Is it herpes?

I adopted a 5 month old snowshoe last week, name is Pita (because he can be a pain in the .....), sweetest baby I've ever had. Yesterday I noticed that his eye was puffy, and had some discharge, with occasional sneezing, so I took him to the vet today (Banfield at Petsmart, where I adopted him). The nurse came in, took his vitals, looked him over, and said probably allergies, but let's have the doctor take a look. Doctor came in, spent about 5 minutes with him and declared my kitten has feline herpes (although he has had 2 vaccinations for rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, panleukopenia, chlamydophila and psittaci), gave me some antibiotic eyedrops, L-Lysine powder, a bill for $147 and showed me the door.

Should I get a second opinion? It isn't going to change my mind about the kitten, he is the sweetest baby, ever, but I just don't really feel like the doctor was very thorough. Kitty has no other symptoms, no fever, very active. Just curious, I guess.

Thanks

Kathy

There is no way someone on the internet can tell you whether or not it is herpes, and honestly, I doubt if even another Vet could tell you for certain whether or not it is .  Feline Herpes is usually diagnoses by symptoms only, and since the mimic other respiratory diseases, it's kind of a guess on their part. 

I COULD be allergies,it COULD be feline herpes...it's almost impossible to know.  All I can tell you is that right now where I live, allergies are bad.  And I can also tell you that even though a cat has been immunized does not 100% guarantee that they will not get the disease.  It certainly helps, but there are no guarantees, but if they do get it, it most likely would be a lesser case of it. 

What the Banfield Vet gave you certainly can not HURT to give your little guy, and if it doesn't help, then it's probably NOT herpes.  If it's allergies,then  most people here give Zyrtec, I think, although the amount would depend on your furbaby's size.

(I know you went to Banfield because you recently adopted your baby from Petsmart, but it might be a good idea to build a relationship with a Veterinarian that you LIKE and TRUST.  Maybe you can ask around  (friends and family) and see if anyone recommends someone.  We have been going to the same place for 21 years, and know we can call and even get many questions answered over the phone without even taking our "kids" in.  Our relationship is so good that last month we had to take one of ours to an emergency vet, and the next day our regular vet  called us for an update because they'd rec'd a fax from the ER, and Dr. Christina was concerned and wanted to know how Callie was doing.  I think that's a pretty special vet .)

Thank you! I plan on finding a regular vet, I'm new to the Vegas area, so still looking for a doctor/eye doctor/dentist for myself as well.

I appreciate the response. My furbaby's eyes look much better this morning

Since you've only had the kitty a week, it's most likely an upper respiratory infection which can be complicated by underlying herpes virus, if present.  It's very, very, VERY common for kitties in new homes to develop an URI about 7-10 days of being in a new home due to the stress of the new environment.  Sometimes, the rhino virus shot can also trigger an infection, but it's not extremely common.  I would give him the meds the vet prescribed and if you don't see any significant improvement within the week, then go for a second opinion.  Also, as you already are doing, look for a permanent vet.

What color is the discharge? Yellow or greenish discharge is more often from a bacterial infection, which are very, very common with kittens. My kitty with herpes gets darker-colored crusts around her eyes.

Definitely find a vet you trust and build a good relationship with him/her. It helps a lot to have someone you know you can trust in an emergency and who knows your pet's whole history, as in my kitty with herpes and food allergies.

In just the couple of days since we got his meds, his eye looks so much better! The discharge was thin, yellowish green.

Can't begin to tell you all how much I appreciate your responses to my question. I think young Pita and I will have a long happy life together.