Shipping Question

Hi everyone. I know there are a million threads on shipping temperature, but I haven't found a clear answer on what I'm about to ask - So please bare with me

I have a guy wanting to buy a snake from me and he is in Florida. The temperature is fine down there, but I am in Ohio and it has been pretty chilly lately. The forecast for tomorrow is high of like 55, low of 37 (I think). Now my question is, will this snake be sitting in Ohio or other cold states for a long enough amount of time to justify using a heat pack? Or would the animal overheat when it got to warmer states? I don't want her to freeze or burn up, lol!

Also, if I use a heat pack, as a rule of thumb how much room should be between the snake bag and the heat pack? Again, I don't want her getting burned up.

If these questions have been answered, I apologize. I just want to make sure I'm doing things right! Thanks in advance.

It is almost always better to be too chilly than too hot. Be sure to always ship on an empty belly (the snake, not you, lol!). What kind of snake is it? If it is a corn or other colubrid, low temps are not a problem unless they are almost frozen. Most boas and pythons are more sensitive.

All FedEx shipments go to Memphis, so check temps there. They probably won't spend much time outdoors, and most planes are heated, but delivery trucks may not be (that is why I always suggest customers pick up at the FedEx office).

If you use heat, then the further the snake is from the heat pack, the better. I sometimes even use bubble wrap to separate the animals from the heat, keep them from overheating. But in a small box, animals could still overheat.

Whenever the temps are marginal for heat and I am in doubt, I don't use it. You can kill with heat much more easily than with cold. Unfortunately, there is no one, simple answer on when to use heat. Each circumstance is different than the next time you ship. Gather all the info you can, and read all of the threads on things to consider, and use your best judgment. That is about the best you can do. If you are careful and thoughtful about it, it ALMOST always turns out ok. Sometimes things happen though, and there may be nothing you can do about it. Thankfully, those events are very rare.

Kathy -

The snake is a Jungle Carpet Python. I ended up delaying shipping because I wasn't sure what to do, lol! I appreciate your response. I keep going back and forth on whether or not a heat pack would be necessary, but thank you for the info on all shipments going to Memphis. I'll see what the temps are going to be there and make my decision that way probably. Thanks again!

Looks like Thurs-Fri Memphis temps are going to be highs of 58/63 and lows of 49/47. Sounds like I shouldn't use a heat pack. Any in agreement?

How long can a snake be in 37-50 degree weather without being harmed?

if its going to florida then it will go through tn, nc,sc, ga then florida. tn sc nc and ga all run around the same temps with maybe a 5 to 10 degrees less. tn maybe a little cooler due to the mountians area of tn and nc. i think i would insulate it very well but the heating i dont know because it will spend most of the night in cooler tempratures, and even in 30's and 40,s thats still to cold for a jungle. also it will arrive early morning to florida then go out so i would say the heat wouldnt effect it much at all considering it wont be in a warm climate long but who knows lol. also im sure if u check floridas temps for tommorow it should be but around 70 to 75 at the highest. and from my understanding is that rule of thumb the heat pack should be taped inside of the box on the side to prevent damage to the animal.

Carpets are fairly temperature tolerant, but not enough so that I would send them without heat in the current temps.
FedEx goes through Memphis, TN, then to wherever...the box doesn't hit every state along the way (unless its close enough to be trucked). If the destination temps are significantly higher than the origin temps, use shorter term heat packs - they heat faster, peak faster, and then start cooling off. You can also use a short term pack, and a longer one (ie and 8 hr, and a 40 hr...that way, you get extra heat during the coldest part of the trip, but not too much when the box is in a warmer area. If you don't have a choice, you can activate the heat packs early (but don't cut it TOO close). For example, if you are using 40 hr packs, and shipping from 30s to 80s - open them in the morning of the shipping day, and put them in the box with the filler (paper, styro, whatever). Later that afternoon, package the snake and arrange things in the box, add more filler if needed, then seal the box....if you scheduled a pickup, do this far enough in advance that it is warm in the box before it goes into the cold (If you are taking it to FedEx yourself, you can cut it closer).
Luckily, this time of year it isn't usually HOT by 10:30 am, even in the warmer parts of the country. **I agree with Kathy - especially in hot or cold weather - having the box held at FedEx is the way to go. It may be somewhat less convenient for the recipient, but it is a whole lot better for the reptiles to sit on a shelf at room temp vs being bounced around in a truck for hours in a hot/cold truck. (And I believe that enough that I have anything coming to me held for pickup)