To not move into a rental which has previously had cats if i'm allergic?

[Putyourclotheson]

Hi,

I have a cat allergy and quite a few of the properties which are suitable and available have cats currently or have cat flaps in various doors so i know cats have been there once upon a time.

I have a cat allergy and am discounting these houses based on any residual cat hair/dander which will be left around the place. My partner is getting the hump and telling me i'm being unreasonable.

Am I? He says a good clean will sort out any leftover catness and i will be fine. Opinions please. (I have been known to dramatise things once in a while)

Would this be a factor if you or your child was in the same situation? What would you do?

yanbu
I'm very allergic as well and unless it's the perfect place with hard floors and no soft furnishingsand curtains I have to give it a pass.
it takes months of daily vacuuming and damp dusting to get rid of the allergens.

If you react when you're viewing I'd steer clear, if you don't react while viewing I'd go with a deep clean. Not a normal one, a professional, deep clean.

I think it depends on how bad an allergy you have

I also think you'll be ok after cleaning the carpets.

If you find something you really like just get the carpets cleaned

I have very bad hayfever (multiple allergens) and prescribed medication. I cannot escape these allergens and have to mitigate the effects. I would be more interested in what type of floor covering etc.

If it's hard floors you'll be ok after a good clean. Carpets are likely to be an issue and any soft furnishings

I was told by a doctor that it can take six months for all traces of pet dander/fur and bits in the air to finally go before a home is considered “pet free”.

Your partner is being very unreasonable as you have an allergy!

I agree, hardwood floors shouldn't be an issue. I'm in a different country, but cleaning services here offer an allergy deep clean which claims to remove pet allergens from carpets, so that might be worth a look.

Yanbu but I would approach on a house by house basis.

I have allergies and some houses I am dreadful in and others not too bad even with the same allergen. Depends on flooring / soft furnishings and also the cleanliness of the house.

Big air purifiers are also good for sucking allergens out of the air. Agree deep clean is a good idea.

Fair enough about the current cats but cat flaps might mean a cat lived there 5 years ago and the furniture/furnishings have been changed since then.

If you’re just basing it on cat-flaps, I think YABU. The cats could have been there many years ago. Are you reacting while you are there?

I don't think you can judge a place on the existence of cat flaps. A cat flap could have been put in years ago but the place might not have had a cat for years! I think the question is looking for a place where the landlord does not allow pets - and double checking the previous tenant did not break this clause by having a cat might help.

unless you have all the vents cleaned out then even with hard floors you may still suffer a reaction. Depends how serious your allergies are. It makes me very ill in some places but not others and it doesn't seem to always be based on flooring, soft furnishings etc. Also mine builds up so visiting for 10 minutes might not bother me but a few hours or a day, yes. Because of this I would avoid it, I'm surprised so many rentals have cats since most tenancy agreements don't allow pets. Yanbu.

YANBU; I would discount them too. I would suffer from the hair, but then there’s also the smell too.

YANBU, it can take about 30 weeks and a LOT of cleaning to get rid of all the dander. And it's insidious - you might be ok at first but then it creeps up on you and you realise after a few hours that you're really bloody miserable!

Allergies are SHIT.

I have an allergy that I'd describe as uncomfortable, it's not going to kill me but it can make me bloody unhappy.

I'd ignore the cat flap issue, and ask about cats living there now. I'd probably rule out any place that has had a cat in the last 6 months but further back than that I would be ok with.

Regardless, I'd be giving any new property a bloody good clean.

It depends on how sensitive you are. Some people would be fine after a thorough clean. Others would suffer unless the entire house had been put through a washing machine, then dry cleaned, then aired out for good measure.

Have you asked the agent or landlord if they had a full end of tenancy deep clean?

The best (most expensive) ones of those will, when told about pets, take extra care with removing pet hairs etc. They are worth every penny if you have allergies!