How to get rid of pet dander and dust
14.03.2021
How to get rid of pet dander and dust
With more and more people working from home, the nations’ pets are happily enjoying much more human company than ever before.
Pets provide great companionship and unconditional love but irrespective of how much more time we are all spending at home, our cherished furry companions have always had something of a reputation for leaving us with unwelcome additional gifts in our house, namely fur, fluff and pet dander.
Now there is an air purifier for pets that can help solving the problem of pet dander reducing or even avoiding the problem of allergies and allowing you to enjoy your pets in the home, free from unwanted consequences.
What is pet dander?
Pet dander is shed skin particles from cats and dogs which can create a pet allergy in susceptible individuals. For many years, these allergies were pinned firmly on pet hair and fur, but in fact, it is usually the dander that is the cause of the problem.
What type of allergies can pet dander cause?
Allergic signs and symptoms develop in people whose immune system incorrectly recognises pet dander as a harmful substance or invading agent which needs to be repelled. The body produces antibodies as a response to this. The classic signs and symptoms of this reaction are classified as an allergy.
Cat and dog allergies can be more common in people who suffer from hay fever or allergic asthma.
What are the typical signs and symptoms of an allergy to pet dander?
Some of the classic symptoms of an allergy to pet dander may include:-
- Itchy skin
- Watery eyes
- Sneezing
- Coughing
- Wheezing or laboured breathing
- A skin rash or hives
- Worsening of pre-existing health conditions such as eczema and asthma
Allergies to pet dander are selective; not all the people in the household may develop an allergy and allergies can develop even after long exposure to a particular animal.
Allergies can develop at any time
As of 2019, approximately 85 million households across Europe own at least one pet and the mean split of cat and dog sensitisation is 26.3% and 27.2% respectively, although there is also great variation across the different member countries[A1] .
It is estimated that 10% of the UK population are allergic to their household pets. The Pet Foods Manufacturers’ Association data reveals that there are 8.5 million dogs in and 7.5 million cats, so that means a lot of people with unpleasant allergies!
Perhaps the problem wasn’t so bad years ago when there were generally fewer companion animals in homes and a lack of double glazing and central heating meant that environments were often colder and more draughty.
Herald the rise of the 21st-century hypoallergenic dog and cat breeds which allegedly are kinder to those people who suffer from pet allergies. These include breeds like the Bichon Frise, the Poodle and for cats, the Cornish and Devon Rex all of which are supposed to reduce the irritation caused by pet dander but anecdotal evidence suggests that this isn’t really the case.
How to reduce pet dander in the home
There are ways to reduce pet dander and keeping the house scrupulously clean is one option but even the most rigorous dusting and hoovering regimes will fail to pick up every last piece of pet dander.
Unfortunately, pet dander is in the air within the house and circulating all around the occupants so even an immaculately clean house will still have evidence of pet dander in the atmosphere and airborne allergens as a result.
Restricting animals to certain rooms in the home or not allowing them on upholstered furniture may reduce the problem of pet hair but it won’t solve the issue of pet dander. Taking medication or antihistamines doesn’t really get to the root of the problem but getting rid of animals is not something most people want to entertain, however, the misery of a pet allergy can make this a real option for some people.
How to remove pet dander from the air
Many people think that the only options are to re-home the pet or take industrial quantities of anti-histamine but in fact, there is a little known solution called an air purifier.
Air purifiers improve the quality of air inside domestic and commercial premises. Now Leitz is launching a new series of speciality filters for their Leitz TruSens Air Purifiers effectively creating an air purifier for pet dander and animal hair.
With 360 degree filtration, the Leitz TruSens air purifier will not just capture and destroy common pollutants but in combination with the speciality pet filter, will remove pet dander and odours, in fact, all trace of your pet, other than the pet itself. Think of this as an air cleaner for the pet dander that you cannot see.
How to clean pet dander from the air
There are three sizes of TruSens air purifiers to suit the space in your home. The Leitz TruSens air purifier has a unique SensorPod which evaluates the air in the whole room not just around the device. This communicates how clean the air is and rates the air quality on a digital disc display.
The flow of clean air is divided into two streams which have been proven to be far more effective in the distribution of quality air. Remove pet dander and dust and also other contaminants and pollutants which can affect the quality of the air that you breathe inside your house.
The Leitz TruSens Pet 3-in-1 HEPA Filter now adds another layer of protection to the air within your home. This TruSens air purifier uses cutting edge technology and already delivers clean air throughout your living space, now it can also deal with pet dander and dust without compromising any of the other filtration effects that you want within your home.
Take advantage of the next generation of air purifiers and speciality filers and enjoy the companionship and love of your pet at home without having to compromise on either air quality or the management of allergies.
Sources
https://www.cats.org.uk/help-and-advice/cats-and-your-family/cats-and-allergies
https://www.fediaf.org/who-we-are/european-statistics.html
[A1]This is a European statistic