That might actually be a LP gas AND Carbon Monoxide detector.
I would concur with replacing the detector especially for Carbon Monoxide which is colorless and odorless and will kill you.
LP gas detector is also important, LP gas is heavy and falls to the lowest level (your floor) and the concentration can build up to explosion/fire saturation level before you ever smell it very quickly.
As far as the wires, they should be 12V, not a big safety hazard so you can use some electrical rated black tape to wrap around the individual wires and push them into the opening.
For Carbon Monoxide detectors, I prefer the ones that have a digital display and have battery operation (drycell).
Like this one..
HERE for $20
The digital display will show a reading way before the alarm will sound so you can take action well before the alarm level. This display is very good to have since due to a lot of nuisance alarms in the past the alarm trip levels have been rolled back to higher PPM levels.
All new CO detectors have a built in End Of Life alarm which disables the detector after 10 yrs of the first power on and it must be replaced.
