Kitty herpes virus?!

[mewlittle]

 
I'm with you on being cautious as there is some veterinary research that looks at liver damage for long term use and high doses for cats who do not have FHV1.  My vets pointed me to reading it when we first discussed adding in the L Lysine - I'm really lucky to have good vets who will have open discussions about treatment even over the phone when we're trying things out.  For kitties who do have the virus L Lysine seems to be a real life saver and prevents so much pain and secondary infection.

The ulcers on Mouse's eyes were only visible to the vet when he was examining the eyes, I couldn't see them: I had taken Mouse in because his eyes were runny but the liquid was clear and it was the second time he'd had the runny eyes in a short space of time.  On that occasion I was told off by the vet on duty as he thought Mouse's eyes must have been runny for several days and I'd not gone to the vet soon enough. He prescribed antibiotics. The next time I went one of the other vets looked at the history and made the diagnosis, and subsequently talked to their ophthalmologist to second the treatment approach I mentioned in my post above.  Mouse was about 18 months by then and much bigger than Sylvia.  His main problems as a kitten were with his mouth and the vets now think the mouth problems are related to the FHV.

so you saying when Sylvia gets older if she has herpes she'll show more signs of it? when ever i get the money i will have her tested for herpes and felv/fiv im going to see if the one near me test for it and how much it probably when i get her spayed or up to date on her shots

when she hits 6-7 mos old and she still has some symptoms i will up the L-Lysine a little everytime i try talk to vets about things i find that will help my pets with anything they get snutty and have a attitude torwds me after words im afraid to discuse it with the new one i take her to that is a 1hr drive from me i cant talk to the one that is like a 20 min from me since they only spay neuter shots felv/fiv test only and the vet that is 1hr 20 some min from me never answers there phone no more dont know why.

sorry if my sentinces are long and i ask a bunch of questions first time dealing with a possible herpes cat.

 

[stephanietx]

Herpes is a life-long disease.  There is no cure for it, so she'll always have it.  However, there are things you can do to decrease the severity and the frequency of the outbreaks.  Changing to a grain-free diet, decreasing the stress level by keeping to a routine and using calming agents such as Feliway, and giving L-Lysine daily are all things that will help keep her healthy and have a long life.  My Hannah, who is herpes positive, was diagnosed 6 years ago.  She's not had a major flare up in all that time, but we do all of the above things I mentioned to help her stay symptom free.  There are times when she gets acne on her chin due to stress, but that's usually because it's time to change the Feliway diffuser and I've forgotten.  It took us about 2 years to get her to her current level of health, but I've learned so much in the process.

 

[mservant]

.........
so you saying when Sylvia gets older if she has herpes she'll show more signs of it? when ever i get the money i will have her tested for herpes and felv/fiv im going to see if the one near me test for it and how much it probably when i get her spayed or up to date on her shots

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply she would show more symptoms as she gets older.  Sometimes the symptoms can be incorrectly diagnosed as other infections - which is what went on with Mouse for the 1st 18 months or so.  He did not get the best treatment for what was wrong with him until he was about 1 1/2 and because of that he was tired and in pain, he had more runny eyes than he should have done, and it risked damage to his sight.  He is currently bouncy and well, and responded very much like Midnight and Fini.

Sylvia may or may not have herpes, and yes if you have the money it would be best to get her tested (unless your vets can confirm the diagnosis without the test).   

The more you can suppress the virus, keep your kitty calm and her immune system strong  the less the virus will get the better of her and show symptoms or make her sick.  That helps to keep her eyes, nose and mouth healthy, avoids secondary infections and damage from the virus sores, and unnecessary pain.  If FHV is correctly diagnosed while Sylvia is young you have a better chance that she will show fewer / no symptoms if you follow the advice Stephanietx has given.

Good luck.

 

[mewlittle]

Thanks I was going to have her tested this month but bills had killed my wallet and it doesnt help when you have 20+ animals in the house im trying to rehome some but its sorta failing next month if i have the money then i'll try again :/