My parents bought a standard poodle puppy last summer. My sisters, who still live at home, and my dad all have animal allergies. They bought a poodle as none of them are allergic to poodles.
Unfortunately I am. The allergy is getting worse as time goes on. If I touch the dog I get mild hives. Within 5 minutes of entering the house I start sneezing. If I touch my eyes they puff up. If I stay for any length of time my breathing gets more difficult. After I leave I usually cough for most of the 1 hour drive home. Once home I have to shower and wash all my clothes.
Is there anything I can do to reduce the effect the dog has on me? It is his house, not mine, so I don't feel that I can ask my parents to make many changes.
I'm really close to my parents and I'm struggling with this situation. We are supposed to spend the day there on boxing day and I'm already worrying about it.
I suffered from asthma in my youth and feel there's an asthmatic component to this allergy so I'm going to see my GP about that. The other confounding factor is that I'm breastfeeding so solutions involving drugs may not work.
I'd really appreciate any advice or experiences.