Does he have feline herpes, or something else?

Hello!
My cat, Ed, is 11 months old. When I found him at a friends house in a rural area the vet said he was roughly 9 months old. He was very sick when I found him. His symptoms include sneezing (sometimes clear but sometimes white snots that get stuck in his whiskers and it's interesting) also he breathes loudly and sounds like he's snorting sometimes. He sometimes has thin discharge from his eyes too. The vet put him on a week of amoxicillin, then something stronger, then when he still wasn't better she noticed his ears were dirty, they tested positive for rod bacteria, so he got another round of amoxicillin, and she also suggested 1000mg of L-Lysine supplement daily because she suspected feline herpes. It has been about 4 weeks now and he doesn't seem 100% healthy. I just don't know what could be wrong with him! Does he need even stronger antibiotics? Could it still be herpes? I must say I HAVE seen improvement. He sneezes less frequently and he doesn't choke on mucous as much. But he still sneezes up discharge once in a while, and he still breathes loudly.
Also... I take him to the vet tomorrow morning around 8am to get neutered! I'm relieved by this because I believe he's started spraying recently. Not good. And... even though it's a normal procedure that millions and billions of cats go through I am a bit scared about complications and I don't want to part with him tomorrow. I especially worry because of his upper respiratory infection. I don't know how that can impact a neutering... but the symptoms aren't going away any time soon.
Are there things I need to do to prepare for his homecoming on Saturday? Will he try to pull out his stitches? Are there often high chances of complications when it comes to a neutering? Will he have a cone to wear around his head? Will his personality or physique be affected by the procedure?
Thanks for all your comments.

I can understand your frustration. I too had a Persian with an URI and because of his extreme face it took ages for him to be "cured". He still occasionally sneezes (all cats do) and some times he has white snot. My vet is not concerned and feels this will be normal for him from now on because of nasal passage damages from past URI's. He is also on 2ml of Ly-lysine twice daily. He has been on it now for about 2 months and is just starting to show a great improvement. Don't get discouraged, it takes time but the L-Lysine does really seem to work! He has gained weight since being on it (eats like a pig!) but his sneezeing and eye/nose discharge has gone down considerably. I would say he is a healthy cat now. Originally it took over 5-7 rounds of antibiotics for me to get rid of his URI. It just kept coming back and so I just kept giving him antibiotics. Eventually it stayed away. He tested positive for feline herpes but my vet wasn't too suprised seeing as most of the domestic cat population (80-90%) is positive for it. She said the percentage is getting higher all the time! If your cat has herpes he will always have herpes. It is like the same kind of virus that causes cold sores in people- not something to be too concerned about. My cat had plenty of blood work done and that was the ONLY thing that came back positive. Otherwise he is a healthy, happy cat.

As for the neuter. Do not be concerned. Neuter surgeries are done very quickly and most vets offices allow the cat to go home the same day as long as they have not been de-clawed. My cat just recently had a neuter and he came home and was running around and playing like nothing had happened at all. Very rarley are there any complications. He shouldn't bite at his stitches *may lick* and he shouldn't be wearing a head collar either. You normally do not even have to bring them back to have the stitches removed (they just disolve). My cat has in no way changed. He is the same old sweety pie he ever was. My cat had a grade three heart murmur and because of this they had to use special percautions while doing the surgery and he still left the vets the same day and was perfectly fine. So don't be worried.

P.S. If your cat is still suffering from a bad URI I would be suprised if the vet would even neuter him. Have you called and let them know that he still isn't 100% well??

I hope I have helped some what
Take care

I'd imagine they would have asked if he was feeling better before having me bring him in if they were looking at his charts. I should have probably said something... but hopefully it's not a big problem. He has improved some amount though just like you said about your Persian. His symptoms sound just like your Persian as far as still some sneezing. I can hear him breathing through his nose when he walks into the room most of the time so thats the only reason I feel he is still sick. I suppose if they noticed symptoms of URI before the surgery and were concerned with it then they would not go through with it... I will give the L-Lysine some more time! ...Since you said it took your cat about 2 months...

I'm waiting for the phone-call to let me know how he did!

Sorry, havn't been on in a few days. Hope he did well at the vets. If your cat has a flat face he could just normally breath loudly. I had a Persian before who had an EXTREME flat face and he snorted and made noise every time he breathed in. The vet said this was normal because his face was so extreme.

Take care

I know how you feel, I took my kitten in to the vet today for neutering and they said that an URI does make the neuter more risky... He had a bit of eye discharge and redness and a tiny bit of nasal discharge this morning when I brought him in to the spay/neuter clinic, but then my vet said it's pretty likely he has herpes since he's had those symptoms off and on since I found him... I'm so worried though after the vet said that!