its not illegal to ship reptiles using ups. snakes are on the list of prohibited items on the "live animal" shipping list, which doesn't make sense since you can ship lizards, turtles, and fish. and when you search for reptile shipping sites, one example is http://www.reptilesexpress.com/ they use ups exclusively and will ship a snake for you. they have a ups truck right on their box! just as a side note as a ups store manager, i wouldn't use ups to ship anything let alone a reptile. drivers just dont care whats in your package. good luck cause dealing with those morons on the phone will cause more headaches than slamming your head against a brick wall.