Merging households with an allergic human

[EximiusVir]

I have been agonizing over an upcoming move and I am hoping to put the question to forum members for advice on how best to handle this from my cat's needs. This move comes with apprehension and concern for my two cats, their well-being, and how to make the required realities as easy an adjustment as possible. Both my cats were rescues from when they were kittens and re-homing them is a non-starter conversation in my mind (they are my kids), but realities as they are, there are logistics that need to change and I am struggling with the fear of the possible fallout of such a move.

For numerous reasons (point in the relationship, benefit to finances, etc.) I am looking to merge households with my partner, who is highly allergic to cats. I have advocated for them to start immunotherapy and I'm also anxiously following the HypoCat vaccine from Saiba Health, but the reality is the two cats (male & female, both around 14 years old) will move from having free roam of approximately 900 sq. ft. to being confined to my home office of 156 sq. ft. I work from home (software) and will be spending at least 8 hours a day in the room with them, but I worry about their wellbeing as well as the reality of their acting out and how to mitigate that (it's not their fault if they do and I know that).

The transition will have a couple aspects:

• The male cat (neutered) currently sleeps with me each night and that will have to change.
• They will be restricted to my second floor office space (they will have a large window and I am currently looking at a large cat tree to give them access to the window as well as hopefully entertain them). I'm worried about my male cat as he's already fairly vocal when he's unhappy about something, so I anticipate this will happen in the new space.
• Due to my partner's allergies and health issues, they already have air scrubbers throughout the home and I will be placing a heavy duty one just inside the room door as well.

I'm committed to getting whatever cat tree, calming pheromone plugin, spending extra time giving them focused attention, and whatever else needs be, but what I could benefit most from in this forum:

• Have others moved their cats from free roaming to a restricted space and, if so, what were some of the behaviors you encountered and how did you navigate those challenges?
• Are there products on the market you recommend?
• Are there other recommendations to benefit the quality of life of my two cats, given the realities this merging is in the best interests of finances, and my life as a human in an adult relationship?

I really appreciate any constructive or cautionary insights forum members care to share.

Thanks!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. When moving cats to a new home, it is always advisable to confine them to a single room to start with. So, in your case the single room that they start out in, will be their permanent home space. Bringing with you as much as you can of their familiar items will help, up to and including food/water dishes, litter boxes, bedding, cat trees/toys. Below are some links you might find beneficial.

To start off with, you may need to set up sleeping arrangements in your office space so you can keep at least one routine/habit going for the cat that is accustomed to sleeping with you. You can't change everything at once, especially in older cats who depend on routine in their lives. It may be a case where - eventually - you can stop sleeping in there every night, or at least part of each night, but whatever gradual arrangements you make, you can't stop sleeping with this one cat cold turkey. And, both cats need your company other than just the hours you are working too.

Making sure your office space can accommodate a feeding station and litter box area that is separated enough from the general living/entertainment area for the cats is important also. All their stuff cannot be on top of one another, especially if they are not used to that.

Is there any other space that can eventually be used by your cats that could exclude your partner's presence? There are barriers that can be bought/built to block off access to other locations, but still allow you to move with ease in between them. This is something that should be discussed ahead of time - before you move in.

Aside from that, depending on how allergic your partner is, how are you going to handle being in a room with these cats all day long, as well as quality time outside of your work hours, and not bring out of that room, cat fur/dander/etc? How are you transporting them when they have vet visits? Will litter box cleaning present a problem? What about food storage?

I am sure other members will soon come along and expand on my comments/questions.
How To Move With Your Cat To A New Home In A Safe Way - TheCatSite
How To Make Your Home Bigger (at Least For Your Cats) - TheCatSite
Stress in Cats - The Ultimate Guide - TheCatSite
Living With Cat Allergy [A Comprehensive Guide] - TheCatSite

 

[Alldara]

Can you define severe?

Usually, over time with low exposure and proper cleaning of things, people find that their cat allergies become less "aggressive".

We've found some tips for my father-in-law to visit. His face gets puffy and throat gets itchy as well as sneezing. This is more extreme than my, my wife's or my MIL's allergies.

We have air purifiers. We use blankets overtop of furniture for when we aren't using the furniture and remove those when we have company. 20 min in a dryer will kill most allergens.

When my MIL has slept over, we vacuum the area, change the sheets and keep the cats out of the sleeping area but otherwise they have full access.

All our vacuums have HEPA filters. We vacuum daily. We also have a chom-chom.

We also use nose saline spray to clear allergens from our noses.

We use dander reducing wipes (Burt's Bees) and also brush them daily. You could also consider using Purina's allergy reducing food if your cat has no health considerations for food.

At my grandpa's he's put a gate/screen in the hallway so that the pets have access to kitchen and living room but not the rest of the house. That's something you and your partner could consider.

 

[tyleete]

One name
Nasalcrom.
I just ordered 3 sprays for my household. Ok, yes it's a nasal spray which I hate. But back when I worked at the local animal shelter I had to find something to work that didn't put me to sleep. Obviously Benadryl was out.
I came across Nasalcrom. I am allergic to cats, and very allergic to dogs. I ended up being the one in charge of the cats, and on any given day I typically had 52 to tend to. Cleaning each kennel, moving them to the next clean one, medicating and cleaning some as well as all that litter and even washing a lot of the blankets. I would take 2 sprays on each nostril. Once at 8am and another between 4-5pm. And it solved my allergy problems.
I don't work there anymore, but have my own non-official rescue. Down to 10 whole cats. And I only take the Nasalcrom when I have to go outside now. You do build up an immunity after a while.
Nasalcrom.
Best of luck!

 

[BeccaCat]

I second the LiveClear food. Pricey, but it does seem to help my adult son be much less allergic to my kitty.

 

[Cat McCannon]

Brush your cats every day. Good for the health of your cats. Reduces the allergens they give off.