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Ordering FAQs
• Browse the questions and answers below and see if your question has been answered before.
• Many other questions are answered in on our retail terms page.
• If not, contact us by clicking here. Title your email "Order questions".
To make it cost-time-labor effective to both the customer and shipper. $20 is a very low minimum. Shipping + packing/handling costs are going to run you $60+. It makes no sense to order a $10 spider with that in mind. To get the best bang for your buck, order in bulk and order stock that is 2x the shipping costs at a minimum.
Why do you recommend using Fed Ex Priority Overnight Service? Why can't you use other carriers?
• Fed. Ex. has certain shipping standards in packaging and labeling that is the best way to ship safely and reliably.
• Other carriers have either very restrictive regulations and/or prohibitive ones towards certain categories of wildlife. While many in the hobby have used and continue to use cheaper shipping carriers, those methods and carrier use is either illegal and/or against a shipping carrier's regulations. With the current anti-pet trade forces at work to restrict and prohibit our hobby, we highly encourage hobbyists to ship only with Fed. Ex. Shipping with other carriers brings great risk to the shipper and to our hobby as a whole.
• Shipping with service of 3 or more days is very risky for the wildlife. Do not use such services.
• Fed. Ex. Priority overnight is delivered next morning 9am-12pm. This is the best shipping service for any wildlife especially with temps over 80F and under 50F.
• Fed. Ex. 2nd day Service is offered for spring and fall shipments of stock valued under $100, but there NO live arrival guarantee with 2nd day service.
• Remember: What you do affects the entire invertebrate and reptile hobby and industry. The general public has a right to live their lives without encountering a invertebrate and/or reptile that’s escaped from improper packaging. Every time someone ships a invertebrate and/or reptile via a shipping carrier other than Fed. Ex. with substandard packaging, and that invertebrate or reptile escapes, dies, scares or harms someone, that reflects poorly on all invertebrate and reptile hobbyists. It also furthers legislative efforts to ban invertebrates and reptiles entirely.
I can't afford the $20 min. purchase + shipping costs. Is there any exceptions? What can I do to afford receiving a shipment?• Sorry no exceptions. It's not cost effective to both parties, it's not safe or good for the shipped wildlife and it's not responsible to our great hobby to ship other than using Fed. Ex. pri. overnight delivery service.
• If you can't make the $20 minimum order, consider going in with the following people/groups/organizations to make the $20 minimum order and/or split shipping costs:
• your local friend(s) in the hobby
• your local pet store
• your local nature center, science museum or zoo
• your high school biology class, club or zoology club
Is their lower rates for Fed. Ex. Priority Overnight Service? Why is the rate different based on my time zone area?
The shipping rates posted on our order form are the lowest rates available. In fact, they are lower than published rates at Fed. Ex. offices and their website due to our volume discount rate we get with Fed. Ex. Shipping from Florida, customers in the geographical area in the Eastern Time Zone get the lowest rate as Fed. ex. doesn't have to incur a lot of distance and costs, but Florida to say California in the Pacific Time zone geographical area represents significantly more distance that Fed. Ex. will incur costs to transport a box.