Asthmatic, hay feverish, allergy prone child invited to party at pet filled house.

[octopal]

DD is 7. She has asthma, eczema and hayfever. In the past she has had some reactions that we weren't able to pin down to anything specific.

She has been invited to a party at a house where they have dogs, guinea pigs and birds indoors and rabbits and cats outside.

She hasn't had much exposure to animals although she does play with her cousin's dog outside and it has never been an issue. When we were looking into getting a pet for her we were told birds and guinea pigs weren't suitable for her.

I'll let the Mum know and send her inhaler and anti histamine with her and I won't be far away for the duration.

I'm not sure if I have any cause to be concerned about the party. She loves animals and really wants a pet so I am sure she will want to hold or touch the animals if she can.

What do you think?

I'd let her go, but I'd give a proactive antihistamine tablet before the visit, that may minimise the effects of petting the animals.

I'd do the same as purples and have done it in the past - give an all day non-drowsy antihistamine before (give it enough time to kick in, so not right before), send in the inhaler and more antihistamine and say that any trouble, just give you a ring and you'll pick her up.

Oh! Make sure to tell your daughter it's very very important for her to wash her hands after she holds the animals to get the fur off. So not just before she eats, but after she holds the pets.

I get allergies from animals (gives me asthma and various other allergy symptoms) - cats are the biggest problem for me, they are for a lot of people. When I take an antihistamine beforehand it helps, as purples said. Also if I've been good about taking my preventer asthma medication that helps.

And as soon as she starts getting any symptoms the mum at the party should make sure she has her medication - if it turns into a full blown attack it's harder to get the histamine levels back down to normal.

Obviously also she should know to wash her hands thoroughly before she touches her face after patting animals.

But definitely let her go, I've had allergies since I was a kid and I LOVE animals - I would have been distraught if my mum hadn't let me be around them.

One thing I forgot to say is: don't make to big an issue of infront of the other Mum/childrens when dropping DD off at party; you don't want other mums/children thinking it's a really big problem having your DD over.

Yes I agree its good idea to make sure hands washed after handing animals. Also change her clothes when she gets home, just to get rid of any stray animal hair, and give her a bath.

See how this visit goes, if DD has minimal symptoms, it will hopefully make visits like this easier for you in future.

Totally agree with purples, don't make a big deal of it. It's just allergies after all, they're annoying but for the most part (anaphylaxis and serious asthma attacks aside) inconvenient not life threatening.