So Spike Eats Gems...

[Inkscape 113]

I was watching the "Dog and Pony Show" Episode this morning, and i realized something: Spike eats gems, which can only mean he has some major jaw strength, and his teeth! Probably reading too far into this. I mean, he is a dragon after all.

[Concord Discord 35]

His biting power would best a Daspletosaurus.

And that's saying something.

As TVTropes would say, maybe a wizard did it? Like you said, he's a dragon.

[Jeric 46,860]

Combination of impervious dentin, saliva that breaks down tight covalent bonds of inorganic material, and small microscopic bursts of dragon fire make mastication of precious gems possible.

 

Also, magic!

 

Yo Mr White! Pony science!

[Heliodor 156]

Not only that, but your subject title made me think... what if Spike tried to eat the Elements of Harmony? D:

[Creamy Arty 6,252]

Dude, I'm jealous of Spikes teeth. Mine have had so many problems over the years despite sincere efforts to care for them. Wish I had a set that could endure that kind of abuse.

[M'aiq the Liar 5,804]

Well, gems in ponyland could have the consistancy of a crusty cake. So only the outer layer is semi-tough.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And magic ofcourse. Either that or his saliva is the xenomorph blood.

[Jeric 46,860]

Dude, I'm jealous of Spikes teeth. Mine have had so many problems over the years despite sincere efforts to care for them. Wish I had a set that could endure that kind of abuse.

I've been paying for my dentists annual vacation since 2004.

 

Maybe It's the coffee

[I used to be a stranger 7,994]

His body chemistry is such that eating gemstones is like candy. This makes me believe his scales are actually made from an organic aluminum compound, like how your fingernails are made of calcium.

 

Having abnormal muscle strength would not be out of the question.

[The Crimson Cross 7,532]

I'd say it's some kind of dragon adaptation. It's certain he'd have some decent jaw strength.

It would be reasonable to assume his teeth are pretty strong, BUT he is a "baby" dragon after all.

There's probably some kind of special digestion process too, because well, we all know gems wouldn't come out the same way! 

[Buck Testa 5,505]

Maud Pie has eaten rocks as well and the Pie family literally farms rocks. My guess is rocks and gems have nutritional value in Equestria. I mean just cause you CAN eat something does not mean you wont keel over. Yet Maud and dragons seem perfectly healthy and get their essential vitamins and minerals....

 

[CheeryFox 23,822]

Gems taste like snozzberries. That's why dragons love 'em. 

 

I don't see any dragon having a problem eating said items though. 

[Tao 7,972]

Perhaps gems have a amount of natural magic

in them and dragons need to eat them for their

own energies and such like we see with Spike's

fire and such,  which might explain why they

also hoarded gold and such things in their

caves.

[Orablanco Account 3,707]

Not only that, but your subject title made me think... what if Spike tried to eat the Elements of Harmony? D:

 

I've given this a fair amount of thought before. My guess is that he'd become the Ultimate Lifeform, able to shoot friendship out his nose and fly using controlled bursts of good will and love.

[Everleaf 541]

Yes he would have a pretty powerful jaw even if he is (a baby dragon) if he is to break and eat gems but it may have something to do with magic in the gemstone or the dragon itself allowing the gemstone to be edible to the dragon but not to other species however in general if I had to guess Spike has got a strong jaw in general.  

[Pastel 7,630]

I don't think this is due to his strong jaw: I prefer the idea of dragons having magical teeth.

Edited August 19, 2014 by Blobulle

[Jeric 46,860]

The breadth of ideas around the most simple of questions!

 

Spike would be pleased. Now feed the kid.

 

[Concord Discord 35]

I love how scientific this thread has become.

[Invincible 2,091]

Hmm, admittedly one has to wonder how do dragon teeth appear to be tougher than these gems.

[Sugar Pea 2,682]

I imagine his poop must be worth a fortune. xD

[Brainstorm 4,112]

I've been thinking, the reason why Spike eats gemstones.

 

It might be that the minerals from the gemstones he eats not only satisfy his hunger, but, also, the minerals in the gemstones help to harden his scales.

