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  1. #1
    BPnet Veteran Aedryan Methyus's Avatar
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    Question Easiest/Cheapest/Best Option For Shipping Snakes?

    I'm sure this has already been discussed a few thousand times on this forum, but I can't find any discussions that give an all around comparison of all of the different options. Firstly, is is cheaper to just get Fedex certified and handle everything yourself or is it really cheaper to use one of the reptile shipping companies? What are all of the pros and cons of becoming Fedex certified and doing everything yourself versus using a reptile shipping company?

    There seems to be 3 primary reptile shipping companies that breeders commonly use, all of whom claim offer discounted Fedex rates - Reptiles2You, ShipYourReptiles and Reptiles Express... If there are any others you guys would recommend be sure to let me know. Otherwise, which of those 3 companies would you guys recommend most? Can you give me the pros and cons of using each company? I'm also very curious about what these companies role's are in the shipping process and why they do what they do. Are they just generating their revenue by requiring that you purchase their shipping supplies or are there fees involved with using them as well?

  2. #2
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    Re: Easiest/Cheapest/Best Option For Shipping Snakes?

    great question. Following!

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  4. #3
    Telling it like it is! Stewart_Reptiles's Avatar
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    Fedex certified and handle everything yourself
    Not it is not unless you have a HUGE volume, you will never be able to compete with the rates provided to companies like SYR and others.

    Getting certified is a pain and your rep will be hard to reach however being certified will demonstrate that you know how to ship even if you do not use your certification in the future.

    There seems to be 3 primary reptile shipping companies that breeders commonly use, all of whom claim offer discounted Fedex rates - Reptiles2You, ShipYourReptiles and Reptiles Express... If there are any others you guys would recommend be sure to let me know.
    No those are the only companies that have a contract with Fedex and a waiver on file allowing their customer to ship through them.

    As far as whom to go with it depends on what you are looking for, you can get a quote on each of the website however only one offers live arrival guarantee, which some people might want to use, but YOU have to decide if it is worth it to you or would take the chance and absorb the loss (less face it losses due to carrier delays are rare, I only had one in 10 years and the delay was more than 48 hours, usually delays will be 24 hours at the most)
    Last edited by Stewart_Reptiles; 12-08-2017 at 05:37 PM.
    Deborah Stewart


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  6. #4
    rhac wrangler mlededee's Avatar
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    I would recommend ShipYourReptiles. You can order shipping supplies and get detailed instructions on how to ship on their website, and they have top notch customer service. Just go to shipyourreptiles.com and sign up for an account. When you are ready to ship, use discount code BPnet40 to save 40% off of your first shipment.
    - Emily


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  8. #5
    BPnet Veteran Aedryan Methyus's Avatar
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    Thanks as always for your insight you guys (girls)! I can't find where any of these companies charge additional fees for using them, so is it that they simply require you to purchase their shipping supplies is all? Which one of them offers the alive arrival guarantee and how much more expensive are they? Do you guys think charging a flat shipping rate of $65.00 for perhaps 1 or 2 hatchlings (total package weight 1 pound max) is usually sufficient? Is there anything I should be aware of about shipping to Hawaii, Alaska or Puerto Rico? Is one day shipping possible to those areas and does it cost more? Do I have to charge sales tax for PA residents, since that's where they will be being shipped from?

    Sorry for the bombardment of questions... lol I'm doing some updating on my website and trying to get all of my policies in order and ready for the future...

  9. #6
    Telling it like it is! Stewart_Reptiles's Avatar
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    Re: Easiest/Cheapest/Best Option For Shipping Snakes?

    Quote Originally Posted by Aedryan Methyus View Post
    Thanks as always for your insight you guys (girls)! I can't find where any of these companies charge additional fees for using them, so is it that they simply require you to purchase their shipping supplies is all? Which one of them offers the alive arrival guarantee and how much more expensive are they? Do you guys think charging a flat shipping rate of $65.00 for perhaps 1 or 2 hatchlings (total package weight 1 pound max) is usually sufficient? Is there anything I should be aware of about shipping to Hawaii, Alaska or Puerto Rico? Is one day shipping possible to those areas and does it cost more? Do I have to charge sales tax for PA residents, since that's where they will be being shipped from?

