Need someone to help me ship my snakes from North Florida

I moved from Live Oak Florida to Portland Oregon for school and I need some help. Im dont realy want to pack them up for 4 days and keep them in the car so i was hopeing someone would be able to help me figure out how I can ship them to myself overnight. Im dont know alot about bringing them across state lines and all that either. I have 2 Ballpythons about 3-4 feet and one 6-7 foot boa. If the only option is to drive them are there any tips on the best way to do so. All help is greatly appreciated

Who says you can't bring them across state lines? That's horse doodoo..

If you want ship them overnight, try Reptster.

edit..hehe....mis-read. I thought you were under the idea that you cannot bring them across state lines...silly me

One other note...Are you going to ship them to yourself, where someone is awaiting the package? Wouldn't make much sense for you to ship them to your doorstep over night, where they wait on you for 3 days to get there.... :)

do you have anybody who could ship them for you the day before you get to OR?

The problem with shipping them to yourself, as has been pointed out, is they'll arrive before you.

So the best option might be to have someone in FL take care of them for several days or a week so you'll have at least a day to get settled in and ready for them to arrive when you get to OR, then ship them to you. However, you'd have to be really sure the person knew how to pack them up properly.

If that isn't a possibility, you can take them in the car with you. I don't know much about how, but I know I've read threads about people doing it. You could probably do a search, or if you decide you are going to go that route, post a thread asking how and I'm sure you'll get some help.

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Originally Posted by kc261

If that isn't a possibility, you can take them in the car with you. I don't know much about how, but I know I've read threads about people doing it. You could probably do a search, or if you decide you are going to go that route, post a thread asking how and I'm sure you'll get some help.

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Not more then 2-3 years ago around this time. A fairly big breeder did just that. He drove with his snakes from fla to mich? That killed a couple thousand dollars woth of animals.Anywho. Not good advise from a newbie to give to other Newbies! IMHO..

You're going from P'town to Florida; is this right? If so, I'd advise against a hot car ride for that long!
Do you know of anyone in Oregon who could ship them to you if you went through Repster and got the box and all shipping materials?
I'm in Oregon, but I live in Bend... over the mountains from you.
BUT, if I can help then let me know!

I've traveled cross-country with my animals several times....and am about to do so again in a couple of weeks. It CAN be done....but a lot of common sense needs to come into play.

Were I in your shoes, this is what I would do:

First....try to find someone trustworthy to care for the snakes for a few days and then ship them to me once I'm settled in. (As has already been suggested) That would be ideal....but not always possible.

Failing that, I would do this:

Find an appropriate sized "shipping" box for each snake. You won't actually be shipping in these boxes, but the snakes will be staying in them for a few days, so they need to be properly padded, insulated and not air-tight....just as if you were going to ship.

I would get a pillowcase for each snake to use as a "snake bag."

Lastly...get a small rubbermaid container for each snake (as small as you can get away with, but still give the snake room to move around a bit and have a water bowl).

1. Pack each snake into its own bag....tie the top of the bag into a knot AND use a zip-tie to tie the neck of the bag very securely. You don't want to take any chances of the snake getting out of the bag unless you take it out.

2. Make sure your "shipping" boxes are both insulated and padded...place a bag in each box....tape the boxes shut and mark them VERY clearly exactly what is in each one.

3. Place them in a secure place on the floor of your car. You don't want them in a drafty place like right in front of an air vent....nor do you want them anyplace where the sun can shine on them. You also don't want them someplace where they can fall or get banged around in the event of an emergency slam of the breaks.

4. When you stop to spend the night somewhere...bring them into the room with you. They can stay overnight in the "shipping" boxes...but on the second night, I would put them into the rubbermaid containers with a little water and newspaper substrate. Make sure the lids are VERY secure!!

5. Pack and repeat until you reach your destination.

Use the largest rubbermaid to hold the smaller ones...as well as these other supplies:
1. Water bowls
2. Extra zip-ties
3. Extra pillow cases in case they pee or poop in one
4. UTH's and controllers, if you can, for warming tubs in the hotel room.
5. Newspaper
6. Tape for re-taping the travel boxes.
7. Clamps and/or weights to help secure rubbermaid lids.

COMMON SENSE things to Remember:

1. Don't feed any animals for at least a week before you begin this journey. It won't hurt any of them to miss a few meals. Better that than to risk a regurge along the way.

2. NEVER EVER leave the animals unattended in the car on a warm or sunny day. During the day, all meals should be taken via drive-thrus. Restroom breaks should be done very quickly. Run in and use the rest room and get right back out to your car. If you have a person traveling with you, it's better 'cause one person can always stay with the animals to make sure the car isn't getting too hot. If you're alone, don't take more than five minutes at a stop.

After dark, you can stop for a decent sit-down meal or browse a store for snacks....but not during the daytime.

3. If you can't manage to heat the tubs overnight....just keep your hotel room temps set warmer than you might usually. The animals should be fine, so long as they don't get too cold.

