How to kill mice?

Questions and suggestions regarding reptile cuisine.

Postby Natal Black » Sat May 06, 2006 11:31 am

That bucket sh!t is bizarre man ! who would of thaught of that ..what causes the death though? pressure exploding the brains!
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Interesting

Postby Chalk » Sat May 06, 2006 11:51 am

Very interesting indeed :twisted:

I have been wondering the same thing, cause I just put the mice/pinkies in a plastic container with a lid in the freezer, then grab a beer out the fridge and watch tv, usually I forget totally about them until my girlfriend suddenly discovers them if she needs something in the freezer. By then they're usually dead. Dont know if that is very humane but the reaction and beating i get is certainly not humane.

Think next time I shouldnt use a see-through container then she might not spot the little cute fuzzies in the fetal position after freezing to death.

Suddenly that sounds rather cruel, but Im sure she wont approve if I break their necks or smak them against a hard surface. Usually I try to feed live prey but not always possible.

Zop for some cool ideas, oh yeah I have a fire extinguisher at home Think I'll check if its co2, but I think its a dry powder one so i'm not sure if that'll work.
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Postby dragonfire » Sat May 06, 2006 4:55 pm

the easiest, quickest and most humane way to kill an animal is to use co2. it is more freely available than you think. everytime you put a fizzy drink to your mouth think about where the bubbles come from. the bubbles are created using co2 gas. therefor all you need to do is buy yourself a soda stream canister and find a hose and adapter that will fit. get a bucket or large plastic container and drill a hole to fit the hose neatly and tightly. also drill another small hole to allow air to escape the container when you turn on the gas canister. those canisters by the way have a valve that releases the gas. i use suremix canisters. they are the big gas canisters you see under a k-way machine in a restuarant or niteclub ( coke machine ). they are nice because they last a very long time and they have a handle you can turn to release the gas slowly or fast. normally it is seconds and the animal is out cold. it is like they just go to sleep. no mess no fuss no blood everywhere from thumping. i definately would urge anybody who feeds dead prey items to think about killing the animal humanely. a story comes to mind of a friend who used to buy five or six adult chickens a week for his burms and retics. he would ring their necks with his hands. one day he did this but his snakes werent interested in eating so he took all but one chicken and put them in a chest freezer. ten mins later he went to put the other chicken in the freezer. as he opened the freezer three of the chickens came rushing out at him with their necks bent to one side. he got the fright of his life and thought their ghosts were coming for revenge or something. he had just stunned the chickens, not killed them, their necks were dislocated or something because they were bent to one side and could not be straightened. i wont tell you how he had to finish them off. it wasnt pretty. i am not getting preachy but spare a thought for an animal needlessly in pain.
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Postby horridus » Sat May 06, 2006 8:40 pm

NBS, the cause of death is asphyxiation and blunt force trauma, but to could be anything as long as it is quick.

Freezing is probably the worst way to kill anything including reptiles. Metabolic water freezes before death and the ice crystals from that poke holes in the cell walls, which is extremely painful. The most humane way to kill mice as I mentioned is CO2 and I agree with Terrance there. It is not always feasible and if you going to clip just one mouse, I would say tonk it on the head or do the cervical dislocation thing. I know about chickens, we used to have to kill chicks and chickens all the time at FSP in the 90's and you try and get really good at a really crappy job.
According to the AHA, anything that causes instant painless death is ok in mammals, that can be gun shot, tonking , stomping etc. I just try and come away with a feeling that the animal was dead quick and that makes me feel a lot better. That being said, I buy 500 frozen mice a month so I don't have to death with the killing thing, but it still does pop up once in a while. good luck. cheers don
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Postby Snakes Incorporated » Sat May 06, 2006 11:18 pm

Baking soda (Bicarbonate of soda) and Vinegar (diluted Hydrochloric acid) = CO2

Mix the two substances in a container add rodents and euthenics.
O`yes seal for a short time in a plastic bucked/bin as CO2 gas will do the wicked thing. :twisted:
Don’t kill it, if you are not planning to eat it.
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Postby froot » Sun May 07, 2006 9:37 am

Vinegar is very dilute acetic acid CH3COOH....
CH3COOH + NaHCO3 --> CO2 + H2O + NaCH3COO(sodium acetate)

Hydrochloric acid is available as pool acid and can also be used.