[cmarston1 5,959]

Spike and dragons in general must have oneheck of a body chemistry in order to do so.

[Compeador 101]

I guess the staff is just borrow some archetypes from the fantasy (western) dragons, you probably heard some dragons will eat some minerals as food, like gemstones, golds(mostly)...
 
the codex I known for this explanation is from the famous D&D series, one of WotC(also belong to Ha$bro)'s publication called Draconomicon- Metallic Dragons, and here's the small part from the book:
 

 

......the scales of a metallic dragon are partly composed of metal ...(skip)... Each scale is infused with whichever metal is natural to that dragon. For example, the scales of a gold dragon are infused with a more durable form of gold ....(skip)... Although a metallic dragon's scales are largely inorganic, the dragon's body produces powerful enzymes that actively bond with and diffuse the metal content throughout their blood. Not only do these enzymes keep scales flexible, they also nourish the living parts of each scale and constantly thicken and replenish the nonliving parts throughout the dragon's life.

...(skip)...

in addition to its regular diet, a metallic dragon occasionally ingests metal objects appropriate to its kind. For example, a steel dragon can devour a mundane sword (with some care) and metabolize its substance. Although eating metal is by no means required for a metallic dragon, doing so increases the rate at which it regenerates lost scales.

 

 

 

so I guess Spike works the similar logic that way, perhaps he also has the `powerful enzymes` to utilize the inorganics and produce the hormone that works like Dopamine, therefore he feels eating gems is very pleasant.

Edited February 10, 2017 by Compeador

[Widdershins 9,960]

   Think one thing we're overlooking here is the consistency of rocks.  As brought up before, Maud at least has bitten clean through a diamond before (or whatever those cheap clear blocks that were on Rarity's hat of she-surely-should-have-known-better-ness) and the Pie family regularly serves up rock soup, something else that Applejack bit through. While we can debate as to the taste or dietary benefits to this, we at least know it isn't all that uncommon for rocks to be used as baking ingredients. Pinkie once made a sapphire cupcake for Spike, the image of which serves as a symbol for posting rank on these forums. Judging by the look of that, it wasn't all that hard for Pinkie to reduce a good hoof-sized gem (because we've always seen gems naturally occuring as hoof-sized or larger) to mere splinters in order to not only sprinkle on top, but mix into the batter/icing. Not unlike shredding a potato.

   So I hazzard that "gems" aren't really rocks as the human layperson may think of it. That in Equestria rocks & gems are basically not far removed from simply naturally occurring candy that rarely just crops up in some patches of dirt.

   We don't see ponies eating gems specifically & judging by the mild shock of finding out that Maud can bite through rock, one can assume that eating rocks might be a trait one can train. Ponies don't necessarily eat gems, but they can eat rocks for an extremely cheap way to get the bare nutrition they need. Perhaps at one point in their evolutionary line, if needed they could resort to eating rocks if grass was scarce. As I'm sure any geologist could back up, there are likely rocks soft enough for even human teeth to bite through, its just a matter of digesting said matter. I've heard its not unusual for a real horse to eat meat or bone if it so chooses. Dragons probably take this a step further than primal ponies by eating the rocks that are more organized in their structure which gives them the more shiny appearance of a gem.

 

   This still can mean there's still hard rocks for uses such as mason architecture as we see in the more upscale tenements of Canterlot. Just Equestrian earth has a much wider array of uses & hardness which also goes a way towards explaining how a rock farm stays in business. They happen to have their farm built ontop of a cave of pink crystal so its an area rich in rock diversity.

 

  In summary, its not a question of how hard Spikes teeth are, but how soft the rocks are!

[sweetolebob18 728]

"In my youth" said he

"I took to the law

and argued each case with my wife.

And the muscular strength that it gave to my jaw,

Has lasted the rest of my life."

 

Dragons (especially Spike) eating gems has been referenced in many episodes.  Even though gems are obviously cheaper in EQ than on Earth (several places show Rarity using them like rhinestones & ponies seem to use them for money, at least occasionally), it still must cost quite a bit to feed Spike.

[Tropico 226]

before entering this post i wouldnt belive that it would be so much interesting to read omg i love everything xD