4. Carry a digital thermometer with you and keep it on the floor with the boxes in your car so you can see how hot it gets there....and in the hotel room, you can tell how cool you make it at night. Don't let it get below 75 at night and you should be fine.

5. SECURE SECURE SECURE! Make sure bags and boxes are always secure. And make sure the tub lids are secure when the snakes are in there. Never have more than one snake out at a time while making those transitions.

.............. I'm sure I'm forgetting something...I may come back and add more as I think of it...or others may have additional thoughts or suggestions. This is just what I would do if I had to make such a long drive with my snakes. So far, the longest journeys I've had to do have been two day drives....but this is how I would plan for 4+ days.

Kudos Judy!! Great post :gj: :gj:

I would be wary about setting the boxes directly on the floor of the vehicle. Depending on the vehicle type and age, the floor can get hot. Placing the animals (secured off course) in a big cooler with the drain plug open is also an option (and much easier to sneak into a hotel room :) )

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Originally Posted by blueguy

Not more then 2-3 years ago around this time. A fairly big breeder did just that. He drove with his snakes from fla to mich? That killed a couple thousand dollars woth of animals.Anywho. Not good advise from a newbie to give to other Newbies! IMHO..

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So because one person, who was a big breeder, which probably means he was moving hundreds if not thousands of animals, lost some animals, you are saying it is impossible to transport animals cross-country in a car?

I don't have hundreds of snakes or years and years of experience, but I do have a brain. It is not impossible to move 3 snakes cross-country in a car. Moving a small number makes it possible to monitor each one of them closely, so it would be extremely different than the big breeder moving their collection. I knew I didn't have the knowledge & experience to tell the OP the best way to do it, and made that clear in my post.

You also only quoted part of my post. I had also said that the best thing might be to leave them with someone in Florida who could ship them once the OP arrived in Oregon. So I was not advising that the OP should take them in the car. However, the possible problems with that can be huge, depending on whom the OP can leave the snakes with. They might not get well cared for during the time or so this person has them. They might not get packed properly. Maybe they'd never get shipped and the OP would never see them again. Etc. Etc.

So I still stand by my post that if leaving them in good hands in Florida to be shipped isn't a possibility, then they can go in the car.

I hoped that briefly discussing 2 possibilities (including brief mention of possible problems and where more research would be needed) would be useful to the OP in making the decision of how to deal with the situation. That's why I posted it.

ok im sorry about the long time it took me to reply but im going to school and working so i dont get a whole lot of time to relax lately. First thing i want to say is im moving from florida to Portland. Ok so this is how its going to work i already have a place in portland where i live for school my girl friend is taking care of the snakes while i get started in school and she finishes her crap in florida. I have alread y moved my snakes from wisconsin to florida and i am aware of how you transport in a car. What i wanted to do is have her take the snakes to a breeder or someone in florida who can send them to me in portland. I kinda dont want them to be bouncing around in the car for 3 days or however long it takes her to get hear. I have the week off from school so i will be checking back frequently to see whats up
thanks for all the posts they are greatly appreciated

wow i just looked back and saw that i requested some tips for transporting them by driving sorry about that i did take them across country before but i did the whole strech in 22 hours in the fall so the weather was with me rather then against me Tips for long transports would be key i guess
again thanks to all

maybe you can find someone on the portland end of things to help you out instead... You could pack them up yourself, and ship them to the person in portland before you leave. Then when you get to portland, you could arrange to pick them up from that person. That way you can have the assurance that they were packed properly, and everything. And then you'd be able to take their enclosures with you, and get them all set up at your new place.

I was kinda under the impression that i needed to be approved to ship animals witch is why i was kinda looking for someone to help me out on that end of things but if thats not true then someone needs to let me know and then maybe help me figure out proper containers to pack them into. i have thought alot of this through so dont worry about the stupid mistakes that some people might make but help me out with the details if you know what i meen

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Originally Posted by Squishy Burrito

I was kinda under the impression that i needed to be approved to ship animals

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Until very recently that was true. Now there is a thing called repster which I know very little about but if you did a search on it I'm sure you could find out plenty. Basically somehow you work with repster to be able to send snakes through fedex without any other approval.

Nate gave you a link to it in the first post in this thread.

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Originally Posted by Nate

If you want ship them overnight, try Reptster.

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I am moving from Florida back to Michigan in a week and will be bringing my 40G planted terrarium with pygmy chameleons and my 15G half tank with my BP.

I didn't think it was going to be that big of a deal? I just figured if I controlled the climate and kept stresses to a minimum things would be fine. I would think a car trip is better than shipping because at least you can check on the animals and make adjustments if anything needs to be changed. I make the trip from FL to MI in just over 26 hours so that's not any more than overnight shipping would be.

I will be using a DC inverter to have standard 120v AC plugs to use the heat pad if needed and A/C in the car to cool down if needed. I will check on the critters every few hours and hope for the best. I will put the BP in a small rubbermaid just big enough for her hide.

Any other suggestions?