When a pet lives, households sometimes have an allergy. Domestic decorative rabbits are no exception, whose fur is quite thick and dense and can lead to an allergic reaction. Allergies to rabbits are often manifested in children whose organisms have not yet formed immunity to withstand the effects of protein compounds present in the rabbit body.
Allergy to a rabbit in a child
The nature of rabbit allergic reactions
The appearance of an allergy to a rabbit in a child may appear at the very beginning of his life - infancy, when his first feeding is introduced to the baby. Baby food often contains rabbit meat, which has dietary properties and is perfectly suited for children compared to the same chicken. Meat is also nutritious and rivals turkey in the amount of fat it contains. However, the peculiarities of the child's body may not accept the rabbit protein, causing an allergic reaction.
The allergy that appeared in infancy in a small patient will begin to manifest itself upon further contact with the animal.
In some cases, protein components contained in the skin, fur and rabbit secretions, such as saliva, can cause severe allergies. At the same time, it is possible to eat rabbit meat without further reactions, but contact with the animals themselves causes allergy symptoms.
Rabbit Allergy Sources
The main part of the allergenic particles that cause the reaction of the child's body is concentrated in rabbits:
- in the outer skin layers (epidermis) and hair,
- in secreted saliva,
- in urine and excrement,
- in meat tissues and internal organs.
Allergic reactions in children by pediatricians began to be observed most often due to the fact that decorative rabbit breeding displays amazing breeds of animals for home keeping, which differ in colors, an unusual palette of the eye iris. Such decorative rabbits are willingly bred as pets, without thinking about the fact that hybrid breeds took the ability of their ancestors to shed at least two times a year, leaving behind dead skin particles. Loose residues and hair during the shedding process become one of the main components of house dust, which causes allergies in a child.
For persons with an increased threshold of sensitivity to rabbit protein contained in the epidermis, even short-term contact will cause subsequent complications. Allergy to rabbit hair is most common in children.
The urine and excrement of rabbits has a high allergic concentration. For this reason, an allergy can form and manifest after two to three rabbit cages.
Symptomatic signs of an allergy
The manifested allergy to a rabbit in a child is directly related to the reaction of the child's body to a certain type of protein, to which an increased threshold of sensitivity has developed.
Protein in waste products
Allergies caused by urine and pet excrement can appear quite suddenly, and their symptoms are increasing at a high rate:
- a persistent angry cough appears
- there is a feeling of insufficient air and there are severe attacks of shortness of breath, like asthmatic,
- nasal congestion occurs, sneezing, nasal discharge of a liquid consistency appears,
- there are cases of swelling of the laryngeal tissues,
- redness of the skin in the facial area, cervical region, and body is recorded.
If the patient has a diagnosis of bronchial asthma, a reaction to the waste products of rabbits can lead to suffocating attacks.
Care for animals and close contact with them leads to the appearance of rhinitis and conjunctivitis in children with an allergic nature.
Meat allergy
The entry of an allergen into a child's body with the use of rabbit meat, an allergic reaction can be observed in the oral mucosa and the lower part of the gastric intestinal region. Among the main symptoms of an allergy to rabbit meat:
- the appearance of bouts of nausea,
- flatulence - bloating,
- pain sensations in the stomach and intestines at the same time or symptomatically,
- digestive disorders such as diarrhea.
In extreme severe cases, anaphylactic shock is noted, the appearance of which is often associated with the use of rabbit meat and the alpha-galactose contained in it.
Attribute response
In rare cases, children have an allergic reaction not to the animal itself, but to attributes that are helpers and necessary tools for keeping and caring for rabbits. These sources of allergens include:
- feed mixtures
- fillers for domestic rabbit litter boxes,
- animal bedding for cages.
Children and animal allergies - specialist comment. All About Pets.
How to find out what you are allergic to?
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Allergy treatment regimen and prevention
The diagnosis of rabbit allergy and its treatment is carried out on the basis of blood tests for the presence of immunoglobulins F213, the excess of the required amount of which indicates a positive reaction. External signs of the disease - laryngeal edema, urticaria on the skin, shortness of breath, can also serve as symptoms for the diagnosis.
The most important aspect in the treatment of allergic reactions is the frequent confusion of their symptoms with the symptoms of acute respiratory infections, therefore, with self-treatment, time is often lost and the disease starts.
Signs of allergy in children to rabbits are manifested and proceeding more acutely than in adults and, if ignored, can lead to serious consequences.
Among the main drugs prescribed by pediatricians in case of diagnosed childhood allergies:
- antihistamine series
- absorbents,
- corticosteroids for acute forms of the course.
However, the primary recommendation for the patient will be to eliminate the source of allergies.
If you are not ready to part with your pet, then you can provide some restrictive direct contact measures as preventive measures:
- the rabbit must have a closed cage from which the animal is allowed to walk every day, while in case of an allergy in the child to the rabbit, other households should be engaged in cleaning the cage,
- contact between a child and an animal should be predominantly visual,
- during the shedding of the rabbit, it is necessary to comb out in a place specified for this, in order to maximally collect the wool and dead particles of the epidermis after the combing procedure,
- it is necessary to exclude the stay of the rabbit on upholstered furniture and in bed, and after his walk to wash the floors.
It is better to place the cage with the animal away from the children's room.