Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month: A Guide for Pet Owners

Every May, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) runs National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month, a month for talking about how asthma and allergies are recognized and managed. It is a people-first campaign, but pet households have two reasons to pay attention. Dogs and cats get allergies and airway disease too, and plenty of people who sneeze around animals share their home with one anyway.

Below are the dates for the next two years, the allergy and asthma signs in dogs and cats that deserve a vet visit, and what allergy groups recommend when someone in the house is allergic to the pet.

When is Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month?

The observance covers all of May, every year. AAFA has designated May as National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month since 1984. May falls in spring allergy season, and health groups that mark the month often point to that timing.

World Asthma Day falls inside the month. It is organized by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) and held on the first Tuesday in May.

AAFA picks a theme each year. The 2026 theme was "The Power of Community to Improve Asthma and Allergy Health." The 2027 theme has not been announced yet. AAFA usually shares the new theme, calendar and social media toolkit on its awareness month page shortly before May, so check there in spring.

AAFA reports that more than 106 million people in the United States have asthma and/or allergies, including 28 million with asthma, based on 2024 national health survey data.

Asthma in cats and dogs

Cats

Asthma is a disease of the lower airways, and it affects an estimated 1 to 5% of cats, according to the Cornell Feline Health Center. Most clinicians and researchers think it starts as an allergic reaction to something the cat breathes in. Once a cat is sensitized, each new exposure sets off inflammation in the airways: the walls swell and tighten, mucus builds up, and air has a harder time getting through.

On average, cats are diagnosed at 4 to 5 years of age, and males and females are affected about equally. Breed is less settled. The Merck Veterinary Manual says young cats and Siamese and Himalayan cats are most often affected, while Cornell notes that a Siamese link has been suggested but not proven. Merck also points out that asthma appearing suddenly in an older cat is extremely uncommon; a long-lasting cough in an older cat is often due to pneumonia.

Signs of asthma in cats include:

• Coughing or hacking
• Wheezing
• Fast breathing or visible effort to breathe
• Open-mouth breathing
• Vomiting in some cats
• A crouched posture with the neck stretched forward during an attack

The signs can range from a mild, on-and-off cough to a breathing crisis. Open-mouth breathing in a cat, or gums that look bluish (a sign the blood is short of oxygen), means the cat needs a vet right away.

There is no single test for feline asthma. Your vet pieces it together from the history, an exam, chest X-rays, and often a look at cells from the airways, sometimes collected during bronchoscopy (a camera passed into the airways under heavy sedation or anesthesia). CT scans are used in some cases, though Cornell describes that use as still somewhat experimental. Part of the job is ruling out conditions that look the same, such as lungworm and other parasites, bronchitis and pneumonia, because their treatments are different. For other causes of a cough, see our article on why a cat might be coughing.

Feline asthma can't be cured, and it often progresses, but many cats live comfortably for years with a plan from their veterinarian and an owner who watches for coughing and breathing effort. Merck advises limiting airborne irritants such as cigarette smoke, perfumes, pollen, mold and dust. Cornell adds dusty cat litter, aerosol sprays and cleaning fumes to the list of suspected triggers, while noting that avoiding triggers has not been rigorously tested in cats. Ask your vet which changes make sense for your cat. For the full picture, read our article on asthma in cats.

Dogs

According to the Merck Veterinary Manual, about 15% of dogs with environmental skin allergies also develop inflammation in the nose and asthma. Coughing, wheezing or labored breathing in a dog can have many causes, so the useful step is the same as in cats: book a vet visit and let your vet find the cause.

Allergies in dogs and cats

In dogs and cats, allergies mostly show up on the skin. Itching is the classic sign, and the scratching that follows causes most of the sores, scabs and hair loss owners notice. Vets usually sort allergies in dogs and cats into three groups.

Flea allergy. Some pets are allergic to the saliva fleas inject when they bite. Flea allergy dermatitis is the most common skin disease of dogs in the southern US and a common cause of itchy skin in cats, which is why flea control is the first thing to review in an itchy cat. More in our guide to flea allergy dermatitis.

Environmental allergy (atopic dermatitis). This is an allergy to things in the air and surroundings, such as pollen, molds and dust mites. In dogs it usually starts between 6 months and 3 years of age. Signs are often seasonal but can last all year. See our article on atopic dermatitis in dogs.

Food allergy. In pets, food allergy is less common than environmental allergy, though Merck notes that in cats the two occur about equally often. Food-allergy itching tends to stay the same from season to season. Beef, chicken, dairy and wheat are among the ingredients most often reported in dogs; in cats, beef, fish, chicken and milk products top the list.

Signs in dogs

• Itching, especially of the feet, face, ears, front legs and belly
• Licking or chewing the paws and rubbing the face
• Red skin, scabs, hair loss and scaly patches from scratching
• Skin infections and ear infections that keep coming back (in a few dogs, ear trouble is the only sign)
• With food allergy, sometimes vomiting or diarrhea alongside the skin signs

Many of these overlap with other skin problems, which our guide to the 10 most common dog skin problems shows with photos.

