Dear Bob,
 
Thanks for the extensive info on ferret dental problems.  I had no idea
you were such a dental expert!
 
I have a couple of questions:
 
1. How large was the sample size(s) for your percentages?
 
2. I'm not sure if I understood the anthropology correctly, but did you
say that dental problems arose after polecats became obligate carnivores?
If so, what did they eat before then?
 
3. I am still wondering about my original question that prompted your
dental info: why don't cats have such problems?  As I mentioned, my 14
yr. old cat's teeth weren't as bad as Rocky's at 3.  I fed her kibble
once a day and canned cat food once a day.
 
4. Despite what people think, and as you've said, I have heard that
kibble is no better for cat's teeth than canned food.  As far as ferrets
go, do you think that smaller, thinner pieces of kibble would be less
harmful, if hardness is the issue?  I've noticed that size, thickness,
and crunchiness varies a lot with different brands.
 
5. Besides feeding whole animals, would it help at all to feed ferrets
more canned/baby/chicken gravy type food (since hard kibble is part of
the problem)?  Rocky doesn't like Cheweasles.  How long do you have to
boil the pigs' ears--how soft should it be?  Do those Tartar Control
Cat Treats do anything?  Does chewing on my socked-foot help?
 
6. When brushing, how on earth do you get to those rear-most teeth (the
ones that had all the tartar on them, in Rocky's case)?  I don't know
if it's the size of his mouth or what, but I have a real problem getting
to those teeth that need brushing the most.  Though he hates the brushing
process, and is not so easy to scruff, Rocky does love the
chicken-flavored cat toothpaste (which I mix with a little bit of the
Oxyfresh gel), so he's constantly licking it off the brush before I get
to those back teeth.  My vet said the abrasion process is much more
important than the toothpaste--it figures.  I've been using one of those
brushes you slip over your finger.  Are the cat toothbrushes better in
terms of getting to those back teeth?
 
After reading all of your posts, I am glad I finally found a good vet and
spent the $350 (incl. an initial checkup with a new vet, and another
appt. for the actual cleaning) to get Rocky's teeth cleaned, even though
the vet said Rocky's teeth were just a touch past borderline in terms of
needing professional cleaning.  (BTW, My last dental visit cost the same!
But besides cleaning, I had X-rays and a filling.) I had no idea that so
many diseases were related to periodontal disease, though I have been
concerned about tartar appearing on Rocky's teeth before he was even a
year old.
 
Regarding free-roam, which Rocky is, my vet said is much healthier, and
that his ferret(s) is free-roam too.  Though I had a cage when he was a
kit, both of us wanted to get rid of it.  I noticed that Rocky hated
confinement much more than other ferrets (even though he was only in the
cage a couple of hours during the day, and during the night).  And once
he got so long, I couldn't bear looking at him on a shelf that wasn't as
long as he.  I gradually gave him more and more freedom and when he was
1 1/2 yrs.  old, I put away the cage.  I actually think one of the things
he hated the most about being caged was having to be so close to his
poop.  When he wakes up, wherever he is sleeping, he will actually go
into another room to pee or poop--he doesn't even want it in the same
room as him!  And it must be a totally clean spot; thus one of his
nicknames: "Mr. Clean."
 
Sorry to go on and on.
 
Thanks again,
Shron & Rocky
[Posted in FML issue 4523]