# Show Your Rat & Mouse DIY Racks & Set Ups!!!



## JrFear (Sep 14, 2012)

*Show Your Rat &amp; Mouse DIY Racks &amp; Set Ups!!!*

As the title says i want to see your DIY set ups and racks you have built for you mice and rats!
im in the middle of planning my own set up! so if any one wants to share there plans that would be fantastico!

Jesse

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any one?


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## andynic07 (Oct 5, 2012)

The tubs are a little deep because I have an Edstrom watering system but I just put a brick in the tub for the rats to reach the nipple, the biggest tip I could give you is find your tubs first and look around for the perfect size. I have also built my own CO2 chamber.


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## someday (Oct 5, 2012)

is it easy to CO2 them im intersted in breeding my own but not to keen on killing them incase i stuff up the first few times


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## nervous (Oct 5, 2012)

someday said:


> is it easy to CO2 them im intersted in breeding my own but not to keen on killing them incase i stuff up the first few times



I prefer to slam my rats... it may sound terrible, but i have found this to be the quickest and easiest way to kill them.
I do have a soda stream set up, but I don't like the way it kills, the rats struggling to breath etc..., put me off, plays on my emotions. 1 slam and there dead.


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## Colubrid (Oct 5, 2012)

nervous said:


> I prefer to slam my rats... it may sound terrible, but i have found this to be the quickest and easiest way to kill them.
> I do have a soda stream set up, but I don't like the way it kills, the rats struggling to breath etc..., put me off, plays on my emotions. 1 slam and there dead.



That's the same way I cull mine.


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## andynic07 (Oct 5, 2012)

someday said:


> is it easy to CO2 them im intersted in breeding my own but not to keen on killing them incase i stuff up the first few times




It is really easy to CO2 them and the suggested way by the RSPCA.


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## loungelizard (Oct 5, 2012)

I prefer the slam method myself , quick easy and cheap !


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## shabbyy (Oct 5, 2012)

What do you slam them with?


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## nervous (Oct 5, 2012)

Sabohan said:


> What do you slam them with?


I slam them onto the concrete floor... just make sure there is enough force to kill it with one hit, otherwise the rat will be suffering. You can also hold them by the tail and swing them into the edge of a hard corner, hitting around the back of the neck area, tho I don't do that method as there seems to be more blood from my experience.


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## andynic07 (Oct 5, 2012)

This is my CO2 canisters, they are 90mm stormwater pipe with a cap one end , screw on lids the other end and 8mm brass connector for connecting the hoses each end. The tall one is 700mm and the short one is 350mm. I connect the gas bottle to the bottom of the canister with 8mm hose and a one way valve to the top of the canister and then to a long balloon. I use the balloon as a guide to see how much CO2 is in the canister, when the balloon is the size of the canister the canister is full. The one way valve is the type used for home beer systems that are pressurised by CO2.


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## shabbyy (Oct 5, 2012)

nervous said:


> I slam them onto the concrete floor... just make sure there is enough force to kill it with one hit, otherwise the rat will be suffering. You can also hold them by the tail and swing them into the edge of a hard corner, hitting around the back of the neck area, tho I don't do that method as there seems to be more blood from my experience.



So you just chuck 'em on the ground real hard? Man..I couldn't do something like that. Would rather the CO2 method.


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## nervous (Oct 5, 2012)

Sabohan said:


> So you just chuck 'em on the ground real hard? Man..I couldn't do something like that. Would rather the CO2 method.


Yep.
As I said earlier, better for me this way as the rats die straight away. 

If you do c02 and watch the process you may see why I prefer the slam method... Its pretty much the same as a python squeezing them, struggling to breath, watching the mouths and bodies trying to suck in air etc.. Not a nice thing to watch!


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## Hamalicious (Oct 8, 2012)

I read that you are meant to introduce enough co2 to put them to sleep/unconscious and then crank it up to finish them off so that they aren't struggling to breath or in pain


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## JrFear (Oct 8, 2012)

Thanks for your inputs guys! As CO2 gassing was my next question!
with slamming wouldnt it be messy! all i can think that when i do cull X amount at a time to freeze im going to have bags of blood!

