Hypoallergenic Dog Breed - Scientific Findings

Scientific Findings

Breeds that shed less are more likely to be hypoallergenic, since the dog's dander and saliva stick to the hair and are not released into the environment. However, protein expression levels play a major role and amount of shedding alone does not determine degree of allergic reaction. "Even if you get a hairless dog, it's still going to produce the allergen," Dr. Wanda Phipatanakul, chair of the Indoor Allergen Committee for the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology is quoted in the newsmagazine U.S. News & World Report as saying. How hypoallergenic a particular dog is for a particular person may vary with the individual dog and the individual person.

If a person is allergic, they may be best able to tolerate a specific dog, possibly of one of the hypoallergenic breeds. Dr. Thomas A. Platts-Mills, head of the Asthma and Allergic Disease Center at the University of Virginia, explained that there are cases in which a specific dog (not breed) might be better tolerated by a specific person, for unknown reasons. "We think there really are differences in protein production between dogs that may help one patient and not another," Dr. Platts-Mills said.

All dogs shed, and all dogs produce dander and saliva in some degree. As noted above, the amount of the allergenic protein present on the dander and in saliva varies by breed. Also, the amount of the allergen can be reduced or eliminated in individual dogs by treatments such as bathing. But for most breeds, when not regularly bathed, even a dog who sheds very little or has little dander can trigger a reaction in a sensitive person.