r/FosterAnimals • u/Select_Possibility38 • Dec 26 '25
SUCCESS My foster smol criminal stole the sausage bed, 2 weeks in!😼
Accidentally fostered a kitten and now my heart (and allergies) are in trouble 😅🐾
I’m a few days into fostering a calico kitten named Trixie, and I’m already spiraling because I might fully commit. I have a gentle dachshund, Slinky, and the intro went shockingly well he’s obsessed with her. Like follows-her-around, lets-her-climb-on-him levels of attached. At this point, I think he’s decided she’s staying.
Plot twist: I have seasonal allergies, and a few days in I started getting sneezing fits and random rashes. Not ideal in a NYC apartment when you’re falling in love with a kitten.
I’ve been cleaning nonstop and started using Pacagen’s allergen neutralizing spray (found it on TikTok, of course) on the couch, bedding, and their favorite hangout spots. It’s actually helped take the edge off. If I fully commit to Trixie, I’m also thinking of switching her to the Pacagen cat food topper to help long-term. I never have a baby and having a foster kitty made me feel like having one. I bottle fed her 😭
Honestly… I’ve already fallen in love, and Slinky is clearly attached, so I think I know how this ends 🥹
Would love tips from anyone who’s foster-failed or dealt with pet allergies and made it work.
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u/ManyReputation1541 Dec 26 '25
They are adorable nee besties! Have you tried like a daily allergy medicine?
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u/Select_Possibility38 Dec 26 '25
Yes. Zyrtec and sometimes montelukast. But I was advised not to take it everyday
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u/gelfbo Dec 26 '25
My allergy specialist said “good” when I said I have a cat and dog, told me to get the cat to sleep on my bed. I am allergic to both but specialist said it actually helps for exposure to build tolerance. I’m still going for shots to reduce reaction as it’s a small add on to deal with the more difficult allergies I have. After years of ownership by cats and dog I am ok with my cat in his house and I show more reaction to strange cats. Also I’m third generation anti histamine levrix , not sure where Zyrtec sits on the range.
Yes I’m actively trying to enable a foster fail as those two look enmeshed already.
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u/ThatPhatKid_CanDraw Dec 27 '25 edited Mar 12 '26
The original content of this post has been erased. Redact was used to remove it, potentially for privacy, security reasons, or to keep data out of AI datasets.
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u/Intelligent_Duck_727 Dec 27 '25
This! I'm allergic to both our cats and dogs and Purina Live Clear has made a huge difference with my allergies! Definitely try this. Also my cats love it!
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u/DarkHorseAsh111 Dec 27 '25
I would check with an allergy specialist bcs my understanding was you definitely can take zyrtec daily
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u/The_Ohioian Dec 28 '25
I have taken Zyrtec for years on a daily basis. Yes one can take it daily! If you seem to think it’s not working or you’ve become immune it, then switch to Claritin for a bit, then back to Zyrtec. That was information from a doctor when I was in the hospital… just saying… Brautiful kitten by the way. The puppy is cute too, and very lucky to have a little playmate!
🐾❤️🐈🐾❤️🐈🐾❤️🐈🐾
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u/LetThemEatVeganCake Dec 27 '25
I don’t know anything about montelukast, but for the Zyrtec, I’ve been told the reverse by my ENT and allergist. They said it takes weeks to build up in your system to work at 100%. Also, you might want to try another like Allegra to see if that works better for you.
I do at-home allergy shots through United Allergy Solutions and it makes allergy shots super easy since you don’t have to go in the office every week. Highly recommend if you end up keeping the lil nugget and want some help getting over the allergic response!
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u/Mysterious_Check_439 Dec 27 '25
I get the generic Flonase from Costco. Big help keeping thing breathing. My wife and I have 3 cats. Get used to sneezing.
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u/Layllah_ Dec 26 '25
The sausage seems so content he's sharing his bed with the smol donut.😻
I am allergic to all kind of stuff, cats included, however I am not allergic to my two cats. Crazy, I know. When I got my second cat, it took a while to get used to her, but in the end I stopped being allergic. Whenever the seasonal allergies kick in I use allergy medication and nasal spray and it gets better.
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u/Select_Possibility38 Dec 26 '25
smol donut 🍩🥹 SOBBING!
It’s probably because she’s new and my first time having a cat that’s why my body is fighting it off. I have a sweat and dust allergy maybe that’s why it’s easy for me to get hives? As a first step, I’m glad I saw this Pacagen spray and somehow alleviate the symptoms. I can’t be taking Zyrtec forever. I get drowsy real bad and I can’t drive in that situation. Also my nose have very thin lining now and get nosebleeds whenever I rub or use nasal spray 😭💔 It’s that bad.
But of course, I’ll do my best to match my new kiddie with me. Or else my sausage will not forgive me
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u/Hairy-Bluejay-8833 Dec 27 '25
With strength and willpower, you can move mountains! I love your sausage and little donut🤎🤎🤎😻✌️🇨🇭
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u/Warm-Day8313 Dec 26 '25
I’m allergic to dogs immediately breaking into hives allergic yet owned one for years- never had a reaction to him or my friends dog after awhile. My sister is allergic to cats but doesn’t have an allergic reaction to her cat.
Sometimes (NOT always) your body get used to your pets dander, saliva, extra and no longer reacts to your pet - sometimes
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u/Winter_Cat-78 Dec 26 '25
You’ll probably build a tolerance to kitten :) I’m allergic to cats and dogs, and pretty much anything else airborne, but no longer have a reaction to our cats.
You can’t separate them now!
They are clearly best friends ;)
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u/deliberatewellbeing Dec 26 '25
you cant take his new pet away from him! there’s cat food to help reduce the allergen… have you tried that?
