Jason Kayser USPS snake shipping & more

Let me first say that I am a little uneasy placing this BOI post. I do not like to complain, and I do not often like to be the person calling someone out. I have also read a few threads here and am afraid that I being new will look badly. So please I ask you to be gentle with me. I want to make sure I give you all, all of the facts.

I am fairly new to the Herp world. Before this purchase I only had 1 BP. My little Taz. I wanted to get him a little lady friend, and well I just wanted another BP (these snakes are quite addictive!). Morph doesn't matter to me, and honestly I don't understand all the Het, hom, pastel stuff. I just love them the way they are, but that is getting off track.

I found the auction on Reptileauctions.com. The price was $21.00 and shipping was $50.00. I won the auction on 8-13 and awaited an email or invoice. When I received neither I sent an email to Jason on 8-15. He responded with a preference for me to use paypal and I did.

Date: Tue, 15 Aug 200612:36:01 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
Subject: Re: Ball python
To: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net>


OK The money is sent through pay pal. Please respond back and let me know that you received it and when she will be shipped. Also please see the attached note I sent you with paypal regarding shipping her. I'll also need to know what her eating schedule is.

Thanks
A. Gennari

I didn't hear anything back. I sent another inquiry the next day.

Date: Wed, 16 Aug 200614:39:36 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
Subject: Re: Ball python
To: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net>


Please contact me as soon as you can regarding the delivery of my new ball python snake. Thank you
Annette

His response

From: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
To: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Ball python
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 2006 17:27:24 -0500


Hello,

I Hadn't shipped the ball python yet, I was waiting to hear back from you.
I will add the instructions on the package.Would shipped Monday be OK, would you be able to to be there to receive it on Tuesday the 22nd?

Thanks,

Jason

Here are the next few email transactions; I don't want to leave anything out.

From: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
To: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Ball python
Date: Wed, 16 Aug 2006 19:05:13 -0500


Hello,

I will plan on shipping Monday for shipment on Tuesday.
If for some reason you will not be able to be there on Tuesday, let me know.

Thanks,

Jason
----- Original Message -----
From: Annette
To: Jason Kayser
Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 6:25 PM
Subject: Re: Ball python


Friday morning, Saturday Sunday Monday or Tuesday would be fine.

I waited until Tuesday; I was at work and starting to worry. I know Fed Ex delivers by 10:30 am. At this point I had no clue how he was planning on shipping her.

Date: Tue, 22 Aug 200607:28:16 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
Subject: Re: Ball python
To: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net>


did you ship my new baby ball yesterday? It's almost 10:30 and i am worried about her. It's already 84 degrees out. Please let me know if you sent her ASAP.

A sigh of relief, he hadn't shipped the snake yet.

From: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
To: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Ball python
Date: Tue, 22 Aug 2006 10:56:03 -0500


I am shipping her today. Once I get the tracking # I will email you.

Thank You,
Jason

Then, my heart dropped.

From: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
To: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Ball python
Date: Tue, 22 Aug 2006 15:55:12 -0500


Hello
Here is your tracking # EQ766877591US you can track it at www.usps.com

Thank You
Jason

Oh no he sent it through USPS; they don't confirm delivery until 3pm. I did not respond to him again that day. On Wednesday morning I called the post office and asked them to please hold my package there and that I would come pick it up to please call me ASAP. At 11am they called and confirmed my package was there, I went to pick it up that moment. The packaging was acceptable, even though it was sent through USPS, she was in a bag, I dug it out right away. When I took her out the first thing we noticed was that she was in Shed, her eyes were completely clouded. And then I noticed how dirty she was. I checked the bag for poop, there was none. I can only conclude it was the way she was kept. I looked over her belly; she has a cut on her belly near the end. She also look like she has a damaged scale near the top of her neck, she won't hold still for pictures up there, and I refuse to stress her out to get them. I was worried about her well being, so I immediately called a Vet and made her appointment for the next day (Thursday 8-24-06) at 3:30 pm.



I wrote to Mr. Kayser regarding the wound and her condition. She seemed horribly skinny to me.

Date: Wed, 23 Aug 200609:01:30 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Annette" <nettygirl79@yahoo.com> Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
Subject: Re: Ball python
To: "Jason Kayser" <jasonkayser@charter.net>


I received the snake today from the post office. I can't tell you how dissapointed I am. Not int he snake, but in you. She is very sweet. And very injured, how could ship a snake with a slice down her belly? I have taken photos of her, and the bag she was in, there is no slice in the bag, and no way this could of happened in shippng consider how dirty the wound is. Did not even check the poor thing? Not to mention I asked you about a week ago what her feeding schedule was, you did not answer. So tell me when was the last time you fed the poor thing? Perhaps you could tell me when she was hatched, because the Vet will need all this information tomorrow when I take her in. The Vet is also very interested in who it is that would ship a snake 1. unfed, 2. wounded, and 3. in shed. She is shedding now as we speak. Unless i can get some information back from you very soon, I will be leaving you negative feedback.

A little harsh maybe, but I was really upset. Now Mr. Kayser is assuring me that this cut is from the umbilical cord, which I asked the Vet about, and he disagreed. I asked a breeder friend of mine to come check her out also, he disagreed also. The vet said it was a "bur wound" which he explained would have been from his enclosure she was kept in. He also said it didn't seem more than a week old, but wasn't deep enough for stitches. Her weight was on the low side, but not very bad, so I can admit I may have been slightly wrong about that, but he did say she was a little under nourished and needed some tender loving care and she would be ok. He has seen taz, and said as long as we care for her the way we do him she would be fine. To keep attention focused on her belly and to let him know if either the scratch or the snag in her upper neck change. Now on to the Shed factor. I don't know what happened. I put her in an enclosure with water that she immediately went to, drank and submerged herself on Wednesday, On Thursday morning It looked as though she must of shed, her eyes were clear, I assumed she shed, I cleaned out her enclosure completely, no skin... I asked the vet on Thursday, he said either she had a nice shed or had been badly dehydrated and that could have caused her to look like she was in shed.. I actually have no idea if that is possible, so I can not comment on that, but either way, a snake in shed shouldn't be shipped I don't think, and I should of been notified.

