Good luck! This is what I do:

1) Don't package the animal up until just before it needs to be picked up or dropped off with the delivery facility. Do not overheat them when shipping.

2) Make sure the animal has plenty of fresh water prior to shipping so you know they are well hydrated.

3) Let the buyer know exactly how you had them setup (cage size, temps, hides, etc.). It's a good idea for the buyer to duplicate this setup. I can't tell you how many times a buyer has messed this one up and moved the animal from cage to cage looking for a "silver bullet", all the while further stressing the animal.

4) Let the buyer know how the animal is currently feeding. If feeding F/T mice and they drop in a live rat... well...

5) I have a short paragraph I ship with my animals that suggests leaving them completely alone for a short period of time. I wonder how many actually follow it.

IMHO, the key is to minimize change for the shortest period of time.

Something else. Many animals have the ability to "sense" different kinds of environmental changes - changes in barometric pressure, temperatures, humidity, etc. I have shipped many animals to CA that were pounding food, get to CA and stop for a while - almost like it was time to go into the winter fast. Of course, it could just be that crazy state?
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Jay A. Martin
Jay Martin Reptiles

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