I could put braces on a shark, if I was appropriately trained. I think that we could consider doing this either to a live, but anaesthetised shark, in which case I would need a veterinary degree, an orthodontics degree and an engineering degree, which would cost around $200,000 for the veterinary degree plus around $1,100,000 for the orthodontics training including a four year undergraduate and a graduate degree in dentistry plus $50,000 for the engineering degree. So we’re talking close to 1.5 million dollars for this route.

If you wanted to go the dead shark route, let’s replace the veterinary degree with a taxidermy certificate, which while much cheaper (at around $5-10,000) may not be sufficient. On the other hand, it is clear that Damian Hurst has what it takes, so you would need a degree from Goldsmith’s College which will cost on the order of $20,000 plus the costs of living in London. This route is thus somewhat cheaper, but still pricey as you still need the orthodontics degree.

Then there is my time to do all of these, which, by the looks of things would be around 10-15 years. I will not give you my hourly rate over a 15 years period. To be honest, it’s probably going to be easier to do it yourself.