# Feline herpes and breeding



## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Hi, I have 3 breeding queens at the moment, only one bsh has had a litter last year the other two are only 6 months (one being her daughter from previous litter and the other a Bengal) 

Over the past few months all of them have had conjunctivitis (no other symptoms) and the bengal was diagnosed with cat flu last month. My vet isn't any help, he's given antibiotics to the Bengal which cleared it up but now her eye is swollen today. We are at the vets at 2.30 AGAIN! But I get the feeling they dont want to help as they want to charge £50 every few weeks when one of them has a flare up! 

I'm so upset as the vets want £1000+ to test all of my cats including my moggy but he's saying theres no point as there is no cure for herpes if that's what it even is!

Has anyone had any experience with this? Are my breeding days over already and I'm stuck with 3 very expensive (we paid extra to have them on the active) pet cats that are going to cost me £50 a month in vet fees or is there anything I can do? 

Does l-lysine work? Someone please give me some help as I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere with my vet! 

Thanks in advance, x


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## cats galore (Jul 17, 2012)

first of all, if you are not happy with your vet i would change to a different. i have a cat with the herpes virus in her eye. she has been to the vets only twice in twelve months as we keep her eye bathed and clean as much as we can. occassionally she gets a little run down and has an injection to give her a boost (hence the 2 vet trips). £1000+ for tests seems very very high. i paid last year for a test for milly and it cost just over £40.
as for breeding, i'm sorry i have no answers as i am not a breeder but i would imagine if your cats do have this virus it would not be advisable to breed from them. i wouldn't imagine people wanting to buy kittens from a cat with an illness. i'm sure else will be able to advise on breeding


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## lymorelynn (Oct 4, 2008)

If they do have feline herpes then I would not be breeding from them. You really need to be certain about the cause of the conjunctivitis and if you aren't happy with your current vet, I'd recommend changing.


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Thank you for your advice! I've read that nearly all cats are carriers or have been exposed to the virus. The vet said breeding shouldn't be a problem so long as the cats are otherwise happy and healthy. But I agree with you that if the kittens will be unwell i would not be able to breed. I wouldn't want to and definitely wouldn't sell a sick kitten!! With the high number of cats with the virus I would expect that it's not only my cats carrying the virus and wondered if any other breeders could advise me. Thanks again x


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

If it were I, I wouldn't breed from a cat with herpes or any other condition that can be passed on.


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

> but he's saying theres no point as there is no cure for herpes if that's what it even is!


Has he swabbed a cat during a flare up? If he hasn't then he hasn't 'diagnosed' herpes.


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

> I'm so upset as the vets want £1000+ to test all of my cats including my moggy


I'd agree your vet is being deliberately obstructive and unhelpful. There is no point testing unless the cat is showing symptoms. Swab and test one cat with active symptoms - probably cost about £100.


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

> I wouldn't breed from a cat with herpes *or any other condition that can be passed on*


Herpes no but there are plenty of other conditions which are contagious but curable.


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Could the symptoms be linked to chlamydia rather than herpes, maybe wishful thinking but its treatable? It all started when I took my other breeding queen to a stud, about 2 weeks later she had a runny eye which then spread to her other one, she sadly lost her babies and then had a fight with our other bsh (so she came in contact with her) she was also scared to death of our 2 dogs so I rehomed her with my friend. She had 3 weeks of strong antibiotics and has been fine ever since. About 3 weeks after she went the queen I kept showed symptoms. Im going to tell the vet to test the one cat that's having a flare up today then I know what I'm dealing with! It would break my heart not having any more baby fluff balls  but like I said I wouldn't breed if there was a risk x


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## cats galore (Jul 17, 2012)

Laurenj said:


