[wizofaus]

Other animals don't eat nearly as much sugary food, or food of a sort that tends to get stuck in your mouth (non-processed food like corn on the cob can do so, but even that's a product of domestication and not so widely eaten by other animals - our dog loves it, but canine teeth are spaced further apart and shaped in such a way it's less likely for bits to get lodged between them. Also I gather dogs at least have much more powerful anti-bacterial agents in their saliva.)

[giantg2]

"Other animals"

Most other animals (at least mammals with teeth) don't live as long. Many do suffer from dental issues if untreated. For example, horses may live into their 30s in domestic settings, which include dental care. Wild horses typically live 15-20 years. If they survive other perils, one of the causes of their earlier death can be starvation or malnourishment due to not being able to chew their food.

[taeric]

Yeah. I tried hinting at that in my first post. Pets will have teeth issues as they get older. Much of that comes from nutrition learning, though.

Humans seem particularly prone to midlife tooth issues. With the obvious caveat that humans also are prone to ignorance dominating the things we believe. :)

[wizofaus]

Sure, but humans often have issues with cavities well before even reaching adulthood.

[taeric]

The food that gets the most stuck in my teeth is meat. Pretty much period. Close second will be stringy vegetables.

Which is to say, you aren't really wrong. But it is clearly more nuanced. I put a longer response to another post. I am not trying to find a single answer here. If we are lucky and there is one, I'm all for it. But, in general, I am very skeptical of many of these simplistic answers.

[wizofaus]

I'd hazard that cooked meat is more likely to have that issue than raw meat. And as another poster pointed out, it's possibly more relevant what food sticks to the outer surface of your teeth, though I'm pretty sure any source of food around your teeth that bacteria can grow on is likely to lead to cavities.

[viraptor]

Meat and stringy stuff gets stuck between teeth, not to teeth. It's the stuff that sticks to the teeth, provides cover and environment for bacteria to grow is (a big part of) the problem. The things that are actually stringy are usually easy to remove. Things that stick to the surface - less so.

[taeric]

As someone that doesn't have any cavities, I'm well aware of many of the subtle points. I also am well aware of just how scatter shot so much advice is... And how dominant genetics can be in this.

[giantg2]

The thing that typically gets stuck to teeth even with a good diet are minerals found in saliva.

[xhkkffbf]

Celery in my case.