Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a few related questions about shipping during the summer. I searched this forum with several different queries and didn't find what I wanted, so here goes:

I'm looking to ship two snakes from San Diego, CA to Houston, TX. They are my pets and are currently with my parents after I moved to Houston (so I have control of when/how they are shipped as well.)

They are an adult Gopher Snake and a two-year-old (but not very big) Brazilian Rainbow Boa. I was out in San Diego last week and both appear healthy.

I planned to use ShipYourReptiles.com, ordered their shipping kits with insulated boxes, bags, etc. I planned to use FedEx overnight as SYR recommends and have the boxes held at the distribution center in Houston and pick them up there.

However, SYR's FAQ says that if the daytime high on either end is above 88F, to wait. It won't be less than 88F as a daytime high in Houston until late September or October. Of course, right now it is very, very hot. It should be in the low 90s in a couple of weeks.

I believe many reptile stores/breeders would ship me reptiles during the summer if I were to be purchasing them, which leads me to believe it may be able to ship them safely in a few weeks when temps are in the mid-low 90s.

-Am I wrong about that? Is it not possible to safely ship them until daytime highs are in the 80s?

-If it is possible, what is the set-up as far as cold packs go? SYR and the forum has nothing about how to use cold packs in the summer with snakes. Is it necessary? Would it be a bad idea, potentially freezing them to death in an insulated box? Is there a difference in commercially available cold packs? Affix it to the top or to the side of the box?

-Would adding some extra ventilation to the insulated box be a good idea in summer, or would that just allow more heat in?

-Any other relevant tips or advice from people experienced in summer shipping?

Thanks for your time and concern!
Chris

Hey Chris, it can definitely be challenging to ship during the hot days of summer. It is easier to ship during the winter than it is during the summer.

The weather guidelines that we use at SYR are for general use. But if you fine tune your planning, you can still get it done.

If you ship to a FedEx staffed facility, your package will arrive very early in the morning, and be kept in a room temperature environment, out of the hot weather, and out of a hot delivery truck.

That is just to a FedEx facility though, not necessarily a FedEx Office (Kinko's) or Mailbox Etc type spot.

You can find the appropriate facility address at the link below. Ship to that address, C/O your recipient, and mark it Hold for Pickup- i.e. "Billy Pickleson-Hold for Pickup"

Have the recipient pick it up as early as possible. Don't bother using a cold pack, they don't work the same, or over the same period, as a heat pack. Don't add extra ventilation, your typical 4 holes will be fine.

I WOULD STILL WAIT FOR THIS HEAT WAVE TO PASS. You don't want any kind of shipping disruption to affect your package, and when there are obvious weather issues, it is better to let them pass.

Feel free to contact me directly if you have other questions, or need more detail.

Robyn@SYR
FedEx- find a facility link

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robyn@proexotics.com

ShipYourReptiles.com
Pro Exotics Reptiles

Great