My dear, sweet reviewer suggested I explain dental attrition as bit more
than the offhand comment in the last post.  [Moderator's note: Just so
there's no confusion, I wasn't his dear, sweet reviewer.  This time.  BIG]
 
Kibble is very hard, and causes significant wear to the teeth.  Teeth
naturally wear down as they strike each other during mastication.  While
both types of wear are correctly termed dental attrition, because
distinguishing one type from the other is very important in studies of
paleodiet, I classify natural wear as "contact wear" creating "dental
facets," and wear from diet as "dental wear" creating "dental attrition."
Using the ferret as an example, the carnassial cheek teeth rub against
each other, keeping the leading edges (dental wear facets) sharp.  This
allows a carnivore to eat a tooth-dulling diet for their entire life and
still have sharp cutting teeth.
 
Kibble is cut on these same teeth, but it randomly pits and scratches
the sides of the teeth while at the same time wearing down the crowns,
dulling the teeth.  These pits and scratches are mostly microscopic,
but are plently large enough to provide a foodhold and hiding place
for bacteria.  When filled in with the white substance created by the
interaction of saliva with carbohydrate-rich kibble, you can see why
nothing less than daily tooth brushing and regular cleaning will suffice.
Polishing may clean the crown, but misses cleaning the interior of the
pits and scratches.  For ferrets, another real problem is the extensive
dental attrition caused by eating the hard kibble.
 
I can EASILY distinguish domesticated ferret teeth from wild polecat or
feral ferret teeth, based on nothing more than the amount of tooth wear.
For example, in a ferret eating a natural diet, the carnassials will wear
from striking edge towards the non-striking edge, roughly angled from
lingual (tongue) side to the buccal (cheek) side.  However, in ferrets
eating kibble, the wear is mostly from the top of the crown towards the
gumline.  This is not only unnatural to the tooth, but it drastically
increases the impact of dental calculus, gum disease, microfractures, and
the like.
 
Ferrets eating a natural diet have little mouth odor (I think it is
slightly fishy or meaty, not unpleasant).  Ferrets eating kibble have
(to me) a sour smelling mouth.  Ferrets with bad breath should see a
veterinarian; they probably have dental problems, gum disease, or some
sort of mild oral infection.  Ferrets with red, bleeding, or swollen gums
should see a vet as soon as possible.  If a ferret has a tooth that moves
under finger pressure, see a vet immediately.
 
Discolored teeth in ferrets are mostly due to the death of the root,
usually from fractures or infections.  Have a vet look at all discolored
or fractured teeth.  While broken canines look nasty, they cause no harm,
but if you have the cash, you can have a gold crown fitted (one was once
placed on a black-footed ferret, so it is possible); I just ignore them
as long as I am confident the root pulp isn't exposed, but your vet might
suggest polishing the broken edges.
 
In ferrets eating kibble, eating bone or carcasses is only a partial
solution.  The kibble STILL makes significant microscopic scratches,
creating homes for oral bacteria, so regular dental care is STILL a
requirement.  My ferrets eat 90% non-kibble foods, so the problem is
minimal, but I STILL have their teeth cleaned once a year during their
annual checkup.
 
Bob C
[Posted in FML issue 4113]