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.

Ok, I'll tell my story, which is not pretty, but may, in some small way make you feel better Cliff, if only because it isn't your story. I had mine out in my early 20s, all four at once. All four impacted. The dentist had to cut each one into pieces to get it out. When they were done (it took a team), I was given codeine. I am very seriously sensitive to codeine. The dentist was told this. He didn't listen. So my mouth was so swelled up I couldn't really open it, and I was puking. Yep, out my nose. For days. Codeine is a sensitivity that gets worse each time you take it. That was my last time. It can screw with your stomach so that no amount of bread and milk will fix it. You just have to go empty, and starve for awhile, to get it out of your system. The dentist had one ray of sunshine for all of that agony. He said if I had been puking through my mouth, I might have infected the holes. Thanks doc. Next time, read the chart, that clearly says I will puke on codeine. Hope you're feeling better, or at least better than the kid who was puking through her nose did. :)

I had braces two+ decades ago now, and still wear my retainer. It's only an upper one because they did a permanent on my lowers which is cemented to the back side of the front 4 (maybe 6? it stops after the lower incisors/canines)...As a result, my teeth are still perfectly straight after all this time. No cavities until I got my first, was 27 at the time. Only two additional ones and a chipped edge on the lower molar furthest back which the dentist did a crown on so that I wouldn't end up needing a root canal down the road. I got sick with various respiratory illnesses on what generally was an annual basis when I was a child, so the doctor would prescribe a round of antibiotics each time. This took care of the illness but also made my permanent teeth yellowed. Can't have everything work out perfectly. ;) The bleaching gel you use custom trays for, and only available through the dentist, those helped but using them too frequently causes me tooth sensitivity so that's something I do sparingly and just for maintenance. I may have spent my entire life before 2017 in SoCal, but I don't need blindingly white Hollywood teeth. No yellow corn kernels either. ;)

Had a routine check-up for my 14 yr. old cat, Chloe in Oct. Her blood tests were all normal, but she had gingivitis and needed some teeth removed. We felt we should do this and could prolong her life. Never were we told of what the consequences could be. She was perfectly healthy. Had good appetite and was loving her KD. She almost died 4 yrs ago, of some kind of poisoning. This could have affected her kidneys. They brought her back then. After surgery, they gave her the opiated meds, stayed over night, no antibiotics. She was lifeless when brought home. Two days later, I knew something was not right. She didn't move. Sat. we took her to vet again. They administered G-SubQ fluids, and noticed the suture had come out. So, they gave her antibiotics then and gave us the meds to take home. She was a basket case. They had said to give the pain meds 12hrs apart but after 7 hrs. at home they said give her more. We didn't want to but we did. By Sunday, she was still not responding. Brought her in again on Mon., they gave her fluids and more meds and this time a shot of anti-biotics that lasts 12 days. By Tues, we brought her in again and she stayed over night where they put IV in and did blood tests and had an ultra sound to see what was going on. They thought she had kidney stones blocking but it turned out to be an enlarged heart. How did this happen? We brought her home on Wed. and had questions for the Dr. Called 4 times and never returned a call. She had pooped and peed and we thought maybe thats a sign. We stopped giving her the opiate. We administered a different antibiotic they sent us home with. Meanwhile she had stopped eating the whole time. By this time we felt we should feed her through a syringe, since the vet never mentioned anything about feeding her. Later we gave her the fluids at home and then gave her the antibiotic they had given us. By this time she was lifeless. Thurs., and Fri came and went. No call from the vet asking how she was doing, NOTHING!! We were on our own. Chloe passed Sat. morning peacefully at 4am. She became so weak couldn't even stand.We were with her till her last breath. We are so sick now. We brought her in to prolong her life and this is what happened. Never did they tell us what the consequences could be. Doing research now and the opiate meds they gave her, say not to give to cats with kidney problems. I feel they overmedicated her and gave her the wrong meds. She was great before we brought her in. Had a healthy appetite, showed nothing of any pain. Still no word from the VET!! I think they know what they did. I truly believe this was malpractice. We miss her so much. It's so hard.