By the way this is a "Show Your Rat & Mouse DIY Racks & Set Ups" thread so i do want to loads more set ups please!


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## Fuscus (Oct 8, 2012)

My setup including a harvest and some of the guards that patrol for escapees


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## Blake182 (Oct 8, 2012)

When I gas mine with Co2 I get a plastic bag put some wood shavings in there then put the mice in there then put the soda stream nasal in the bag and squirt the gas in there then shake the bag around to make sure there dead


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## Grogshla (Oct 8, 2012)

oi_itz_blake96 said:


> When I gas mine with Co2 I get a plastic bag put some wood shavings in there then put the mice in there then put the soda stream nasal in the bag and squirt the gas in there then shake the bag around to make sure there dead



How does that method work for you mate.
Most people put them in a click clack with 2 holes. One to put the gas in and one so a bit of the air inside can escape. Seems easier.


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## JrFear (Oct 8, 2012)

if you guys wanna post pictures of both ur setups and gas chambers by all means go ahead lol!


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## deebo (Oct 8, 2012)

Grogshla said:


> How does that method work for you mate.
> Most people put them in a click clack with 2 holes. One to put the gas in and one so a bit of the air inside can escape. Seems easier.



How is a plastic bag different to a plastic box? A bag work well as you can push most of the air out and the introduce the CO2 as quickly/slowly as you like. I used to use a hessian sack in a plastic bag. I would put the plastic bag in a plastic bin and then put the sack in the bag and put the animals in the hessian sack and they were quite happy in there as it wasnt all slippery and stressful and then roll the hessian sack up in the plastic bag and then over a the space or minute or so slowly introduce the Co2. If the animals were thrashing around inside then I knew I was putting it in too quickly but if they just slowly went to sleep/died I knew i got it right. It only took a few times to get it right......I dont know how shaking the bag would help at all. A bit of sawdust in the bottom helps soak up any pee too but means they often get a bit stuck to them as well.


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## nervous (Oct 8, 2012)

Tonight was clean out night & I also had to cull some...

Here is my rack, Bigger tubs for breeders and growers... Smaller tubs for expecting mothers & nurturing mothers or individual growing tubs.









Here is the place I cull my rats... as you can see there is minimal blood on the floor, in fact out of the 30 rats I culled tonight only 1 rat bled and it was no bigger than a 5c piece!





Here is one of the bags of rats I made up tonight... as you can see, no blood visible!





And here is one of my happy customs from tonight!







Ben


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## rockethead (Oct 8, 2012)

where can you get the water nozzles set ups from


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## nervous (Oct 8, 2012)

rockethead said:


> where can you get the water nozzles set ups from



I brought mine from agselect over in the states...


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## rockethead (Oct 8, 2012)

thanks i'll check them out


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## andynic07 (Oct 9, 2012)

rockethead said:


> where can you get the water nozzles set ups from



There are also dealers in Queensland, NSW and Victoria that supply Edstrom watering systems. I bought mine from the Queensland dealer who is also advertising on this website Kevin James. I choose to use a supplier in Australia because I thought local customer service would be easier to deal with. I think when you take postage into account it was a little more expensive from here.


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## ingie (Oct 9, 2012)

Here are two new racks of mine:

Mouse and maternity:






Rats:





This is my old place and another rack that holds up to 36 tubs. I only use it to half capacity though so I can fit water bottles because the automatic waterer system was driving me crazy and taking more tome to check and adjust each day than filling water bottles. I like the big 250L tubs for 1 male and heaps of females, and then transferring pregnant females into the racks with smaller tubs to have babies.


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## DarwinBrianT (Oct 9, 2012)

Ingie, that looks like a lot of work!! Well set up though. How do you feed them is it just in bowls? How quick do rats grow?


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## ingie (Oct 9, 2012)

They all have hoppers. The blue tubs have hoppers inside. I didn't want it on top because it encourages wild rats to come and eat it 
Rats grow pretty quickly lol.


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## DarwinBrianT (Oct 9, 2012)

ingie said:


> They all have hoppers. The blue tubs have hoppers inside. I didn't want it on top because it encourages wild rats to come and eat it
> Rats grow pretty quickly lol.



That's a good idea, I was wondering how people got on with keeping wild rats away with the out side setups. Thanks.


