I’m sure you’ve noticed my nose freckle. But did you know I didn’t always have it? I have proof!
Here’s a kitten photo of me from September, 2014. See? No nose freckle!
In fact, here I am three whole years later, and it’s still not there!
Then, sometime between September 2017, when that photo was taken, and November 2017, when my human took the above photo, it began to appear. Can you see it?
Here is a closer view. You may still have to squint.
By November 2018, a year later, it was pretty noticeable.
By September of 2019, it had grown a little. It’s larger than this now.
So what is the deal with my nose freckle? It doesn’t seem to be that common with Somali cats, or the breed we came from, Abyssinians. But we do have orange colors in our coats, which is apparently an indicator for these types of freckles, otherwise known as lentigo. Lentigo simplex is a condition that many orange tabbies and some calico and tortie cats have. The freckles appear because of cells (melanocytes) that create more melanin than the skin around it. They are most often found on lips, gums, and yes, noses.
Lentigo often appears when a cat is a few years old. That is why orange tabbies with a predilection to freckles will often grow more of them as they age. And why my freckle has gotten bigger over the years.
Even though lentigo is harmless, always make sure your veterinarian checks out any changes in your cat’s skin. Malignant melanomas are rare in cats, but should always be ruled out by a vet.
So what do you think? Were you surprised to see how much my freckle has grown? And did you know about tabby cats and calicos having freckles? Let me know in the comments!
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Yup I knew. I had an orange kitty who had them. Yours is still really hard to see. Just adds character to your beauty Summer
Angel kiss
Goodness that is right but we think it makes you look cute. Since I am Ginger I have them but mine are on my gums. A few years ago I got many more in my mouth and dad had the vet check. No worries. They to look a bit odd when I do a loud meow though
I must say, Summer, I was very surprised to know that you did not always have a nose freckle, and yes also surprised to see how much it has grown. I am so glad to know about these nose freckles and how and why they develop. I have had orange tabbies, don’t recall them have freckles.
Aww, we love your nose freckle, Summer! We have some orange cats at the shelter who have freckles. 🙂
I absolutely love cat freckles!! My J.C. is an orange tabby and he has them on his nose and lips!! My Lexi is a calico and she has a few on her lips too. Yours is adorable!
Like Marilyn Monroe, you have a beauty mark! MeeYOW! =^.,.^=
Until you see a timeline of photos, you don’t realize it appeared so subtly as you grew ;o}
Emmit is an orange boy and he has a few freckles – his brother Binky was a buff/dilute orange and had a few too. In fact, he had one on his nose just like yours!
As always, thanks for your informative and fun posts! XOXO
We really hadn’t noticed your freckle. But from one nose-freckled cat to another, I think it’s cute.
~Izzy.
I think your freckle is cute. Glad it is nothing to worry about. My Sammy has quite a few nose freckles.
I’d heard about tabbies with lentigo but didn’t know about calicoes and torties! So interesting!
Whoa! We hadn’t noticed until you pointed it out. Last winter I had a huge white spot on my nose but this year the white spot wasn’t there. We did ax the vet about it.
Thanx for the nice comment on my post.
That’s part of what makes you you now sweet Summer!
MY mom is filled up with them on account of she’s a natural blue eyed redhead.
Love your nose freckle Summer! I knew about this condition as I have an orange tabby cat that lives with me. He has dark spots on his gums and also has freckle on his nose. I always have the vet check these when he has his wellness visit just to make sure there’s no problems with these spots. I think they add character to my cat and I love his freckles.
We like freckles. Our human gets them if she is not careful and she has orange furs. We had noticed that you had one last summer and did non think about it! We are glad you told us about it though! Thank you! We hope you have a marvellously happy day!
Your nose freckle is adorable! We didn’t know about the thing with orange tabbies and freckles till our kitty Max started getting them all over his gums. The mom took him to the vet because she was worried and they explained. Now there are 2 orange tabbies in the family and their freckles multiply with age. Our people love them and make silly squeaky noises.
That’s very interesting, Summer. #1 looked at me closely and I don’t have any freckles!
Purrs,
Tama
I never noticed it until you showed us! Still gorgeous!
Lucy had no freckles when we brought her in, but now she has a lot. It adds character!
I never noticed your freckle, Summer! But now I do. I know orange colored cats can get freckles like that as they age. Yours is kinda cute.
Your freckle came on so subtly that I hardly noticed it on your nose 🙂
It is so perfectly placed it looks like it belongs there 🙂
Purrs, Julie
It’s like a “beauty mark”. How fortunate that it is in the very
middle of your nose. Makes me think of Elizabeth Taylor and
Marilyn Monroe’s beauty marks. Huh!
Freckles are cute!
Eric had a lot of nose freckles and they increased all the time. He ended up with 6 definitely, but it may have been 7. Flynn never had any on his nose, but he did get one in later years on the inside of his bottom lip.