Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is there anyway someone could help me here with how to kill mice?

I honestly dont think i can snap their neck, and I don't really trust the whole co2 thing.

Is there any other way I can do this because I'm really getting scared of feeding him live mice!

Well, I used to have a real bad time with this. What I do is grab them by the tail and whack them over something hard like the ground or a stair, really quickly. They die straight away. It's horrid but it has to be done... I give them to my snakes while they are still warm....

Buy frozen rodents in bulk off the internet Its the best way to go. You dont have to kill them and its cheaper then going to a pet store every week to buy a mouse or rat. I save about 100 dollars a year by buying in bulk off the internet. www.rodentpro.com is a good place to buy them.

Rob Woods

I think the best way is to take the mouse,put it in a plastic bag,throw another plastic bag around the other bag,twirl it around a few times in the air and on your last twirl smack it against the floor,You will learn how hard of a hit is required after a few times

Usually no blood involved,And you don't have to watch it die

i grab the mouse by the tail and whip it at the ground
works great and its very quick for the mouse so it doesn't have to suffer

As somebody else mentioned, the best method is to buy frozen food and feed them. It's cheaper, it's easier (at least you won't have to kill them), and it generally means a bit milder temperament for the snake.

If you must feed live, there is one trick I recommend. It's called the cervical snap. I don't like cruelty so this is the most humane (and non-bloody) way I've ever found. It works great with mice but not so easy with rats.

With mice, I personally pick them up by the tail, put my hemostats around their neck, and pull. It separates their spine at the base of their neck and it's over. No screeching, no blood, and it's quick. Another way is to hold one by the tail and let them try to run away. Take a pencil, ruler, hemostats, screwdriver, etc., and pin their neck down to the surface (usually a table I suppose...I'd recommend newspaper or something else on the table). Press hard and then pull their tail. Same result.

It is snapping their neck, but at least it's not real horrible and it doesn't require any smacking or slamming

Good luck,
Jason @ Jason's Jungle

Jason is absolutely right on about this one. This is the only method I ever use anymore, and I have tried a lot of them. (If you have ever had to kill 4 or 5 hundred mice at a time, your arm is about to fall off towards the end- with the slam them into something method! With the cervical dislocation method, you don't also kill yourself in the process! I find it works well with rats also as long as they are only about 1/2 grown or smaller. It's very hard to do with adult rats.

Dry ice would be nice if it was more available and cost effective.

Rodney

The snapping the neck trick is good because after you paralyze them they are brain dead but their heart beats for awhile so they stay warm. After you break their nec they might kick their back feet but it's just neves. Like when a house gecko's tail breaks off.

actually...just whack(slap,bounce,bump,hit,whap....pick a word)....them against a hard surface...whole body..not just the head.or they will bleed if you just get the tip of the nose.....

feed live if ball eats readily........

mouse will bite you once he smells snake.......they just know these things.........

......I fed live for lots of years.....never a bad deal yet....bites yes,blood yes,,they live..

te only bite I never want to see is a mouse bite the eye and pop it (on my snake..)......

........didn't happen yet....hundreds of mice a week........

JY

This is easiest for me. That way I don't have to try and grab the mouse while it is still alive. Just whack the bag against the wall or a table. Open the bag and you have a nice, fresh, dead mouse!

-Paul

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