Labrador Retriever's nose losing pigment

Readers E-mail - Stacey Writes:

My Chocolate Lab's nose has lost its pigment and has become scaley. The pigment has slowly come back about 50%. The upper part of the nose is still scaley. Her muzzle area around the lips has also lost pigment. Has anyone ever seen this?..................Stacey

Answer:

Hi Stacey,

Thanks for writing. At first I thought “snow” nose or a “Dudley” but did some checking and there is no mention of crusting or scales associated with them.

Here are some other possibilities I have found for you:

Contact dermatitis – a type of allergic skin condition can cause loss of pigment in the nose. It develops after direct contact or being exposed to certain materials that will irritate, such as cleaning solutions, grass, bedding materials, salts, fertilizers, flea collars, etc. What kind of bowls do you use to feed your Labrador? Certain plastics in bowls can also be the cause. The constant irritation of the nose and muzzle area form these substances might lead to the lost pigment.

Discoid lupus erythematosus – is an immune mediated skin disease where the nose and face are more commonly affected. It usually starts with a loss of pigmentation. There may also be crusts and scaling of the nasal tissues. This disease is benign and the animals are otherwise healthy.

I would take your Labrador to your veterinarian, where they will do a complete examination of the area and perform a biopsy (small portion of skin removed and examined under microscope) to give you a definite diagnosis.

The information given here is to help you learn more about your Labrador Retriever and not to replace your veterinarian's advice. Disclaimer

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