I would much rather it be a deer or a woodchuck than a rat. We had a nice rain a few hours ago, if it's deer, there may be tracks. I could throw a sheet over them tomorrow night to see if that makes a difference. I came across a site just now that had great solutions for specific animals in the garden. I will keep you posted if I catch this critter in the act or find out what works to stop it.

Baking soda/peroxide~make a paste. Do a treatment every night for the first month. After that, once a week since it *is* hard on the enamel. Advice was given to me by my dentist who did bone graft surgical procedure/dental implants on me several years ago. Not only does it whiten the teeth, but helps with the ph balance of bacteria, good/bad. Also get a hydrofloss! Mine was given to me by him(probably since I was spending buku bucks!) You'll only need to do 'on the spot' flossing if you get something in your teeth while eating!! You can use it every night, sometimes i'll add a little mouthwash. It's a fairly intense spray if you have it turned up all the way. Any loose crowns WILL come out, so do be aware and maybe have the drain closed. A couple of my kids tried mine and loved it so much I gave them as gifts for Christmas. Here is a link that might be useful: hydrofloss

I have been wearing an EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) nightguard on the top jaw for about 18 months as several dentists said my tooth grinding was a problem - some of my molars have cracks in them. I got this nightguard at a chemist warehouse (I am in Australia) for $8. I have a small mouth, but cut it down with scissors to fit. After a few initial sleepless nights I got used to it and found it pretty comfortable. The trouble is that I have recently gradually developed extreme sensitivity in a number of teeth on my left side, and realised that the guard was hugging and covering the left back molars exactly where the pain was developing. I sleep on my right side so overnight my saliva would seep down to the right side of my mouth, and the left side was drying out, as I cannot easily keep my mouth completely closed while wearing the guard. I then realised that I could cut it down a lot smaller as it only needs to cover a few teeth in order to stop my top and bottom rows from touching. I also put some holes in the bottom of it with a skewer to allow my teeth to breathe. But it's like I've developed an allergy to the guard, because pretty much as soon as I put it in my mouth I feel intense pain, so I'm going to have to ditch it. Anyway, there seems to be so little info on the net about what mouth guards are - or should be - made from. I am going to try a really cheap silicone one next and cut it pretty small - luckily I don't move my mouth too much when I sleep, or I would be concerned about choking. And I'm going to make a serious effort to develop mindfulness around any inadvertent grinding I do during the day. Anyway, from my internet research it seems there are heaps of things you can do to make your teeth stronger - Google "remineralizing teeth". You can buy "tooth mousse" to lessen sensitivity, but I read an article on Ayurevedic medicine which said that one of the ingredients in yoghurt is the active ingredient in the mousse - funny, because I'd been craving yoghurt! For tooth health - not to mention everything else health - you need lots of leafy greens! It's better to make your own toothpaste and there are lots of good websites about teeth, like www.healingteethnaturally.com which is rabidly vegetarian, and www.curetoothdecay.com which is rabidly meat promoting. Also, a while ago I wrote an article about tooth health at: http://www.owningpink.com/blogs/owning-pink/biting-the-bullet-taking-the-road-less-travelled-tooth-related-health

Definitely sap. Strange that it's so white. I've cut these before and never experienced sap coming from the wound. I pulled off another chunk to check for water solubility (I was wondering if it could be from extrafloral nectary glands). It softened up a little in hot water and became sticky but also slick. When I went back to look at the opuntia again a few minutes later, I noticed that a new tiny spot had appeared where I'd pulled away the chunk. I used a toothpick to poke a wound near it and another on a green pad. I saw some oozing almost immediately. The upper right spot is where the chunk came from. The lower left is where I stabbed it. Photos elapsed by 20 minutes. I can only figure that contraction and expansion in the corky material around watering may have caused small fissures. I do let this guy dry out pretty severely before watering since the pot doesn't have drainage.