Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 9/10/2005

Question
This question is indirectly related to dogs and skin, but I thought you may be the perfect one to ask.  We have a child with pretty bad asthma and would like to get a dog.  I was told it's not a dog's hair that is the allergen but their dander.  Can you recommend a breed (or breeds) of dog that would be safer to get or have less dander?  (We looked at a Jack Russel terrier puppy today and almost brought him home, but figured we better do some research first.)
Thanks so much.

Answer
I get asked that all the time and there is no right breed for a child with a dog dander allergy causing asthma.  There are some things, like Lo-Shed, that can be put on the dog's skin that can decrease the skin cell shedding, but nothing works 24 hours a day and it has to be applied several times per day.