    Sorry for the bombardment of questions... lol I'm doing some updating on my website and trying to get all of my policies in order and ready for the future...
    SYR offers live arrival guarantee at the rate of $2.5 per $100 insured value there are certain criterias. https://www.shipyourreptiles.com/en/...help-insurance

    Flat rate is whatever you want to charge knowing that in many cases you will likely absorb some of the cost (gas & packaging will easily add anther $10 to your expenses), also keep in mind that many people are reluctant to pay more than $50 flat rate for shipping even though it will cost you anywhere between $50 to $85 to ship a 12x9x6 box (that's only for the label)

    You cannot ship to Hawaii Hawaii has very strict laws that prohibits reptiles from being imported , for Alaska your shipping window is very slim due to weather condition, as for Puerto Rico not sure what laws or process are, realistically your sale will be on the mainland.

    When you do ship only do so Monday through Wednesday, you can ship on Thursday but I would recommend that if you do so it's only to a hub, if a home delivery package is delayed when shipped on Thursday it will not be delivered again before the following Monday, if it is delayed when shipped to the hub it will be available when the hub opens the next day. The package can be redirected and halted to be pickup at the hub but not all customer have the means to get to a hub.
    Deborah Stewart


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  11. #7
    BPnet Senior Member cchardwick's Avatar
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    I bought two extra large female ball pythons in a single box via Morphmarket and the guy only charged me $50 for overnight FedEx shipping, it was a huge box and was real heavy, probably over 10 pounds. When I asked the FedEx guy about it he said that if you ship a lot of snakes you can contact a sales guy from FedEx and work with him to get a discounted rate. I'm guessing based on your volume you could get a deal for $50 flat rate shipping directly through FedEx. I haven't looked into it as I'm not at that point yet. But for the small guy I think the insurance and rate is better through one of the other vendors, they probably have the discounted FedEx account and mark it up a bit to make a buck on the side. You are basically using their discounted FedEx account.


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  13. #8
    BPnet Veteran Aedryan Methyus's Avatar
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    All excellent info as always! Thanks!

  14. #9
    Registered User Judy@SYR's Avatar
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    Re: Easiest/Cheapest/Best Option For Shipping Snakes?

    Quote Originally Posted by Aedryan Methyus View Post
    I'm sure this has already been discussed a few thousand times on this forum, but I can't find any discussions that give an all around comparison of all of the different options. Firstly, is is cheaper to just get Fedex certified and handle everything yourself or is it really cheaper to use one of the reptile shipping companies? What are all of the pros and cons of becoming Fedex certified and doing everything yourself versus using a reptile shipping company?

    There seems to be 3 primary reptile shipping companies that breeders commonly use, all of whom claim offer discounted Fedex rates - Reptiles2You, ShipYourReptiles and Reptiles Express... If there are any others you guys would recommend be sure to let me know. Otherwise, which of those 3 companies would you guys recommend most? Can you give me the pros and cons of using each company? I'm also very curious about what these companies role's are in the shipping process and why they do what they do. Are they just generating their revenue by requiring that you purchase their shipping supplies or are there fees involved with using them as well?
    Hi Aedryan!

    I'm sorry for the delayed response here. It's been a crazy weekend. Anyhow...I'd like to answer your questions about shipping. I know others have also given excellent answers, but sometimes it helps when it can come directly from the source.

    1. As Deborah mentioned, it doesn't hurt to become FedEx certified if you want to do that, but you would be paying their retail rate for shipping, or perhaps a few percentages of discount. At ShipYourReptiles, we have a massive volume discount and we're able to pass that discount on to you. Our rates might appear higher than the other services if you go strictly by public shipping quotes from the websites, but we have custom discounts available for ALL our customers that want them. We like to work directly with each customer and get to know their specific needs! Work with us, and you won't find a better rate out there!

