The City of Boston has a new way to get rid of troublesome rats.
A pair of new devices that cost more than $2,000 apiece suffocate rodents with carbon monoxide, which officials said leads to a quick and painless death.
The machines, which are made by California-based Gopher X, allow operators to fill burrows with smoke, euthanizing rats and eliminating the need to dispose of their remains.
The new method comes after the city noticed an uptick in 311 complaints about rodents.
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The city is deploying the devices across the city.
“It allows us to place a hose into the hole — the burrow — close up the surrounding holes and pump smoke in there, and this will euthanize the rodents in a more non-chemical way,” said Michael Mackan, who works for the city’s Inspectional Services Department.
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Mackan said the carbon monoxide machines are safer than poison and easier than dry ice, which was used in the past to flood burrows with lethal gas.
“If a rat survives eating the poison but dies later and it’s lying on the ground, a bird or a dog gets in it it could be problematic,” he said.
The city can only use the new devices on public property.