NaHCO3 + HCl --> NaCl(table salt) + H2O + CO2
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Postby RaD » Sun May 07, 2006 10:46 pm

I heard H2SO4 does wonders too!!!

Thought this thread was dead. My great grandpappy always said "you can tell a lot about a man by the way he kills his rodents".
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Postby froot » Mon May 08, 2006 8:12 am

Yes you can use H2SO4 (sulfuric acid) too.

NaHCO3 + H2SO4 --> CO2 + H2O + Na2SO4
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Postby meester50 » Mon May 08, 2006 8:23 am

DragonFire: i use suremix canisters.


Where do you get these canisters from, and more or less how much do they go for?
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Postby Sean » Mon May 08, 2006 9:18 am

something i got of another forum:

"Human studies report that CO2 inhalation is adversive, with a linear relationship between concentration and distress and/or pain sensation - this has raised concern as to the humaneness of the use of CO2 for animals"

The gas molecule essentially diffuses in to the blood, body and brain from the lungs. Faced with excessive levels of the gas, the inherent capacity of the blood to buffer for CO2 is overwhelmed and results in acidosis (the lowering of the pH of the blood and associated fluids). Low to moderate concentrations of CO2 cause mild respiratory acidosis leading to a compensatory increase in depth and rate of respiration in an effort to 'blow off' the excess CO2 (hyperventilation), changes in heart rate and blood pressure. Higher concentrations then lead to more profound respiratory acidosis, suppressing the respiratory centres of the brain, leading to a slow, gasping respiratory pattern. :-(

Without the buffering capacity of blood, the pH of the cerebrospinal fluid drops precipitously which is directly related to anaesthetic depth and subsequent insensibility to pain, stupor & finally unconsciousness & death.

Of welfare interest however - and THIS is the question - is the duration and effect PRIOR to insensibility and unconsciousness. Some literature show indications of a state similar to conscious drowning!

Observations that may be consistant with pain or distress have been reported with the use of CO2 and include: increased locomotion, excitation, serious agitation, increased rearing, defecation and urination, irritation of mucosal membranes, hyperventilation, gasping, heads turned upwards and backwards, etc. These signs generally increase in frequency and intensity with the increase in concentration of CO2 from 25 - 100% until aneasthesia is induced.

Other literature that I've read actually say that CO2 is the LEAST preferred inhalation agent when compared to halothane, isoflurane, argon, etc.

Recommendations that I've come across for anaesthesia are halothane for rats, and enflurane for mice, because at the appropriate concentrations they induce a rapid and effective induction with the minimum distress. but now I ask you, where does Joe Schmoe who's 10 years old, get his hands on halothane which is a very volatile liquid? Then, once unconsciousness has been induced, CO2 can be used as a killing agent as the animal is then already unconscious.


personally think the only "humane" way to kill a rodent is hitting its head against a wall with enuf force to kill it 1st time
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Postby dragonfire » Mon May 08, 2006 5:47 pm

i own a niteclub in durban so i just take a canister when i need to replace one. the canisters are rented for the coke machines and refilled weekly for my club. i have like twenty canisters refilled a week. its actually very cheap to rent and refill. the companys name i get my suremix from is called AFROX. if i remember correctly they supplied me my hose and connector as well.
the other solution would be to buy a couple of cans of coke, put the mice in a bag, drink the coke and burp into the bag. you just burping co2 :lol: :lol:
hope this helps.
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Postby Bushviper » Mon May 08, 2006 9:47 pm

You can also sell your burps in Durban it seems.

Just dont know if the snakes will like the curry smell.
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Postby froot » Mon May 08, 2006 9:59 pm

LOL!!
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Postby dragonfire » Tue May 09, 2006 4:56 pm

LOL- i was waiting for a comeback line on my stupid comment. good one bushviper. :lol:
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Postby snake_freak » Fri Jul 21, 2006 3:17 am

Here's a link for simple instructions to making a CO2 gas chamber.

http://www.herphabitats.com/reptile_information/simple_co2_chamber.htm
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