Signs in cats

• Itching and over-grooming, often around the head and neck
• Hair loss, sometimes evenly on both sides of the body
• Small crusty bumps across the skin
• Flat, red, swollen patches called eosinophilic plaques

• Swollen lips or raised sores on the face, chin or mouth, part of a group of lesions called the eosinophilic granuloma complex, which Merck says seems to be caused most often by allergy
• Sneezing, a runny nose or asthma-type signs in some cats with environmental allergy
• Vomiting or diarrhea in some cats with food allergy

How vets diagnose pet allergies

Environmental allergy is a diagnosis of exclusion, meaning your vet gets there by ruling out look-alikes such as mites, fleas and fungal infections first, with tools like flea combing, skin scrapings and fungal cultures. No test confirms environmental allergy on its own. Allergy tests come after the diagnosis, to pick which allergens to include if your vet recommends allergy shots or drops.

Food allergy is diagnosed with a diet trial your vet designs, using a diet with ingredients your pet has never eaten or a prescription diet with broken-down proteins. Blood and skin tests are not reliable for it. The trial only works if nothing else gets in, and that includes treats, table food, flavored chews and even flavored toothpaste. One warning for cat owners: never starve a cat or force it onto a new food. Merck notes that a long stretch of poor appetite can cause serious liver damage, so tell your vet if your cat refuses the trial diet.

Environmental allergy is lifelong. It is managed, not cured, with a plan your veterinarian builds and adjusts over time. If your pet's itch is hard to control, your vet may refer you to a board-certified veterinary dermatologist through the American College of Veterinary Dermatology.

When to call your vet

Call your vet or an emergency clinic now if your pet:

• Breathes with an open mouth (in cats) or struggles to breathe
• Has bluish gums
• Coughs or wheezes in a way that doesn't settle

Book a vet visit soon if your pet has:

• Itching, licking or chewing that keeps going
• Hair loss, scabs, red skin or ear infections that come back
• A cough that lingers or keeps returning
• Vomiting or diarrhea alongside skin problems

Bring these up at your next routine visit:

• Flea control for every pet in the house
• Any plan to switch foods to test for a food allergy, since the trial needs your vet's design
• Any plan to bathe your pet more often because someone at home is allergic

Living with pets when you are allergic

You can be allergic to a pet without being allergic to its fur. According to AAFA, the reaction is to proteins in dander (dead skin flakes), saliva and urine. Fur just collects them, along with pollen and dust. AAFA puts cat and dog allergies at 10 to 20% of the world's population, and a pet allergy can trigger asthma attacks in people who have asthma.

Two facts matter for any allergic household:

• There is no truly hypoallergenic dog or cat. The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology reports that homes with dogs sold as "hypoallergenic" had about the same allergen levels as homes with other breeds. Some people do react less to certain animals, which is why AAFA suggests fostering before you adopt.
• Pet allergen travels. It sticks to furniture, carpets, walls and clothing, turns up in places pets have never been, and can linger for months after an animal leaves.

If you suspect a pet allergy, see a board-certified allergist. A skin-prick or blood test can confirm it, and ACAAI recommends testing even if you are sure the pet is the cause, because something else in the home may be to blame.

Steps AAFA and ACAAI recommend for allergic households:

• Keep pets out of the bedroom, with the door closed.
• Keep pets off fabric furniture, or use washable covers.
• Have someone without the allergy brush the pet outdoors and clean the litter box or cage.
• Wash your hands after petting or handling the pet.
• Run a HEPA air cleaner in the bedroom or living room, and vacuum with a HEPA-filter vacuum.
• Dust hard surfaces with a damp cloth so dander doesn't go back into the air.
• Don't count on keeping the pet in one room: ACAAI notes the allergen spreads anyway.

If you are thinking about bathing your pet more often to cut allergen, ask your vet first.

Ways to mark the month

• Share AAFA's awareness month facts and graphics, which it posts on its awareness month page.
• Book that vet visit for the dog who has been licking its paws since spring or the cat with the cough that keeps coming back.
• Review flea control for every pet in the house with your vet.
• If you work in a clinic, use May to post about allergy and asthma signs in pets and when clients should call.

Sources

• AAFA: May Is Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month
• AAFA: Pet Allergy
• GINA: World Asthma Day 2026
• ACAAI: Pets, Dog and Cat Allergies
• Cornell Feline Health Center: Feline Asthma, What You Need To Know
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Tracheobronchitis (Bronchitis, Bronchial Asthma) in Cats
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Feline Bronchial Asthma
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Allergies in Dogs
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Allergies of Cats
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Eosinophilic Granuloma Complex in Cats
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Cutaneous Food Allergy in Animals
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Flea Allergy Dermatitis in Dogs and Cats
• American College of Veterinary Dermatology

This article is for general information and is not a substitute for advice from your veterinarian.