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## nervous (Oct 9, 2012)

DarwinBrianT said:


> That's a good idea, I was wondering how people got on with keeping wild rats away with the out side setups. Thanks.



well it doesn't keep wild rats away, they would still be able to come up to the cages... it just means they cant get the food as it is inside the cage.


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## deebo (Oct 9, 2012)

ingie - do you find the rats chew on the inside of the tubs? I ran those tubs for a while and found they would chew on the lugs inside the tub.....


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## K.Sparky (Oct 10, 2012)

Hi, 
Just in regards to the watering nipples, 
What prices are you getting from the States, so I can see what I can do (don't forget to take into account the international freight cost)?
As I would like to be able to service Australia with the full Edstrom range and being a local dealer will be a lot easier for people to deal with and much quicker than waiting for international freight.
Thanks for your time,
Kevin.


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## andynic07 (Oct 10, 2012)

K.Sparky said:


> Hi,
> Hi,
> Just in regards to the watering nipples,
> What prices are you getting from the States, so I can see what I can do (don't forget to take into account the intenational freight cost)?
> ...



The 6 piece vari-flow add on kit was about $35 plus $20 delivery to Australia


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## nervous (Oct 10, 2012)

Here is what it would cost me to get 1 of everything i would need to set up a rat rack... obviously i would need more of everything, but just to answer your question.

Fitting Barbed Elbow 3/16"barb x 3/16"barb, plastic x1	=$0.67
Mounting Clip for Vari-Flo Drinking Valve with 3/16"barb x1=$0.51
Loop Clamp with Screw for 3/16"Flex-Tubing x1	=$0.32
Tank Connector with 3/16"barbed, valved outlet x1 =	$8.90
Flex-Tubing 3/16"id, Black PVC * per foot* x1 =	$0.25
Fitting Barbed Tee 3/16"barb x 3/16"barb x 3/16"barb, plastic x1 = $0.53
Edstrom Vari-Flo Valve, 3/16"barb, Brass x1 = $3.99
Drain-Vent, Barbed, 3/16"barb x1 = $3.15
Subtotal: $18.32
Shipping & Handling: $15.34
Tax: $0.00
Order Total: $33.66 ALL IN USD$


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## K.Sparky (Oct 10, 2012)

Ok thanks,
My price is $42.25 for the kit plus $9.55 express post Australia wide.
For the above lot at my current price would work out at $21.65 plus $9.55 post.
So works out a little cheaper and then we offer a discount on all orders over $105.

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Maybe I should see if I can drop my prices a little more to make it more attractive for people to purchase from me, rather than Edstrom (do not think I am trying to take business away from Edstrom, they are happy to have an Australian dealer as it makes it easier on them sending one larger order rather than multiple smaller orders).
Just need to make people aware that I have the stock here ready to go.
I am in the process of setting up a web site.
Thanks Kevin.

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By the way these are the rat rack systems that I have been building, this one is not quite finished yet.


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## JrFear (Oct 14, 2012)

K.Sparky said:


> Ok thanks,
> - - - Updated - - -
> 
> By the way these are the rat rack systems that I have been building, this one is not quite finished yet.
> View attachment 267405




sparky are these for sale?


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## K.Sparky (Oct 14, 2012)

Hi, 
I have only been making them for friends up until now.
I have had quite a few people interested in them so I am going to advertise them and start taking orders from other APS members.
PM me for prices if interested.
I will try to get an ad posted in the coming days.
Thanks.


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## JrFear (Oct 14, 2012)

thanks kevin

on another note i wanna see more set ups!


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## solar 17 (Oct 14, 2012)

JrFear said:


> thanks kevin
> 
> on another note i wanna see more set ups!


+1


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## JrFear (Oct 15, 2012)

show us ur rack :lol:
come on people i no more of you breed your snake food so let me see ur racks or setups!


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## rockethead (Nov 8, 2012)

i finished my setup just the other day. I got the watering kit off kevin. saves filling the bottles every morning that was such a pain in the bum 
i got the rack from bunnings and tubs 
View attachment 270154
View attachment 270155


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## Rowie (Nov 8, 2012)

Here's my tiny mouse set up. I'm only breeding for my own two snakes at the moment so there's not much need for me to have more than this but it's small and effective.


