Mark Billadeau Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 If you look at the minimum and maximum values in Table 2 for males and females you'll see the ranges overlap. The far right side of Table 2 list the quartiles; these relate to the distribution of data (25% is the value where 25% of the measured values are lower; 50% is the median value, 75% is the value where 75% of the measured values are lower). These suggest that the distribution from males and females are highly overlapping. Both studies suggest that the amount of allergen produced is highly individually determined. Ann allergy sufferer's best bet is to evaluate each dog's affect on them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Billadeau Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Yes, the first study had too few dogs for their variables. This creates more issues in assessing the impacts of each variable. For example, were the female values lower than the males because more of the males had skin issues than the females. This study had several breeds with 8 subgroups within each breed (intact male, neutered male, intact female & spayed female all with and without skin issues). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Thanks, TxMom. I looked at their website but didn't see the answer. Do you know if they'll ship or arrange transports, or do adopters have to pick the dog up in person? The latter certainly isn't unreasonable, but good to know what to expect. Thanks! Roxanne, I adopted a puppy from ABCR last July. I was told that I would have to make all arrangements for transport (1000 miles from Texas to FL) myself. But when I had everything but the first two hours of the transport covered, the coordinator asked and found a volunteer who was willing to help with that part. It ended up I didn't need their help after all, but they were willing to help a bit. It's a great group to work with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted January 22, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 I'll be the first to admit that I'm linguistically very analytical and fluent, but not mathematically at all. So having realized that years ago I didn't pursue my interest in science and am not very adept at reading and understanding the charts and tables. So I hope you'll bear with my questions and continue to help me understand this. So, what I notice first in Table 2 from the first study is that the minimum numbers for males seem to be almost 6 times higher than for females, and at the higher end almost twice as high. The far right side of Table 2 list the quartiles; these relate to the distribution of data (25% is the value where 25% of the measured values are lower; 50% is the median value, 75% is the value where 75% of the measured values are lower). These suggest that the distribution from males and females are highly overlapping. I'm not sure I understand this part. <sigh> Are you saying that this means that 25% of males measured less than 5.24 and 75% measured less than 23.92? And that that would mean than only 25% measured between 23.92 and 108.40, so that the 25% above that are really pretty extreme? But that would also mean that the most extreme allergy produces are still the males, right? I can understand that the first study may have had too few dogs for their variable. But isn't the second study extremely limited as well? Are there really enough dogs in this study to reach a reliable conclusion? Just asking as I really don't now the answer. Thanks again for helping me get my head around this. I've shot a note off to my allergist but doubt I'll get an answer in time to be useful. There were 2 puppies left this morning and I'm sure at that age they won't last long so if I want to change my mind about them I need to have done it yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted January 22, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Ann allergy sufferer's best bet is to evaluate each dog's affect on them. Oh, yeah . . . forgot to add that I really don't think that'll be an option for the rescue. Or practical for that matter. The place is loaded with dander from any number of dogs. How would I be able to tell if I'm reacting to the dog I'm meeting or any of the dozens of other dogs that had been in that room prior to the one I'm meeting? The reality is that I'll probably react to the sum of all of it and maybe be able to tell after I've come home with it. But probably not since there are already 2 other resident dogs here and I'm not the best at sweeping and dusting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Billadeau Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 I will need to expain using a sample to characterize a population and then how you use the samples to determine if the two populations are different. I will want to search for websites that described these well. I'll get to that next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted January 22, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Thanks, Mark. I really appreciate your help with this. In the meantime, I've been back in touch with the rescue and she says she thinks one of the smoothies may be just what I'm looking for! Waiting for her to e-mail back to see if I can go meet him this weekend. Fingers crossed . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisandgabe Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 On the allergy front...have you considered allergy shots? My husband's allergies (not to dogs, but pretty much everything else) have vastly improved with 5 years of shots. It's a lot to go through, but worth it (IMO) to not have to worry about allergens when picking a pet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted January 23, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 Haha! I've been getting allergy shots for about 5 years. And I take generic versions of both Allegra and Claratin daily (on the doc's recommendation). I'm the apparently the queen of allergies. When they tested for over 120 things, on a scale of 0 (no reaction) to 4 (highest score) I scored a minimum of 2 on every. single. thing. They started wiping off the solutions for dogs, cats, dust & mold when they hit 4++. So I'm honestly not sure it really matters whether males or females or the individual dogs I have are high allergen producers. Anyway, I'm going to meet this little guy tomorrow morning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcv-border Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 He's cute and will likely have prick ears! Squeee! J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted January 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I adopted him this morning and his ears are already up more than that. I'm pretty confident they'll be pricked! His name is Wink, aka Mr. Wink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 He's adorable!! Congratulations Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingfisher7151 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 How cute!! Congratulations! I imagine you're busy, but I request to hear his story at some point! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solo33 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 He is really cute! I did not know the link between allergies and male vs female until this thread, and then I looked it up. A little late since I already got my little male puppy 2 days ago, but so far I am great on Allegra. We used to have a female lab that I was allergic to, to the point that I could't touch her without getting itchy, but I was on a different allergy med (loratadine). Another difference is that we fed her a food with grains, and Solo has been fed grain-free his entire life. I had read some time ago that decreases allergens in some people, so I certainly am continuing that. My allergies don't sound as severe as yours, but I do score pretty "well" on tests too. I am much more allergic to cats, rabbits, and horses, and could never own one even with good allergy meds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted January 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I did not know the link between allergies and male vs female until this thread, and then I looked it up. Yeah, well since the studies seem to contradict one another I figured I'd just go with the bird in hand, especially he seems to be what I'm looking for. Of course, at this young age, that could change completely by the time he grows up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisandgabe Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 He's adorable! Have fun with him! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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