Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Somewhere i read about a kill box, to snuff rats and whatever you wanted snuffed, and i havent been able to find out anything more. After doing some research, i found that for a moderate price i could make my own with just a CO2 tank / regulator ( found and filled at any weld shop), some plastic tubing, rubbermaid box and....add the rat. Well you could kill them on the spot and then toss in the cage. I have been feeding live, as i deteste Ratscicles, and I have to sit and watch the kill as i do not want my animals to get bit. AND there is no way I will snap their necks! I want to start breeding my own rats as my collection is costing me a ton to feed......

( FYI the CO2 does not affect the rat by introducing any chemicals to the snake)

I thought about actually making this kill box. Does it sound practicle? Does anyone use one? Am i missing something?

Thanks in Advance!

I was told to use a box with a bowl of water, some dry ice and a lid... It works well, they just go to sleep..Blue

thanks for the reply......but i wanted to avoid the dry ice as it is not as "humane" for the rat......read all about it in science writings on how to kill a rat.

The dry ice takes too long and the results can be mixed. The rat may not die or just pass out and come to if you toss it in the cage. With the kill box....a premeasured amount kills them instantly. And you know they are dead.

Maybe the kill box is overload....but i dont want a pissed off rat on my hands.......the ones i have to use are huge!

oh yeah and i remembered the other reason.....keeping and storing dry ice is not practicle. .......also the Alka Seltzer thing doesnt work either.

to using dry ice when it comes to feeders..

you dont set a piece of dry ice in a box and throw the rats right in.. this just wont work..

you have to place the dry ice into a small conainter inside the larger container.. one with TALL SIDES is best..

then add a small amount of water to the dry ice and leave the lid off for 5-10 minutes.. this allows the C02 to build up inside the "kill box" and pushes out the oxygen for the rodents..

place a rag over the top of the dry ice container.. and toss in the rats..

if the concentration is high enough.. the rats pass out before they even hit the floor.. leave them in for an additional 2-3 minutes and ur all set..

the same goes for a CO2 regulator and box.. if the concentration isnt high enough the rat could wake up during the swallowing process..

the feeder forum is a good place to check for any type of feeder questions too.. people have pics and everything..

best of luck

dan

thanks dan..i checked out the feeder forum ( didnt even realize it was there! Doh!)and wow....didnt realize all the stuff involved in raising rats. So thanks for steering me there....

I think I am gonna go with a CO2 tank and not the dry ice. I just needed feedback that i wasnt wanting something impractical or unnecessary.....but it looks like a lot of people use the tanks.

If you have any details or experience putting one together i would sure be interested.

Thanks again

I use CO2 gas to kill rats. It's probably the most practicle, effective set-up you could want. I bought a small CO2 tank and valve from a shop specializing in paintball equipment. They will also refill the tank for $2.00.
Then find yourself an appropriately sized,airtight Tupperwre container. A shallow one is better than a deep one. I simply place the rat(s) in the container, seal it and then lift one corner, where I stick in the CO2 hose. I then fill the container with CO2, remove the hose and re-seal the corner. The rats die within a 1 minute or so.