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## Maxwell (Nov 14, 2012)

See below, What does everything think?

Reckon i could fit two girls in there with a rotating buck?

<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/1ohtnp96mtqdimf/photo%20%281%29.JPG">


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## JrFear (Nov 14, 2012)

Link didn't work mental!


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## Maxwell (Nov 14, 2012)

Third attempt lucky


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## ssssnakez (Nov 18, 2012)

Kevin +1


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## JrFear (Nov 18, 2012)

looks good Mental!

Any one else wanna share the rat and mouse production line lol


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## Grunter023 (Nov 21, 2012)

Anyone have any of the bunnings concrete mixing tubs for sale? I am after some. Or can anyone tell me if there is somewhere her in Australia that has something similar? I have already made one rack with the 35L concrete mixing tubs so I know all the measurements and would like to stick to the same thing and make about 2 more racks.


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## Marzzy (Nov 22, 2012)

Grunter023 said:


> Anyone have any of the bunnings concrete mixing tubs for sale? I am after some. Or can anyone tell me if there is somewhere her in Australia that has something similar? I have already made one rack with the 35L concrete mixing tubs so I know all the measurements and would like to stick to the same thing and make about 2 more racks.



Where's your pic ? Wanna see these concrete tubs breeding set up.


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## K.Sparky (Nov 22, 2012)

That's what I use in my rodent racks.


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## solar 17 (Nov 22, 2012)

mental said:


> See below, What does everything think?
> 
> Reckon i could fit two girls in there with a rotating buck?
> 
> <img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/1ohtnp96mtqdimf/photo%20%281%29.JPG">


l believe "TOO HOT" not enough air circulation 23-24c is the optimal temp for rodents (rats and mice)and they virtually stop breeding at 30c and most are deceased at 37-38c.......solar 17


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## phatty (Nov 22, 2012)

its 36 where i live and the rodents still breed


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## Grunter023 (Nov 22, 2012)

Marzzy said:


> Where's your pic ? Wanna see these concrete tubs breeding set up.



Here is mine I just made.

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K.Sparky said:


> That's what I use in my rodent racks.



Where do you get your concrete tubs from?


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## Planky (Nov 24, 2012)

This is my set up works a treat


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## rockethead (Nov 24, 2012)

Does anyone have a special or cheap feed to feed your rats.
I mix dry dog food low salt,mixed nuts raw,rat pellets plus large parrot mix and as a treat once a day sliced carrots or peas


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## solar 17 (Nov 24, 2012)

phatty said:


> its 36 where i live and the rodents still breed


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## deebo (Nov 24, 2012)

One of 7 rat breeding racks in the rodent room at the moment. And a bunch of young females that went into breeding racks today replacing some of the older girls.


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## Tesla (Mar 14, 2013)

deebo said:


> One of 7 rat breeding racks in the rodent room at the moment. And a bunch of young females that went into breeding racks today replacing some of the older girls.



What tubs are those if you don't mind me asking?


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## Cold-B-Hearts (Mar 16, 2013)

One I brought off deebo


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## bohdi13 (Mar 16, 2013)

where do you get those black tubs? are they concrete tubs ? im a newbie to the whole breeding of rodents and am going to have to start breeding quite soon...


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## RSPcrazy (Mar 16, 2013)

This was my setup years ago, I had a couple of racks like this in the one room, I had 800 breeding rats, but I got very bad ammonia poisoning when cleaning the rats and had to get rid of them. I can't walk into a rat room anymore without my lungs playing up now.


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## wokka (Mar 16, 2013)

deebo said:


> one of 7 rat breeding racks in the rodent room at the moment. And a bunch of young females that went into breeding racks today replacing some of the older girls.


is that hemp bedding you are using?


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## Cold-B-Hearts (Mar 16, 2013)

bohdi13 said:


> where do you get those black tubs? are they concrete tubs ? im a newbie to the whole breeding of rodents and am going to have to start breeding quite soon...


Yep concrete mixing tubs you can buy them from bunnings.


