What are humane ways to kill a rat?

Rat infestations can be troublesome and quite a nuisance, but on top of that, they also represent a health risk to any humans that may come in contact with them. This is why it is imperative to properly prepare your household and consider the best methods of disposing the rats as soon as possible once you’ve captured them. After all, they are living beings too, and should not suffer horrible deaths or anything that will cause them prolonged pain or agony, so with that in mind, consider the following humane methods that can be used to kill a rat.



First on the list would be asphyxiation by CO2. There are several guidelines to follow in order to properly execute this method, but when it is done properly, the animal will not suffer at all and this is one of the best methods to euthanize it. You will need baking soda and vinegar, and by mixing these two, you will create the gas that will asphyxiate the rodent in the most pain-free way possible. Prepare a plastic container where you will put the rat, and prepare a plastic bag where you will mix the baking soda with the vinegar and then attach a hose that connects the container to the bag. Once everything is connected and you’ve made sure that there are no leaks in the hose, you can start to slowly pour the vinegar in the bag which will start creating carbon-dioxide that will travel through the short hose and into the container with the rat, he will start to lose consciousness from the lack of oxygen and quickly day after that with almost no pain at all.

The next method is somewhat more common, this would include the use of spring traps to quickly and effectively kill the rodent. Make sure that the traps are sturdy and powerful enough to cause a quick death instead of just injuring the rat, set them in a place that is accessible with some bait that is fresh. Leave it for some time and check the trap regularly, also don’t forget to change the bait to keep it fresh. Once the rat has been caught and killed, dispose of it in the safest way possible.

The last method involves relocating the rats to another environment. This would require you to capture the rats and then clean up the entire habitat that they’ve used in your household. This will render it impossible for them to consider going back to it once they’ve been released outside. They are usually unable to survive longer than 48h outside the environment that provides them with no food or conditions similar to the place they’ve infested at first.

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