i use to just put them in a bag and give them a wack on the floor or somthing 

CO2, hands down. A CO2 canister for paintball guns is often the way to go for most hobbiests. I've also been known to use dry ice to fill a small container with CO2 fog, then drop feeders in for a few minutes. Lights out, very minimal stress.

CO2 is how we kill them at work, and it's far easier and much more humane (it's okay by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Commitee, aka IACUC). Just don't watch, that's not fun...  Younger rodents, especially pinkies, do take a longer time on CO2 and I've had to cervical dislocate them- now that's uncomfortable to do.

You could just buy frozen feeders?

You could just buy frozen feeders, but at a certain point it becomes more economical to grow your own. IMO f/k is a whole lot more convenient than f/t and in a large collection, there's bound to be someone who needs a bit of stunned-live encouragement to eat from time to time.

I was told to freeze pinks because CO2 doesn't do them in. The little ones do get a whack to the noggin, it knocks them out immediately.

I wack rats on the head and give there head a good yank and its lights out !!!

+1 gfx

we grow our own and have a co2 tank and what I call "the buckets of doom". Safer, cleaner and most humane. If you don't have a co2 tank you can sub dry ice by getting a sandwich size disposable plastic box and drilling holes in the side. Put the dry ice in it, put the lid on and set it in the bottom of a 5gal bucket that you have a lid for. Put the rat/s in and let them sit for about 20-30 minutes with the lid on. Co2 is heavier than air and will settle to the bottom of the bucket and by putting the dry ice inside the plastic you keep the rats from coming in contact with it (very unpleasant and messy). About 1 lb of dry ice should be plenty for just a few rats (6 or less) any more and you will want to go with a bigger container and more dry ice. 

Thanks for the suggestions.. Luckily my boyfriend has the balls to kill the rats for me, hah.

And to darkplatypus - i would buy frozen feeders, but this girl has been fed live since she started eating, and i think it would be pretty difficult to convert her. Thanks for the input.

Mouse-schwitz????

+one more for CO2. I have a large canister used by paintball hobbyiests, but it is a harder to find one with a slow release valve. I bought a connector for the top that allows me to fit a tube to it, then I have a small (or larger) container (usually some tub you can buy at walmart or something) that has a hole drilled to fit the tube. It is pretty fast, humane, and for folks like me... impersonal. I hate holding each life in my hand and then ending it, I've done it, but greatly prefer gassing them. Although my husband will leave the room when I gas because he feels bad, where he used to help me whack em sometimes. *shrug* You do what you have to do!

i sympithise with you. i dont like killing the rats either but i care more about my snakes safety. my boyfriend showed me a lil trick that i use. basicly all i gotta do is whack the rat on the wall but not hard enough to kill it. just enough to knock it out. then while it's out i give it to my snakies. thankfully they are fast eaters. lol

I can't imagine anyone considering the whack-stun method a humane kill. Don't get me wrong, I'm known to offer a well stunned critter to the notorious fasters among my collection knowing full well that the rodent will usually come around if the offering is refused, but its far from humane and it makes me a bit sick to my stomach to watch the poor thing suffer. You gotta figure they know at some level that the life is being squeezed out of them, no matter how stunned they are. Ick.

Hands down c2O is the best method. No suffering. Actually its kind of peaceful I'd imagine. More humane than letting an unwanted roddent die of starvation, or dehydration whilst trapped in what ever makeshift container you can find. If you don't have c2O canisters, I recomend making a chemical reaction using household vinegar & baking soda. Make sure to mix it well. I may actually upload a video showing a chamber I just had to peice together when my 1 1/2yr old ball didnt take a rat... defabrication on youtube if your interested.

h**p://www.youtube.com/user/defabrication