One of the first things I noticed five years ago after the surgery to remove Ashton’s eye was how much it changed the shape of one side of her face. Even before the swelling from the surgery went away, that whole side of her face looked surprisingly smaller, almost deflated.
It’s something I see every day, so I don’t think about any more, and until now, I never took a photo that showed the difference in the shape of that side of her face and a normal cat’s. But the photo below happened to be at the exact right angle.
Do you see how you could practically put a ruler along her whole cheekbone, it’s so flat? (Pro tip: don’t stick a ruler in Ashton’s face. Her lack of depth perception means she really doesn’t like that kind of thing.)
Compare the shape of the left side of Ashton’s face to the shape of Pierre’s face, taken at a similar angle.
His face bows outward. It is especially noticeable in the area below his eye, known as the maxillary region. You can see it curves inward to meet the corner of his eye. Ashton’s face does not have that curve. While there is a bone in that part of a cat’s face, the maxilla (the namesake of the maxillary region), it isn’t enough to give the face that characteristic shape. Your cat’s eye does a bit part of that, too.
Of course, the shape of Ashton’s face doesn’t make any difference in how she feels or behaves. Her permanent wink makes her that much more endearing.
I agree about Ashton’s permanent wink making her more endearing!
I believe you but I am afraid I don’t see it. Although I have been accused of not being very observant.
I’ve noticed this before with other cats but I never stopped to think about the why. Ashton is beautiful (as you know no doubt).
So true and the kind of markings they have too can kinda play tricks with the eyes making the shape different.
You three are all beautimous
Hugs madi your bfff
We love Ashton as she is so cute and takes a lot of stick from your boys!
They both have beautiful faces!
good to know about the ruler – hahaha
it is interesting to see the difference….though we think it just makes her cuter
Never noticed this before.
Jack is missing all of his teeth on one side of his face now, and it has changed the shape of his face too.
ashton…ewe iz gorgeouz frum everee angle !!! ☺☺☺♥♥♥
That is very interesting. Ashton is still a beautiful girl.:)
It is interesting how small things like an eye can play such a large part in looks. Ashton is a purrrRRRrrrfectly beautiful cat.
Sarah and Shadow
It’s amazing to think of how each and every feature of the face plays a role in the big picture. No matter what, though, Ashton is gorgeous!
My angel Rosie had to have an eye removed at the age of 21, and after that surgery I noticed that that side of her face more or less “deflated” a little. I didn’t mind at all, though, and I also liked to call it her permanent wink. My little lady Eddy has facial nerve paralysis on her right side, and so her face doesn’t quite “sit right”, for lack of better words. Again, though, I don’t mind one bit. She’s especially cute when she’s tired, because then she looks a little extra droopy and it pretty much melts my heart.
Interesting observation! I think that Ashton is beautiful even with the slightly unusual face shape. Many times, the most praised and noteworthy parts of a piece of art are the mistakes the artist chose to keep. 🙂
She’s absolutely purr-fect 🙂
We all think you’re a total cutie Ashton!
It’s what makes Ashton extra special!
She’s a beauty no matter what. Our old bro Eddie had a condition where his eye was affected and it changed his face, too. But we loved him just as you love Ashton.
Ashton is perfect just the way she is and her face isn’t funny.
Ashton is absolutely beautiful no matter what
We never even thought about the change in the shape of the face. Ashton is beautiful to us!
We all agree Ashton is totally endearing and just beautiful especially Mr Jinx.
*winks*
This is so true. And I’ve never really thought about it before. My Lucy lost both of her eyes, and her face is very sharp and foxy, when compared to my other cats!
Jean from Welcome to the Menagerie
We cant see the difference. We guess we just see other kittehs as they are. It takes the special Bein they live with to see.