My Kayser refuses that any of this was possible, that she was very well fed without any wounds at all (even though he said the cut was from the umbilical cord before) the only thing he admits to is that she was in shed before he sent her, but didn't want me to be mad if I had to wait, he never once asked me about this, I would have understood of course.

If the community decides the only thing this person did wrong was to ship her through the USPS, then so be it. I will be keeping and loving Sadie no matter what. I disagree with the conditions she came in, and will not be purchasing anything ever again from this Jason Kayser or from Reptileauctions (I know they had nothing to do with it, but I just feel I can't go back there).

I put in a claim to paypal; they declined it saying they do not cover the conditions of items sent. I had only asked to be refunded 1/2 the cost of the vet Bill $17.30.

I am sorry for how lengthy this is, or how jumbled it may be. If I have left anything out or can answer any questions please let me know.

Annette Gennari

Annette, do you still have the box she arrived in? If you do, check out the postage label, it should tell you what it actually cost him to ship her.

Besides everything else, if he charged you $50 to ship her USPS, he probably pocketed a good portion of that as well. I'm betting it cost under $25 for him to ship her that way. I've shipped and received overnight packages (NOT with anything alive in them, hwoever) that were probably much larger than what a package containing a BP that age would be, and it cost be less than $25.

How is the animal doing?
what did the vet say about its over all health?
I hope she does well for you.

Cat: I do not have the box anymore. I'm not happy about that and my boyfriend got chewed out for throwing it away. I came home from work yesterday to find he had cleaned the family room and thrown the box in the dumpster in the process.

Christopher: Her over all health seem to be ok, she is a very timid BP. She had no mites, the Vet said she would do ok as long as we continued with her the way we have with our other BP.

The newest update literally happened about 10 minutes after I first posted this. I went to check on her to see if she was ok. Looked in her enclosure and seen skin. She just now shed. It was odd. because like I said, when we got her her eyes were cloaded over, and the next morning they were clear. So maybe the Vets answer of dehydration was right. She was only able the shed off a piece on her nose. My neighbor/breeder/snake owner/ very good friend came over and helped me with her, so she is shed now. she had a piece stuck on her eye so we had to help her with it.
I'm still very unhappy witht he condition she was shipped in, but I really just want people to know if they buy from this person, thier snakes will be shipped via USPS with no notice to you before they are shipped that they will be shipped that way.

This is someone who will definitely be on my "do not do business with" list, and his shipping USPS isn't the only reason. I wouldn't do business wth anyone who would ship a filthy, wounded animal by ANY shipper.

I'm glad to hear she's doing better, it sounds like she's fortunate to have found a much better home than the one she came from.

About the "slice" on the belly - when I got my ball python as a baby, I saw the "slice" and thought he had an injury. But it was clean and eventually went away, so I didn't think anything more of it. When I received my latest snake (he was only about a month and a half old when I got him), a 2006 bci male, I noticed a similar "cut" on his belly kind of towards his vent. Yes, I know, balls have eggs and boas birth live, but both have yolks with umbilicals. It looks exactly the same as the ball python's was. So I would have to agree with the statement that the mark was probably an umbilical marking. It's kind of disconcerting - it does look like an incision, but since I've seen it on multiple snakes in the same area, this is probably what you've seen (I can take a picture of my little boy's umbilical area if you want to compare). Hopefully your new little girl will bounce back after a few soaking baths and a good shed.

That he shipped USPS at all, second that he never even told you ahead of time that he was shipping that way... errrg!

I would appreciate a picture so I can compare. Sadie was born 6-5 so she is almost 3 months old. The "cut" was dirty when we got her, I cleaned it up and already it has started to heal. If it's a coincidence that it just started to heal when I got her, then I will accept that. May I ask though, was your snake sensitive to be touched there? She kind of curls up whenever you put your finger near that part of her belly. Then again she is a BP, and they do love to curl up.

It sounds like this was a very unpleasant experience. Shipping through the USPS was a major blunder and you are right to be concerned.
As far as issues with the shedding...when a snake goes through eccdysis the eyes will clear and normally it is several days after they clear that the actual shedding takes place.
If the snake was a neonate, then the "cut" you describe could indeed be the umbilical scar...and if the snake was filthy like you describe, then his husbandry (or more the lack of it) could have resulted in infection.
I hate stories like this especially with new keepers, as it sours people against snakes...and it is people like this that help get laws passed against our rights as keepers.
Keep on being a positive herp keeper, and get your new snake into prime condition like your original sounds like he is kept in!

Annette, if it was myself that he sent this snake to in that condition i would have done a couple things.The first thing would be contacting the USPS postmaster and make a report of him sending this snake to yourself thru the USPS.The reason is it is a FEDERAL FELONY to ship reptiles thru the USPS.Second notify the webmaster of the auctions site and have this punk banned.Third please post his user name from the auctions so we all can avoid this loser .Also the area on her belly might be scale rot and that could be why it hurts her.With her being dirty when you opened the box he probably kept her in a very dirty enclosure .I hope she recovers from this with no problems.It sounds like she is a proper reptile loving home now .

"FEDERAL FELONY to ship reptiles thru the USPS."

That's not entirely accurate..it's Illegal to ship SNAKES thru USPS. It is, however, legal to ship many lizards.