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## bohdi13 (Mar 16, 2013)

thanks man


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## Barrett (Mar 17, 2013)

I have a question. It appears that a lot of people use mesh above the tubs and rest the food on top of the mesh instead of in the cages. Is there a reason for this? - making a rattery rack soon, so just figured I'd ask


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## RSPcrazy (Mar 17, 2013)

Barrett said:


> I have a question. It appears that a lot of people use mesh above the tubs and rest the food on top of the mesh instead of in the cages. Is there a reason for this? - making a rattery rack soon, so just figured I'd ask



It makes feeding very quick and easy. The rats have no problem eating through the mesh.


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## ingie (Mar 17, 2013)

I used to have my food on top of the mesh, but it encouraged wild rodents to take residence which was frustrating as they would eat a lot of the food, crap everywhere and of course wild rodents have mites and lice. I now have hoppers inside the tubs.

I can't imagine how a rat would be coping health wise with so much ammonia that it gave the person cleaning, severe ammonia poisoning. If you want long lasting healthy rats, ammonia build up is your enemy. As is dusty bedding.


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## deebo (Mar 17, 2013)

wokka said:


> is that hemp bedding you are using?



yes it is warwick.


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## deebo (Mar 17, 2013)

how much ventilation/air movement did you have through the room?



RSPcrazy said:


> This was my setup years ago, I had a couple of racks like this in the one room, I had 800 breeding rats, but I got very bad ammonia poisoning when cleaning the rats and had to get rid of them. I can't walk into a rat room anymore without my lungs playing up now.


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## champagne (Mar 17, 2013)

nervous said:


> I slam them onto the concrete floor... just make sure there is enough force to kill it with one hit, otherwise the rat will be suffering. You can also hold them by the tail and swing them into the edge of a hard corner, hitting around the back of the neck area, tho I don't do that method as there seems to be more blood from my experience.



sorry to be off topic but the way to manually kill rodents humanely if you are against co2 is not throw them at the floor.... place the rat on its stomach, hold a object behind the rats head and put pressure on its neck. hold it by the tail and pull back this will break its neck. the rats are much calmer then being thrown at the floor and if you cant kill your rats humanely as it is too emotional for you stop breeding them and buy from a supplier that can... There are two methods approved by the rspca, Overdose of anaesthetic, asphyxiation via CO2 and Physical methods i.e. dislocation of the neck, stopping the brain from receiving signals of pain because it kills instantly.


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## Colin (Mar 17, 2013)

Yes snapping a rodent neck is the quickest, most effective and most humane method in my opinion. Most humane because its a quick instant kill. some people cant do it and prefer Co2 and others cant or prefer not to use gassing as its not an instant kill and if you have ever struggled for air yourself its not a pleasant experience. Each to their own method as long as its quick, effective and humane


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## Cold-B-Hearts (Mar 17, 2013)

RSPcrazy said:


> It makes feeding very quick and easy. The rats have no problem eating through the mesh.


Plus they don't pee and poo all over there own food


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## JrFear (Mar 17, 2013)

Lets see some more setups! and killing chambers!


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## RSPcrazy (Mar 17, 2013)

deebo said:


> how much ventilation/air movement did you have through the room?



To the left of that rack, there is a door. At the top of that door, I had a fan blowing in, I had about 3 fans around the room to circulate and push air out the door. I also had a portable air conditioner in there.

Because I had close neighbours that would complain about EVERYTHING, I had to clean the rats twice a week to prevent the smell from getting too bad. I did this for about a year before I got sick.


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## styxxpython (Apr 20, 2013)

does bunnings still sell those black concrete mixing tubs?


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## Jeanette (Mar 24, 2017)




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## pinefamily (Mar 24, 2017)

That's a pretty impressive setup, Jeanette! Do you breed commercially, or do you have a lot of reptiles?


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## Jeanette (Mar 24, 2017)

pinefamily said:


> That's a pretty impressive setup, Jeanette! Do you breed commercially, or do you have a lot of reptiles?


We breed and sell them from home, 
https://www.facebook.com/Qualityreptilefood/


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## Jeanette (Mar 24, 2017)

Barrett said:


> I have a question. It appears that a lot of people use mesh above the tubs and rest the food on top of the mesh instead of in the cages. Is there a reason for this? - making a rattery rack soon, so just figured I'd ask


Its so they dont poo and wee in their food


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