Re: US Postal and UPS...BUT...

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Posted by arachnokulture on January 29, 2002 at 23:22:29:

In Reply to: US Postal and UPS posted by Carl Franklin on January 29, 2002 at 17:59:42:

While this is true, I think you may be setting up a lot of people for disappointment and frustration. This is not the full story here. If you check the USPS site and all of their regulations that is the answer you will get. This is what I posted a few weeks ago, and you won't find this on the USPS site.

The problem here is that there have been NO changes in the Post Office Policy on shipping live animals. It is STILL legal to ship reptiles according to their rules, so if you have someone check the paperwork, it will say it's legal. The reason they are giving for not taking the reptiles is that diputes in their agreement with certain carriers that the USPS are using (FedEx, Northwest Air, etc) does not allow them to accept animals. They have changed this, and are accepting live animals only for certain cities in the U.S., so if you are in one if these cities, you are able to ship. However, the employees at most post offices know even less about this than we do, so its easier for them to simply say "NO"... or "yes" depending on who you get, and how much work they want to do. And even if you are able to ship out of a city, that doesn't mean that somewhere along the route, someone else will say that it can't go, and you get your box returned.

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: Hi I've noticed a few postings regarding couriers and reptiles. The US postal service does provide a great service which I regularly use for my clients, however there are some restrictions. (no snakes, turtles, or venomous arachnids, except scorpions for medical use). It is leagal to ship harmless cold blooded animals through the USPS and this even includes alligators under 22 inches! Many people may be unaware that the US postal service regularly ships thousands of live chicks and rodents as well. UPS will ship non venomous snakes, however they are often reluctant at first. In fact I was shipping a boa yesterday with them and was met with resistance. The supervisor tried to disuade me by showing a list of prohibited items. As I looked over the list I noticed it was a list of items prohibited for international shipments. After an hour and a half my persistence paid off and I was told of a policy they have for live animals that involves UPS receiving written authorization from the recipient of the animal indicating that they are willing to accept the sent package.
: I was also told that I could no longer drop off animals at the customer service counter and had to have a driver pick up the order from my address at a specified time. The rules I was provided with yesterday are a lot more strict than any I've ever come across with UPS and it may also be due to the fact that I was making my inquiry at a centralized hub.

: As far as the US postal service is concerned visit their web site www.usps.com and look under perishable items. Under this heading they have all of their regulations for shipping animals.

: I hope this helped clear the issue a bit.

: What I don't like about the UPS service is that there is no way of knowing how long an animal will be "bouncing" around a hot or cold truck. Perviously I dropped off my orders towards the end of the day to intentionally reduce transit time.

: Do not be intimidated by someone behind a counter who gives an automatic and emphatic "no" to a shipping request. Go to the websites and arm yourself with their information.

: Good luck

: Saludos,

: Carl Franklin

Follow Ups:

Your exactlt right about that...more Sam 02/06/02 (0)
Is there a list on line of the cities ??? Chuck 01/30/02 (1)
- Re: Is there a list on line of the cities ??? arachnokulture 01/30/02 (0)

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: While this is true, I think you may be setting up a lot of people for disappointment and frustration. This is not the full story here. If you check the USPS site and all of their regulations that is the answer you will get. This is what I posted a few weeks ago, and you won't find this on the USPS site. : The problem here is that there have been NO changes in the Post Office Policy on shipping live animals. It is STILL legal to ship reptiles according to their rules, so if you have someone check the paperwork, it will say it's legal. The reason they are giving for not taking the reptiles is that diputes in their agreement with certain carriers that the USPS are using (FedEx, Northwest Air, etc) does not allow them to accept animals. They have changed this, and are accepting live animals only for certain cities in the U.S., so if you are in one if these cities, you are able to ship. However, the employees at most post offices know even less about this than we do, so its easier for them to simply say "NO"... or "yes" depending on who you get, and how much work they want to do. And even if you are able to ship out of a city, that doesn't mean that somewhere along the route, someone else will say that it can't go, and you get your box returned. : ----------------------------------------------- : : Hi I've noticed a few postings regarding couriers and reptiles. The US postal service does provide a great service which I regularly use for my clients, however there are some restrictions. (no snakes, turtles, or venomous arachnids, except scorpions for medical use). It is leagal to ship harmless cold blooded animals through the USPS and this even includes alligators under 22 inches! Many people may be unaware that the US postal service regularly ships thousands of live chicks and rodents as well. UPS will ship non venomous snakes, however they are often reluctant at first. In fact I was shipping a boa yesterday with them and was met with resistance. The supervisor tried to disuade me by showing a list of prohibited items. As I looked over the list I noticed it was a list of items prohibited for international shipments. After an hour and a half my persistence paid off and I was told of a policy they have for live animals that involves UPS receiving written authorization from the recipient of the animal indicating that they are willing to accept the sent package. : : I was also told that I could no longer drop off animals at the customer service counter and had to have a driver pick up the order from my address at a specified time. The rules I was provided with yesterday are a lot more strict than any I've ever come across with UPS and it may also be due to the fact that I was making my inquiry at a centralized hub. : : As far as the US postal service is concerned visit their web site www.usps.com and look under perishable items. Under this heading they have all of their regulations for shipping animals. : : I hope this helped clear the issue a bit. : : What I don't like about the UPS service is that there is no way of knowing how long an animal will be "bouncing" around a hot or cold truck. Perviously I dropped off my orders towards the end of the day to intentionally reduce transit time. : : Do not be intimidated by someone behind a counter who gives an automatic and emphatic "no" to a shipping request. Go to the websites and arm yourself with their information. : : Good luck : : Saludos, : : Carl Franklin

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