We've had several dogs and none of ours have ever had this issue, neither have I ever seen a collie on telly or in real life with fur missing of its nose like this and neighbour has collie and someone in neighbouring village who JJ plays with.

If it's 'normal' why doesn't EVERY collie ever born have it?

It's alarming it seems to be getting bigger and going higher up his face. someone suggested could be cos he's growing and his skin is stretching, once he's full size it may look more in proportion to his face size.

Maybe his hormones are making it worse? We having an increase in him trying to constantly hump me when I'm trying to teach him stuff and following Inca round with his nose stuck to his butt, she's had a go at him a few times (just as they were starting to get on much better! )

I'll email vet tomorrow and see what they say.

I wouldn't return him for that reason but I will keep researching until I find something to make it look much less noticeable.

I'm sure it wouldn't be acceptable in a show ring..never seen a dog on crufts with it..so there must be something out there that people use to make it look better?

Mollie is a collie cross she is blonde from her mum a retrievers side of the family and has this, it's perfectly normal vet told us when we asked several years ago. Never been a problem although we do put a bit of sun screen cream on it in the summer so it doesn't get burned.

It looked bigger as she grew when she stopped growing so did the baldy spot.

I wouldn't worry OP it really doesn't detract from the dogs life in any way.

I hate to say it but when I too looked at the photo I couldn't see anything wrong. Your dog appears to have a perfectly normal hair covering on the bridge of his nose. No dog has a thick 'coat' there, well none I have ever met, but dark hair on dark skin always looks more prolific.

Pigmentation can change from when a dog is a puppy. I too have a black and white dog with pink skin on the bridge of his nose and it looks just like your gorgeous dog.

Why is this an issue with you? I don't quite understand. Your dog is lovely

It really isn't an issue to the dog! He doesn't have fur missing - he has the coat he is meant to have. Your pup only has his puppy coat at the moment so it could all change when he grows up anyway. You could make sure he isn't rubbing his nose on anything but please don't go messing with his beautiful nose!

I'm glad the others have said it looks normal as it looks perfectly normal to me & a quick look at my dogs(5 BCs)& they all have sparse hair just behind their noses.

It's not bad pigmentation-that presents itself in pink noses, pale eye rims on dark dogs.

Does it matter to your dogs health ? Nope

Looks perfectly normal to me too.
My Bernese the same on his nose and the floppy bits of his top lips that overlap. There is nothing wrong with him in that respect I take it to be perfectly normal.

It doesn't seem as prominent on your dogs face though

JJ was originally all white around his muzzle at 6 weeks but did have some black 'freckles by time he came to me at 9 weeks. It does look like some of black is missing from near tip of his nose so I'd have to see if he got more freckles around there when his adult coat come in.

I've been looking online and some people have mentioned using marker pens like Sharpie's or boot polish apparently used to be an old remedy! .. not sure about that one he'd just lick it off!

There's an american supplement that seems to have had good results so I'll try that first.

Would higher testosterone increase balding? as he's 6 months and currently humping everything I'm wondering if raging hormones and the fact it suddenly seem to look far more prominent than it did previously is related? (the longer he has those levels the bigger the bald patch may end up being? )

I'd like to find something to give him to reduce the size it might end up been as an adult... I'll stick with the elderberry & nettle and coconut oil until the other one arrives from the US and just hope that will work for him.

As its mentioned as a form of lupus and auto immune condition wouldn't anything that boosts the immune system help to reduce the effects?

Why on earth would you have a puppy's nose tattoo'd just because you did not like the way he looked?

You say

but you never actually saw him until the breeder brought him to you, so you really do not know whether JJ is the pup you saw in the photograph the breeder sent you.

But to tattoo him just for looks? For a dog you want to train as a service dog and not a show dog?

What on earth for?

I must need my eyes testing cos i can see missing fur.. it was previously white & black where its now pink.

Here's JJ at 3 months... only 3 months ago




some of it is the camera angle but there was no area of his nose where there was no hair on it at all and looked like big pink patch. Obviously he's going through a growth spurt he's filling out around chest too. I've had to size up on his girth strap on perfect fit harness and he's obsessed with humping so I imagine his testosterone levels are quite high just now as having to keep him and Inca seperate again.

I did wonder if it had same effect as like in male humans where men with more testosterone tend to be balder or go balder earlier? .. maybe fur will grow back when his levels decline or appear smaller?

MUST be a wind up. Totally UNBELIEVABLE.