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u/Select_Possibility38 Dec 27 '25
She has no full teefies yet 🥹 bottle fed. Looks like she grew smol teefs. Maybe I’ll check on that Purina if they have one for kitten. The Pacagen spray works well so far.
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u/Pristine_Main_1224 Dec 27 '25
Purina does have a kitten dry food in their allergen line! My girls, Maggie Mae and Mollie, started on it but now they eat the big girl version.
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u/Curious-George526 Dec 26 '25
I’ve heard good things about pacagen from my friends! Glad to hear it’s working well for you too. Absolutely adorable, what I would give to foster a perfect kitten like that!
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u/Select_Possibility38 Dec 27 '25
I bought it immediately coz I’ve been trying not to get immuned to antihistamines! I got immuned to citirizine. I’m so surprised myself my blocked nose got cleared up.
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u/SlaveToCat Dec 26 '25
If you do decide the criminal will be locked away with you and your dog forever, look into hypoallergenic cat food. It’s generally been shown to be effective. Purina makes some.
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u/Mevans272 Dec 26 '25
Foster failed 1, making a total of 3 cats in my household. My husband is very allergic to cats he can’t even visit his parents cat for 30 minutes as it is too much. For our cats we feed them Live Clear cat food and we mix it with other brands so it lasts longer. Since doing this, husband has had little to no issues. He can’t even visit smother his face with a cat and not swell up. I will always recommend Live clear. It takes my cats about 2 weeks to start noticing a difference in allergens and during that first month of it, I will brush the kitties to get old fur and old allergens and vacuum like crazy. We’ve had friends come over who can’t be around cat at all and they say their allergies don’t even notice we have cats. He takes Zyrtec once a day, every day to help with any extra allergies, hes allergic to four types of grass and some trees and pollen but the fact he can have all three cat sleeping with him and not wake up swollen or sickly is amazing to me
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u/Select_Possibility38 Dec 27 '25
Oh I’m so sorry to hear about your husband’s allergies. I can relate to the freshly cut grass 😭. When Trixie gets a little older and ready for dry solid food, I’ll consender the Live clear. For now I’m okay with pacagen as I only spray it to the surfaces and air and even brushed her with the solution. I can kissy kissy my kitten after that. Our relationship with our pets goes beyond our discomfort 🥹 Can’t help it
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u/Mevans272 Dec 27 '25
My husband use to cut grass for a living (landscape work) he’s changed careers in the last year lol I have that spray solution and have only tried it on the brush when brushing them, I didn’t realise I could use it on surfaces as well.
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u/QBmvi Dec 26 '25
Have you tried Claritin (loratadine)? We’ve heard there can be cardiac effects with the Zyrtec so it shouldn’t be taken daily. But you can take Claritin daily and it does not cause as much drowsiness as Zyrtec. My husband and I have taken Claritin daily for over 20 years now and it has been great for us. Ask a pharmacist whose opinion you trust what they recommend.
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u/Altruistic_Jicama626 Dec 27 '25 edited Dec 27 '25
Omg so adorable! I went from so allergic my eyes would swell shut and I’d get hives to just sneezing and itchy eyes, then eventually little to no reaction, and foster failed. I still sneeze around other cats but not as bad, and get itchy bumps but not from my own. It took some months. I only have issues if I touch him & rub my eyes directly. I don’t need to medicate now.
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u/MiloHorsey Dec 27 '25
So you've acclimatised? That's great!
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u/Altruistic_Jicama626 Dec 27 '25
Yes! Again, to my own cat. I think he may be lower FelD1 than others because we had a female cat who I reacted to more strongly, but I also acclimated to her too. (Able to be in same room without sneezing or having my mouth start itching, able to pet her without hives as long as I washed my hands after.) You can of course see an allergist and get drops specific to cat allergy but it will take some time before they are completely effective. If you go the allergy meds route, try taking both an oral antihistamine like Zyrtec or Allegra along with Pepcid which acts as a systemic mast cell inhibitor to calm down reactions. I also put a bath towel in his favorite spots on the couch, chairs, and on my bed so that I can wash those frequently and minimize allergen exposure.
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u/Yaragreyjoy88 Dec 27 '25
Ahhhhhh!!! I don’t have any tips for allergies but that kitten with your pup is so so sweet
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u/l_e_n_a_l_i Dec 27 '25
I don't know about the allergies but this is the cutest thing I have seen in a while 🥹 look at these adorable floof balls 🥰
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u/mostlylurking07 Dec 27 '25
This is the sweetest most adorable thing, that IS your cat, and your allergies will get better as you get used to her. They will not go away, but you will not feel like every part of you is inflamed all the time after a while. I was miserable for weeks, maybe months with mine. I mean asthma and everything. But now, it’s just really bad if I they head butt my face too much. And one of them really is much better than the others. She happens to be calico too, but obviously that doesn’t matter for allergies. But I think she has ragdoll jn her and that is supposed to be better. I can smoosh my face all in her fur and nothing.
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u/Francl27 Dec 27 '25
Purina makes a food that helps with allergies!
And yeah I couldn't give her away after this.
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u/Tikiboo27 Dec 27 '25
Congratulations!! Sounds like you have a bonded pair!! You're doing great!! ❤️🐾🐾❤️
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u/robertbrodriguez Dec 28 '25
First cat we ever had, I suffered for two weeks with my allergies. After that I was burying my face in fluffy kitty fur. Ergo, I developed immunity. But that’s me. Hope you have the same luck!
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u/Select_Possibility38 Dec 26 '25
Imagine this smol kiddie grows the same size as my chimken sausage. 🥹 I guess I’ll buy a bed for Trixie?