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Info New reptile shipper that utilises UPS - Reptiles Express

Brendan got a question for ya. What happens when I take my box (which is stamped with live harmless reptiles on each side) to a ups hub and they refuse to ship, I show them the paperwork you send me... and they refuse to ship.

What then?
 
Brendan, I'm not really trying to split hairs or give you a hard time here. There is a difference between posting a scanned copy of your waiver and just typing it here as part of a reply to a post. I do wish you luck in this endeavor, and hope people can use your service with confidence in the future. I really do hope that those to whom you have given access to your waiver act responsibly and do not cause you or UPS the customer service nightmare that is possible.

Now, for the meat and potatoes: My concern from the start is the way a number of people just flipped SYR the proverbial bird as soon as you showed up on the scene. Regardless of how long you have been in this hobby (longer than me, and thanks for clearing that up), you do not have the name or reputation of Pro Exotics. After seeing what happened with David Young, I'd hate to see others put all their faith into a fly by night operation....again.

Another point of concern is that one of the earlier posts in the RE thread stated "Let the Hognose shipping begin", or something very close to that effect. Does UPS make the distinction between venomous and mildly venomous (even as laughably mild as a hognose) animals?

Lastly, just out of the interest of disclosure, who are your partners? It may go towards your credibility and put some of the concerns at ease.
 
Give us a call and we can get our Reps and the higher ups we deal directly with to resolve the problem. It is going to happen, even with many conference calls with the high ups at UPS we could not come up with a solution to keep this from ever happening. If you show the person behind the counter our waiver, that person should get in contact with the right department that can give the all clear to accept the package. If that person behind the counter is very busy or having a bad day the shipment could be refused. We are working with UPS to print "Approved to SHIP non-venomous snakes" on the label. That is why we want you to go and talk to your drop off location choice before you have a shipment in hand ready to go. We will do our best to help resolve any problems.
 
ReptilesExpress.com has 3 = partners: Brendan Tighe - Cold Blooded Supply, Mike Houtzager - Premium Crickets and Clay Ghann - Ghann's Crickets. The part of the waiver I posted is a copy/paste form a PDF email letter from our UPS rep. I like SYR and have used there service many times with no problems. The only thing I did not like about SYR is they told everyone that used there service to break the law and only place info about the contents on the inside of the box. That is illegal!! I think the bad blood people have with them right now is really and only about there waiver or lack there of.
 
Look, what you guys arent getting is that any facility has the right to refuse your package (by law they have this right and no waiver circumvents this law), no matter the company, even if you do have a waiver. Its up to the individual facility. I have seen cases where people have issues with their local fedex facilities and shipping. So I dont see how this is any different.
 
When I was feeding crix I bought from Ghann's... and am more than satisfied with their service. They have alwasys done me right... so its nice to see their name. However since Im fedex certified... Im gonna have to have a hold and wait stance. I truely hope this works out because Id like a second option to my own account should I need it. And the fact that your supposedly offering what the others were not... and telling folks to ship legally... makes me think that it might.

Like I said.... Im gonna go into a holding pattern and use my account and watch.
 
Only privately owned UPS shipping centers have the right to refuse a shipment for any reason. If you take it to a UPS owned hub they will take any non-venomous snake package per our agreement with them. It way require a phone call or 2 to educate that particular hub to the change in there snake shipping policy. Now with homeland security guidelines UPS, FedEx and any company that transports freight or packages can refuse any package they think is unsafe or not packaged correctly. Just make sure your package is in good shape, labeled correctly and talk to your drop off point before you have a shipment. Be Proactive and we can help solve any problems before you are standing at the UPS counter with a package yelling at the person behind the counter.
 
Stacey is correct, any company could use the Homeland Security Laws to refuse any package. ReptilesExpress and our reps at UPS that will make sure they are not refusing a package only because it says "Live Harmless Reptile" on the box.
 
I currently get my crickts from ghanns and they treat me great.
had the pleasure of talking to clay a few times at NARBC shows.

this does ease my mind a bit. that and you are telling people to ship and lable properly.


best of luck
 
coldbloodedcages said:
Did my partners help with our credibility. They both have a very good rep and a very long history in the reptile industry.
Click to expand...
Yes, it does. :thumbsup:

Southern Wolf said:
When I was feeding crix I bought from Ghann's... and am more than satisfied with their service. They have alwasys done me right... so its nice to see their name. However since Im fedex certified... Im gonna have to have a hold and wait stance. I truely hope this works out because Id like a second option to my own account should I need it. And the fact that your supposedly offering what the others were not... and telling folks to ship legally... makes me think that it might.

Like I said.... Im gonna go into a holding pattern and use my account and watch.
Click to expand...
Hoping for the best....holding here as well.
 
I'm liking what I see so far, and yes, having Ghann's name in there is definitely a big reassurance. I absolutely love the legal shipping requirements (that's been a huge pet peeve of mine for years now), and I'm liking the ethics so far.

I also approve of your patience with the BOI nitpickers--you guys have been pretty professional through some incendiary comments.

So...you almost have me convinced, just a little longer... lol...
 
I have a call into my UPS rep about hogs. After thinking about it I would have to say no because it is venomous and the waiver does say Non-Venomous Snakes only. It is a harmless snake but for now I would say NO but keep it open for UPS to decide. I have sent UPS as much info on hogs as I could so we will see. Hogs fate is now in the hands of UPS.
 
This is part of the info I sent to UPS. If any hognose keepers have any other info that could help with a + decision by UPS please send it to me at [email protected]

From Hognose.com:

Human saliva, when injected into a hand, results in local pain, swelling, and discoloration. However, this does not mean that Humans should be considered venomous. And yet, this is precisely the approach taken by many in the herptile hobby when discussing the American hognosed snake.

According to Smith and Brodie: "...the fangs do not deliver a venom, although the saliva is believed to be toxic," (1982).

In several cases involving bites by Heterodon nasicus, victims reported a combination of symptoms ranging from no reaction to mild tingling, swelling and numbness. While some researchers have attempted to explain this as the result of bufotoxins in Eastern hognosed snakes eating toads, it cannot be explained in those cases where captive born Western hognosed snakes, fed exclusively mice caused similar reactions.
 
I really hope this goes threw and works correctly.. would be really re-assuring to see satisfied customers post on this thread
 
coldbloodedcages said:
This is part of the info I sent to UPS. If any hognose keepers have any other info that could help with a + decision by UPS please send it to me at [email protected]
.
Click to expand...

You may have to purchase access to the articles but I suggest using
Young, Robert; 1992; Effects of Duvernoy's gland secretions from the eastern hognose snake, Heterodon platirhinos, on smooth muscle and neuromuscular junction; Toxicon 30(7): 775-779
http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...serid=10&md5=4374e29c1815e1e077c1a55fa4902557

but there are also other references like this one that counter the above findings

http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...serid=10&md5=26e3b9a5fa38b93f42a588a8a532dbdd

Ed
 
Hi Mike there is another thread also on the BOI that I started. It is a good guy thread for the excellent service I recieved when I used reptiles express to ship my bearded dragons.
 
Congratulations! Hope it works out great!

Seems like UPS might be swayed on their "mildly venomous" snake classification based on how some state wildlife laws see it. If you find a few states that prohibit venomous, but specifically allow hognose and other colubrids that are not considered dangerous, I would send them that info. Maybe they would even concede their decision to be in line with some particular state? Then they won't have to decide for themselves in a subject they are not expert in. Just be sure to carefully pick the state you want to be identified with, lol!

As far as various UPS Stores and drop points, please remember that FedEx Kinkos / Office stores also will not accept perishable packages unless you get a particular manager to agree. So I try to get my customers to pick up at the FedEx hub in their city. That is why the individual UPS store policies do not surprise me.

So far, this sounds very good. Glad to hear that Ghann's Crickets owner is involved - that helps credibility. I have been pretty happy with my FedEx discounts and service, so have no plans to change right now. But I am happy to hear of a viable alternative should the need arise.
 
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