> Could the symptoms be linked to chlamydia rather than herpes, maybe wishful thinking but its treatable? It all started when I took my other breeding queen to a stud, about 2 weeks later she had a runny eye which then spread to her other one, she sadly lost her babies and then had a fight with our other bsh (so she came in contact with her) she was also scared to death of our 2 dogs so I rehomed her with my friend. She had 3 weeks of strong antibiotics and has been fine ever since. About 3 weeks after she went the queen I kept showed symptoms. Im going to tell the vet to test the one cat that's having a flare up today then I know what I'm dealing with! It would break my heart not having any more baby fluff balls  but like I said I wouldn't breed if there was a risk x


if i was you i would ring around other vets in your area and see what sort of prices they charge for different tests etc. it seems very highly priced at £1000+ and they don't seem to helpful either. you may be better off going else where if you are not happy with the service and care you get from your vets. i'm really fortunate to have a fantastic vet - good prices and very caring. not all vets are the same unfortunately


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

I don't think it would cost that, I think he was saying it because he doesn't want me to have them done! There is a small vets just down the road I'm going to see what their prices are like, at the moment we take them to companion care inside pets at home!!! .. I know lol!


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

> I think he was saying it because he doesn't want me to have them done!


I think you need to find another vet. It 'could' be chlamydia, it could be any number of things - including herpesvirus but at least you'll know. You can't possibly make a responsible decision without the information.


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

havoc said:


> Herpes no but there are plenty of other conditions which are contagious but curable.


Yeah, okay - I wasn't precise enough - I meant something that can't be cured but might wax and wane. You know what I mean. Be nice I only had 2 hours sleep last night.


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

> You know what I mean


I do! Just wanted to be sure everyone else did too


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Well she's just had her swabs taken... Fingers crossed!!


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## spotty cats (Jul 24, 2012)

lymorelynn said:


> If they do have feline herpes then I would not be breeding from them


Agree, I would be spaying if tests are positive, regardless of how much I spent on them. Just one of the downsides of breeding, you don't always get to breed from a cat bought for breeding.


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## catlove844 (Feb 15, 2011)

We had to test some kittens and it was £110 per kitten for the 3 tests, herpes chlam and calic virus def not 1000!


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

It came to £120 for a test for calicivirus, herpes, chlamydia and another one. I've been seeing a different vet and seem to be getting somewhere with him. Praying to god that my kitties are going to be ok


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## lymorelynn (Oct 4, 2008)

That sounds a lot better - glad to hear you have found a vet you are more comfortable with and hope the results come back clear.


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## catlove844 (Feb 15, 2011)

Laurenj said:


> It came to £120 for a test for calicivirus, herpes, chlamydia and another one. I've been seeing a different vet and seem to be getting somewhere with him. Praying to god that my kitties are going to be ok


you can get a false negative you have to do it when the kittens are shedding, if they arent currently shedding it wont show up, so you need to do it a few times, I wouldnt breed them it passes to kittens and its awful


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Me too thanks Lynn x


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

> It came to £120 for a test for calicivirus, herpes, chlamydia and another one


Well worth it so you know what to do. 


> you can get a false negative


As you've tested during a flare up you should get sensible results and can make sensible decisions.


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

I know it is well worth it!! I just can't wait until next week to get the results! It's giving me a headache!! 

I am in love with all 4 of my cats (moggy included  ) so It wouldn't be a case of rehoming and starting again, the results will tell me whether I will be able to have any more bundles of fun, would break my heart if I can't play cat mummy again to any babies! Weve ony had one successful litter out of two last year and it was the best 12 weeks of my life :'(


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

GOOD NEWS  she tested negative for herpes and everything else apart from chlamydia!  happy happy happy... Now to give 4 cats 3 weeks worth of antibiotics each ... Yey!! Learned my lesson of going to an advertised stud the hard way!!


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

I'm SO pleased for you. This is a lesson for everyone who thinks vets can diagnose these things by just looking. What's more, any vet who is arrogant enough to shout 'cat flu' or assume herpesvirus could be denying a cat appropriate treatment. Chlamydia is bacterial and treatable.


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

I know !!! My poor babies have had to suffer for over a week until the results came back! So happy they are going to be ok though!!! We got there in the end lol!!


