Dog nose getting progressively lighter

Factual Questions
1

My dog, Mia, is 2 years old (as of last Thursday) and of the Coton de Tulear breed. (This is basically a mix between a Maltese and a Bischon Frise. When she was a puppy, her nose had some pink pigment in it, but then it turned almost all black. More recently, however, her nose has been turning progressively pinker, and is now even almost white in places. (Not just scarred places.) I know that having dogs eat out of plastic bowls can cause this to happen, but hers are ceramic.

So, can anyone tell me why this is happening? Could it be a problem? Should we take her to the vet about it?

Thanks in advance!

~ monica

2

Sometimes it’s due to the dog’s habits. If a dog spends a lot of time pushing toys and rocks around with her nose, the pigment can’t keep up with the wear.

3

Thanks, AskNott. My dad theorized that because she licks her nose all the time, some of the weak acid from her saliva has been gradually wearing the pigment away. Is this possible?

4

I really don’t know anything about dogs, but I believe what you’ve described is called “snow nose”.

I’d mention it to your vet, though, just to make sure it isn’t a sign of vitaligo or some other condition.