Lithuim t1_j2a5uss wrote
Animal teeth last their entire lifetime, because they starve and die as soon as there’s a problem.
They don’t eat much acidic or sugary foods so rapid decay isn’t all that likely, but they definitely do have problems as they age. It’s a significant cause of mortality among aging carnivores since their teeth are also their primary survival mechanism.
Chillay_90 OP t1_j2a71pt wrote
As I'm laying here, with a tooth recently extracted, I just realized that when I wrote the question I was thinking that majority of animals actually lived til "old age" when in reality that is the rarity not the common.
Lithuim t1_j2a7xvc wrote
Yeah mother nature is more of a Thunderdome kinda woman. More social animals do sometimes get some help past their prime from their younger kin, solitary carnivores are pure kill or be killed.
Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments