taking my bp on the Alaska Marine Highway ferry

Hi all,

I have one 20+ year old bp and will be moving within Alaska in May. I'll be taking the AMH ferry and will be on the boat for about 5 days. They won't permit my bp in the passenger cabin so will be in some sort of sweaterbox type container in my car (unless I take the chance to sneak him into my cabin). The car deck is enclosed, but obviously won't be warm enough without some sort of added heat. I'm trying to figure out how to keep him at some tolerable temperature for the trip. Passengers have access to the car deck once every 8 hours. Obviously there are heat packs or replaceable hot water bottles and I could create extra insulation for the sweater box, but I know they won't last long enough. I don't know if I can plug anything into the car's system for that long without draining the battery fairly quickly.

What other ideas could you offer? What am I missing? Also, any idea how low a temp he could tolerate for that amount of time without ending up with an RI? I wouldn't feed him before traveling.

Thank you so much for your help!

Is there someone at your final destination that you could ship the snake to?

I agree, shipping to someone is the safest way. I can't see any way you can safely heat the inside of your car for 5 days. Have you asked them what people do if they have to transport dogs?

Personally I'm a bit prone to smuggling. I have moved snakes over a 2 day period like this:
Snake in coarse cotton pillow case, tied at the neck, placed inside as small a plastic box (with a couple of sheets of newspaper as lining) as feasible, with lots of breathing holes drilled in the sides and top. Box placed inside a sports carry-on bag that I have checked I can breathe through. Small water bowl stored in bag as well.
Casually carry bag onto boat as luggage. In your cabin, take snake out of pillowcase, leave in box with water in bowl, still inside bag with top unzipped to allow free airflow. As long as he has air and your box is secure, no harm, no foul.
The downside is you have to carry him with you any time you leave the cabin in case room service comes in.

"Personally I'm a bit prone to smuggling" hahahahahahaa

Everyone needs a hobby

(Just in case this is read by more fastidious types, I do not means illegal species across international borders - I mean legal species on ferries that irrationally do not sympathise with snake-lovers, between islands within a small country... but still fun to do....)

Originally Posted by NIGRO51

Is there someone at your final destination that you could ship the snake to?

I don't right now, but could probably arrange it with a vet office. I agree this may be the safest option for him....just have to get him to someone who can take care of him and arrange to put him on the jet to arrive after I get there. It will be at least $100 to ship him, but I've done that a few times with other critters.

Dogs and cats have to travel in your car, but the crew provides "deck calls" every 8 hours so their owners can let them out to do their business, feed and water, or get them off the boat while in ports. In May the temps won't be freezing, just cool depending on what vessel systems or engines are running on that deck while underway. I've moved by ferry before with a dog and she was fine.

Originally Posted by Helenthereef

Personally I'm a bit prone to smuggling. I have moved snakes over a 2 day period like this:
The downside is you have to carry him with you any time you leave the cabin in case room service comes in.

I've thought about this too, but as I have to declare the snake is with me anyway, there's a chance they'll check the cabin if they don't see it in the car. They don't service the cabins during the trip...but can arrive to inspect it without notice. Maybe could get away with it for a shorter trip. Probably the best idea is to arrange for him to be flown up.

Thanks for the ideas folks!

Please post updates after your ferry experience!

We were facing the same issue while planning our summer move. I figured with shipping heat packs and frequent deck calls, we could keep her warm enough on the ferry ride, but I had no way to keep her cool during the cross country drive to the ferry! Due to the length of our road trip, we decided to put our BP in the care of another herper friend and have her fedexed once we were settled in AK.

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I decided to have a friend take care of my snake while I'm on the ferry trip and have them fly him up to me after I arrive. Turned out it will cost $350 to fly him as he has to transfer from major airline to a local carrier. Great.

styrofoam cooler set up as if you where shipping. heat pack