To Be or Not To Be…Valentine Pink. That is the Question.

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Recently when I was taking photos of Sammy and Miss Kitty (our two cats), I noticed for the first time the discrepancy in the colors of Miss Kitty’s and Sammy’s noses. Miss Kitty has a Valentine pink nose. In contrast, Sammy has a dark colored nose.

Our veterinarian was at our dinner party a couple of weeks ago. I took the opportunity to ask him my very important question: “Why do some cats have pink noses and others have dark noses?” I anticipated an explanation of a phenomenon. However, that phenomenal explanation is simply, “It’s in the genes.”

Now, maybe all of you reading this are thinking, “Duh, Louise, the answer to that question is just common sense.” But, I do know that I wasn’t the only one at the table that night wondering the same thing!

Miss Kitty and her Valentine pink nose. (Click photo to enlarge.)

Soft-spoken Sammy. (Click photo to enlarge.)

Best buds, Sammy and Miss Kitty. (Click photo to enlarge.)

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Tags: cats, noses

This entry was posted on February 12, 2010 at 8:00 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

4 Responses to “To Be or Not To Be…Valentine Pink. That is the Question.”

Clara Hoover Says:
February 12, 2010 at 9:13 pm | Reply
Not only is Miss Kitty’s nose Valentine pink, it’s also sort of Valentine shaped.
Marti Says:
February 14, 2010 at 9:56 am | Reply
I noticed the same thing, Clara.

Even though the reason for the coloring is “genes” – I’m wondering if there are particular types or breeds of cats that more commonly have one color than the orther.
mona Says:
February 18, 2010 at 8:13 pm | Reply
Ooh they are adorable together. What a couple of sweeties. 🙂

This is merely my observation but the pink nosed cats are the ones with white (or light) skin around the nose and the dark nosed cats will most often have dark fur by the nose. Its a matter of pigmentation. And medium colored cats (let’s say orange for instance) will have pink noses because once again there is no dark pigmentation on the cat.

So if a cat has black spots and the spots touch or cross the nose the cat will have a dark nose. If not, it’s usually pink.
Louise Gunderson Shimon Says:
March 2, 2010 at 10:33 pm | Reply
You know, Mona, your explanation makes perfect sense. As in, why didn’t I (or anyone else I talked with) think of that??? Thank you.

Marion Gunderson Art (and the Farmer's Daughter)