Although messy, and sad to see a kitty suffer with, it is very common in cats. In fact, I don't know that I've ever had a cat that didn't get it to some point some time. In an ideal situation, a cat is born to a vaccinated mom and is themselves vaccinated before ever being exposed to other non-vaccinated or herpes-carrying cats. It's not very common for this ideal situation though! Just be sure your kitty does get his / her vaccinations and the herpes flare-ups should be less invasive each time!