ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
by cecilia

Hi everyone, Bubble and I met another maltese while taking a walk earlier. While playing with the maltese, I noticed that this 3 year old has ugly dark patches on his tummy and inner thighs. I am wondering if this is a norm for older dogs as Bubble is only 9 months old or is there any preventive measure? Plus what is the cause and is there ways to treat it. I would like to advise this lady if I bump into her again. Thanks for all the advise.

DISCUSSION:

I have noticed those spots on my own dog, Fluffy. He is currently 6 months old, and he has dark patches on his back, and side. I am taking him to the vet to see what they could be. If anyone knows what it could be, plese reply so I can ease my mind ;-) Thanx
-Sammy

The "ugly brown patches you are refering to are pigmentation, these are very desirable. It shows that the dog carries very good pigment, important on a breed of dog that is all white. The more pigment we can get the better. You will also notice dark pigment in other areas also, nose, lips, eyerims. The more sun a Maltese gets the stronger the pigment will come in.
-Carole - Fantasyland

Cloud and Clancy both have these "beauty marks." There have been posts on this topic before, all saying they are comon--like freckles. But I've never heard that bit about these marks being a desirable trait before. Thanks Carole.
-Carina

I see a couple on my dog's bridge of the nose and several on the back of her hind legs. I thought these must be freckles like people get. How come they are desirable, what does this mean? Just curious. I've thought they look cute. I'm glad to know what they are though, but more specific on what they mean, I'm curious to know. Thanks.
-Vicki

Carole, P.S. I forgot to mention--Pixie Bella is out in the sun quite a bit. The kids and I like to play with her outside too.
-Vicki

My Herald is covered with these brown spots that look like freckles. They are all over his tummy, his body and he has an especially large one on his ear. You can't see them, though except when he is soaking wet. His eyes and mouth are rimmed with the spots too, but they are uneven so far.
-Ruth