FYI, I've read several news articles where pet stores were killing their rats by banging them on hard surfaces or freezing them alive. Authorities raided the place and confiscated all of their snakes and refused to give them back or give them compensation. The only 'legal' way to euthanize a rat, at least that I know of, is using CO2.
I've actually just upgraded my system, I purchased a couple CO2 bottles on Craig's List. Apparently these are used for pop machines and grow operations. I bought two tanks for $125. Then I bought a regulator, both tanks came full of CO2 and were filled to 800 PSI. I bleed off the CO2 from the tank at a pressure of just under 5 PSI. So far I've been gassing using the same tank for a couple months (multiple times every five days for 20 seconds per event) and the 800 PSI is still showing, I'm guessing I could probably go a whole year or more on one tank. And the guy that sold them to me said he fills them at a grow shop for $8. I think this is the most economical in the long run.
To connect to my 'gas chamber' I use a flexible braided hose connected to a tire valve stem. I removed the core of the valve stem and simply plug the hose right on. I add rodents, cover the chamber with a towel, keep the tank in the basement by the door but put the chamber outside with the sliding door mostly closed, then gas for 20 seconds. I try to keep all of the gas outside of the house. Then I bring the chamber inside, close the door, and put it on a chair for two minutes. I'm finding that if I gas a lot of rodents they start to cool off before I feed them all, so I pop them in an incubator at 110F and pull them out one by one. I also put a paper towel in the chamber because they almost always pee. I really like the little on / off valve that comes with my regulator. That's what I use to turn the gas on and off. If I get an abundance of rats that are just the right size to feed I'll gas them and freeze them. I found that freezing them on a platter in a zip lock bag overnight and then vacuum sealing them the following day works the best. And they all come apart easy when I break the seal on the vacuum sealed bag (don't vacuum seal unless they are frozen!)
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