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## Ianthi (Oct 21, 2008)

havoc said:


> I'm SO pleased for you. This is a lesson for everyone who thinks vets can diagnose these things by just looking. What's more, any vet who is arrogant enough to shout 'cat flu' or assume herpesvirus could be denying a cat appropriate treatment. Chlamydia is bacterial and treatable.


Couldn't agree more. I remember once asking a vet how he'd actually *know* my cat had what he'd pronounced he had as it didn't seem likely to me. He glared at me and cited his 'years of experience' in his response. Following tests ( only truly reliable way) I requested it turned out he was wrong and I was right!


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

Closely related to another post - only a few years ago a vet told me "we vets just _know_ when it's FIP". Now that's scary!


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## flosskins (Jan 27, 2010)

I'm so glad you got a better result than the vet expected. Are the symptoms of herpes and chlamydia different in any way? Are you treating all of your cats or just those that showed symptoms?


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

The symptoms are very similar! All of our cats have had conjunctivitis on and off since one went to stud last year which cost us £50 time a go at the vets for antibiotics and eye ointment to clear up which worked but then a few wks later it would come back. Our poor 6 month old Bengal then started vomiting, losing weight, had really bad swolen eyes, sneezing and had a bit of nasil discharge so we thought enough is enough and paid to get her tested, which is the ONLY way you can distinguish which virus they have! 

Whilst I was waiting for the results to come back my Bengal started getting swolen glands and all of the cats had an outbreak so I went to holland and Barrett (on the vets reccomendation) and got some lysine which I mixed with their food everyday to try and help them try and fight off the herpes that my vet was so adamant they had. It didn't help at all so I was praying it was something else and we weren't going to have this for the rest of their lives (herpes cannot be treated you can give lysine to try and stop or minimise the breakouts). But luckily that wasn't the case. 

Yes we are treating all of our cats including my moggy who is now grounded much to her disgust lol incase she picks anything up from any other cats in the area. We are hoping in the summer to build a pen in the garden so she can still go out but not as far as she would like (im also happy we're keeping her in because my dads cat got knocked down by a car a few weeks ago and that would break my heart, so she might be grumpy for a while but at least she's safe  )


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## lymorelynn (Oct 4, 2008)

Just caught up with this and am so pleased that your cats tested negative on all but the chlamydia and that they are going to be okay :thumbup: Good luck with the anti-biotics and with keeping your moggy in too


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## we love bsh's (Mar 28, 2011)

Out of interest did you contact the stud owner to tell them what your girl had caught?


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Thank you ... Il need the luck lol !! No I think she already knew! She was acting shifty when I told her my cat had conjunctivitis and she got rid of two of her queens just before I took mine to her also has now got a different stud. Her kittens all had runny eyes when we went round and one of her cats got rejected at a show because of it. I was angry that I thought shed put me through all of this and not told me what it was and I had to spend a fortune on tests. I probably should get in contact with her!!


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## we love bsh's (Mar 28, 2011)

Laurenj said:


> Thank you ... Il need the luck lol !! No I think she already knew! She was acting shifty when I told her my cat had conjunctivitis and she got rid of two of her queens just before I took mine to her also has now got a different stud. Her kittens all had runny eyes when we went round and one of her cats got rejected at a show because of it. I was angry that I thought shed put me through all of this and not told me what it was and I had to spend a fortune on tests. I probably should get in contact with her!!


The fact she got a new stud rather than treating the old stud makes me wonder if she even got the stud tested and knew what was wrong with him and the girls,looks as though she thought ill rehome these cats as there always ill then bought in new stock.

Im glad i have my own studs.


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## Laurenj (Apr 16, 2012)

Yup that's what I thought!!! She lost a couple of litters like I did with my summer when I took her to her stud, I asked if she knew why to try and get it out of her but her answer was "it's just one
Of those things". I personally think she's definitley in it for the money and didn't
Even ask for a snap test (I know I know!! But me being silly and inexperienced I didn't know anything about them then). Now she's got her new stud her ad on pets 4 homes says he's available to tested queens, so maybe your right shes just got rid of the 'problem' or so she thinks as I think she's still got some of her cats. 

Do you think I should tell her? Or leave her to it?


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