    2. We offer On-Time and Live Arrival Insurance. NO one else offers that...not even FedEx for live shipments. FedEx waives all their guarantees when it comes to live shipments, so we cover it instead. For the minimum amount of $2.50, you are covered for On-Time Delivery and can claim a full refund of the shipping label if the package is delivered even one minute late according to FedEx time stamps and guaranteed delivery times for that label. Deborah provided an excellent link for how Live Arrival works.

    3. We do NOT require you to purchase your shipping supplies from us. We require only that those supplies meet our (and FedEx's) minimum standards for live shipments. Our supplies are priced at basically cost for us and are there as a convenience for our customers. We don't make money from them.

    4. It does not cost anything to sign up at ShipYourReptiles!

    5. In addition to our exclusive Insurance, we have the absolute best Customer Service out there. Our Customer Service reps work with the top management levels at FedEx, so if something happens and your package gets stuck or goes missing, we have a great deal of weight and connections to get it found and moving again as quickly as possible. And you don't have to do a thing beyond alerting us to the issue. Our folks are friendly and ready to answer any questions you have about the shipping process. We understand how daunting it can be for first timers. We're animal lovers and reptile people. We care about your animals and we care about your business and will go out of our way to do the best we can for both!

    6. As Emily (mlededee) said, use the coupon code BPnet40 and save 40% off the FedEx retail rate on your first shipment. If you do, that will flag your account for my attention and I'll make sure it gets set up with some awesome PERMANENT discounts for all your future shipments!

    7. You asked about sales tax in your particular state. That is outside of our expertise. I'd recommend consulting with a local tax specialist about how your state sales tax applies to small or hobby-level business transactions. It may not apply at all unless you reach a specific range of sales volume.

    Quote Originally Posted by cchardwick View Post
    I bought two extra large female ball pythons in a single box via Morphmarket and the guy only charged me $50 for overnight FedEx shipping, it was a huge box and was real heavy, probably over 10 pounds. When I asked the FedEx guy about it he said that if you ship a lot of snakes you can contact a sales guy from FedEx and work with him to get a discounted rate. I'm guessing based on your volume you could get a deal for $50 flat rate shipping directly through FedEx. I haven't looked into it as I'm not at that point yet. But for the small guy I think the insurance and rate is better through one of the other vendors, they probably have the discounted FedEx account and mark it up a bit to make a buck on the side. You are basically using their discounted FedEx account.
    Thanks for the input! I just wanted to point out that FedEx doesn't offer Flat Rate shipping. Everyone pays a variable rate based on the size/weight of the box, the distance it will be traveling, and a few various surcharges that may or may not apply. Some businesses CHOOSE to offer "Flat Rate Shipping" to their customers as part of their business model. It attracts those unwilling to spend more on shipping (shipping "sticker shock" is very common to new buyers) and it simplifies the billing process because they don't have to wait for a shipping quote or printed label to know how much the final price will be. They are very likely paying much more for that "$50 label" and build that difference into their business model in other ways.

    It takes a LOT of volume (tens of thousands of dollars worth of shipping, annually) to get a discount directly from FedEx that can compete with what you get through ShipYourReptiles. And then, if you do that, you're still not getting any delivery guarantees on your valuable live shipments. And you're getting entry-level or mid-level (at best) customer service that you have to wrestle with yourself if anything ever goes wrong along the way.

    Take a look at ShipYourReptiles. Check out our FAQ pages. They answer a LOT of questions! And then give us a try with the BPnet40 coupon!
    Judy
    Director of Accounts at ShipYourReptiles

    email: Judy@ShipYourReptiles.com

    Customer Service Desk
    303-730-2125 (ext 1 or 2)
    info@ShipYourReptiles.com

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  16. #10
    BPnet Veteran Aedryan Methyus's Avatar
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    Thanks so much for such detailed information, Judy! I really appreciate it! It definitely sounds like SYR is the clear winner for shipping reptiles! The insurance is VERY reasonably priced and well worth the peace of mind. Any animal I will ever sell will include an Arrive Alive guarantee, anyway. But, this will definitely re-enforce that guarantee, while protecting myself at the same time. It's really awesome that there are companies like SYR that specialize in shipping reptiles. It is an all around win/win/win no matter how you look at it!

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