The Dry Ice Trick People Use To Get Rid Of Rats (But Should You Try It?)

A rat in the backyard is the ultimate unwanted invader — and unlike annoying human visitors who at worst may drop in unannounced, rats can also carry a variety of diseases, such as Salmonellosis and Hantavirus. The new backyard occupants could even run inside where they can damage your home. It's a good idea to remove rats from your backyard, and some people and pest control companies do so with dry ice. But should you? Not if you want a humane way to remove rats from your yard, as the dry ice suffocates the rats in their burrows.

Dry ice is a frozen form of carbon dioxide and is non-toxic. However, when it melts, it releases carbon dioxide gas. If in a small space, you need proper ventilation, or the gas can cause unconsciousness and asphyxiation. Multiple big cities, including New York City and Boston, began testing it in 2016 as an effective way to kill rats in their burrows. It worked, but they were soon asked to halt when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) informed them it wasn't a registered method of rat abatement. Now cities have the ability to use an EPA-approved product, Rat Ice, specifically for rats, but only for registered users, and it's still not humane. If you don't want to use dry ice to kill rats, here are a few alternatives.

Getting rid of rats humanely means you need to find a way to trap the rodents alive. Once securely in the trap, you can remove them to other locations far away from your backyard, such as the woods. A large humane trap from Amazon ($19) will not only let you safely capture the rats and other critters, but it also won't hurt a curious child like a traditional "snap" trap will. You can also repel rats from your backyard with a common kitchen spice, cinnamon. The Humane Society recommends homeowners soak cotton balls in vinegar, and leave them near rats burrow. Vinegar's strong acidic scent of vinegar helps repels rats. 

Keep the rats from even wanting to come into your backyard by cleaning up any debris and shutting off food sources, which should force the rats to move elsewhere. You can make your backyard less attractive by removing piles of wood, cleaning up pet droppings, and carefully covering your trash cans.