she is more then happy to chase the vacuum hose or hand broom. It is a game for her that works out well. I keep a stack of fleece liners ready and just keep swapping them. My allergy driven husband still goes into play time with her and walks in her room and talks to her for a few minutes as well and it hasn't bothered him at all. This is saying a lot for a man and daughter that have difficulty breathing when the neighbors mow the lawn.

 

[Spoof]

I don't have respiratory allergies and have severe reactions to blue cloud. I use Sweet PDZ as an alternative.

You can use corn starch, baking soda, fuller's earth (clay) and super fine sand.
You do not need to feed hay. Chinchilla pellets are 70% hay. Use cubes.
Also, if you are using pine bedding, try something else.

Even getting rid of your chinchilla right now won't help him, it is in the environment. You'll want to splurge on the $20 True allergen air intake filters for your furnace and pick up a HEPA filtration unit to get it out of the air. This is especially important if you have carpet.

Good Luck!

 

[skygirl]

ok We have both decided not to rehome my chinnies. We have invested in a air purifier (oreck) and im trying corn starch for a while see if that helps any. My boyfriend is on like 7 different allergy meds from the doctor nose sprays, eye drops, inhaler, 2 different pills you name it he has it lol. Can you guys tell me a natural product i can use to clean the cage other then vinegar he cant stand the smell of vinegar (ugh). We unfortunatly cant shut a door since we only have 1 bedroom apt and i dont think them being in our bedroom would be such a good idea (unless he sleeps on the couch every night lol) We will see how this works out, the odd thing is ive had my first chin a little over 7 years and he has been around the chin for over 2 years it wasnt until about 6 months ago when his allergies started acting up this bad, he cant touch them and he cant get close to thier cage without sneezing. Wish me luck.:hair:

 

[ChinnyMom]

was there a health issue about 6 months ago with your boyfriend? i know that major health problems can cause allergies to begin bothering somebody. my dad started having allergies when his appendix nearly burst when he was young. the doctors said the appendix issue was what instigated the allergies.

it just seems strange to me that the bf was fine for a year and a half and now all of a sudden there are issues with being near the chins. what has changed?

 

[Spoof]

I'm glad to hear that, especially since you've had your boy over 7 years.

i know that major health problems can cause allergies to begin bothering somebody.

I agree, there is probably something else going on with your bf that is causing hypersensitivity. I had this issue with a wheat allergy causing me to be super sensitive to things I normally have no issues with. God rid of the wheat and in the last two months the rest of it has disappeared.