Shipping Reptiles--supplies and materials

[emiebeth]

I had a few questions about shipping reptiles =)

1) Where do you guys get the bags you put the snakes in and the heat/cold packs? I googled the heat packs and I know I can order them online, but is there a specific brand that is better than the others? Are they available at reptile stores or places such as walmart, home-depot, etc?
2) Do you get the boxes and Styrofoam inserts at the post office? If not, where?
3) I've seen on videos that a sheet is inserted in the box, listing the morph, age, when it ate, weight, what it eats, etc. Do you make your own, or is there a template I would be able to print out?
4) Do you get the shipping labels (that you tape to the top of the box) at the post office or online somewhere? I tried talking to someone at the post office and I kept getting transferred around (for close to half an hour) because no one knew anything about specifically shipping reptiles. They kept trying to tell me that I had to make my own shipping label, but I don't think they understood what I was asking...I even asked for a representative and the guy told me he wasn't the right person to ask. From what I understand, he's the person who's supposed to certify me when I do that next month, so shouldn't he know the answers to my questions?!

Sorry if some of these seem like common-sense answers, but I've tried just using my common sense before and I've really screwed stuff up. Go figure, lol. Shipping live reptiles is not something I want to be screwing up on.

[cinderbird]

http://superiorshippingsupplies.com/
http://www.uline.com/
http://www.shipyourreptiles.com/
http://www.reptilesexpress.com/

[Stewart_Reptiles]

I tried talking to someone at the post office and I kept getting transferred around (for close to half an hour) because no one knew anything about specifically shipping reptiles.

No shipping reptiles via USPS, you need to get Fedex Certified to ship reptiles http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...-ship-reptiles....

When it comes to paperwork it's up to the breeder, I rarely use paper anymore, most everything is on a PDF file (either emailed to my customer or send on a CD)

As far as supply I get it here http://www.reptilesexpress.com/, it allows me to get insulated boxes with 3/4 inch insulation for the same price and less than boxes with 1/2 inch insulation elsewhere.

For your labels when you are certified with Fedex simply print your labels online (order your shipping label online as well using your Fedex account)

[emiebeth]

Cinderbird: Those links were really helpful, thank you! So that takes care of...boxes, bags, and heat packs.

Deborah: ...*headdesk* somehow, I thought fedex and my post office were, y'know...the same thing. See what I mean about screwing things up? lol. I even copied that entire first post in the shipping reptiles thread and printed it out yesterday! Somehow I missed that you had to call the fedex number no wonder they didn't know anything about certification and shipping reptiles. Thank you for pointing out my mistake, Deborah!