U.S. Postal Service,New info on shipping tarantulas !!

[KenTheBugGuy]

nope

Is it my understanding that nobody ships them anymore too?

wrong I ship them 3 times a week just through another company.

 

[DireWolf0384]

Thanks for shareing Paul!

Personally I'm considering not shipping USPS regardless. They are expensive for service that is not guaranteed and frankly unreliable.
Has anyone thought of UPS 2nd day or the FedEx equivalent? Properly packed
a T should have no problems for an extra day. I've seen this in shipping USPS Express where is it seems most places in the country are 2 day anyway.

I've checked the prices on UPS and they are the same or below USPS, and I know from experience UPS is MUCH more reliable than the postal service.

But does UPS STILL ship Scorpions?

 

[KenTheBugGuy]

But does UPS STILL ship Scorpions?

None of the shipping services allow anything venomous except USPS allows for scorpions in scientific research. Tarantulas can not be shipped any way by any service so no one is following rules or laws right now.

 

[DireWolf0384]

None of the shipping services allow anything venomous except USPS allows for scorpions in scientific research. Tarantulas can not be shipped any way by any service so no one is following rules or laws right now.

But you do not ship Scorpions via USPS, UPS or Fedex?

 

[thevez2]

...And the enclosed letter from the USPS read:
Dear Senator Chambliss,
This is in response to your February 3 letter on behalf of several constituents, regarding the shipping of tarantulas.
Thank you for sharing your constituents' comments requesting that the US Postal Service allow the shipping of tarantulas for research and pet trade. In response to your inquiry, we contacted Postal Service Headquarters Mailing Standards officials, who advised that this matter is currently being reviewed. However, no decision has been made. Therefore, I am taking the liberty of sharing your constituents' correspondence with that office.
If the Postal Service proposes a change to its standards to allow the shipping of tarantulas, a notice will be published in the Federal Register for public comments.
Thank you for writing. Please let me know if I can assist you with other postal issues.
Sincerely,
Manager, Government Relations.

Sounds very similar to the reply I got from mine.

 

[matthias]

Well the problem is those services can kick you off too right now. I was told not too use UPS anymore by upper management cause they found out what I was shipping. What we are trying to do is get a way we can legally ship our T's and not break any rules too. Also some would argue about UPS being better everyone has thier preferred shipping service. I have used all 3 pretty extensively to ship at one time or another and they all have had thier issues.

I wasn't trying to promote UPS over FedEx, just both of them over USPS.
I don't ship as many T's as you do Ken, but I've shipped several hundred and around half have made it to their destination with out a problem. My office ships 10 to 20 packages a day with UPS and in the last 9 years I can only think of 5 issues we have had.
Admittedly any shipper has their problems but in reliability and accountability the other two are miles above the postal service. They are in the business of making money and thus have motivation to make customers happy. USPS has no such motivation. Also they most UPS or FedEx can do to you is not let you ship. USPS can levy fines and put you in jail.

 

[KenTheBugGuy]

shipping

I wasn't trying to promote UPS over FedEx, just both of them over USPS.
I don't ship as many T's as you do Ken, but I've shipped several hundred and around half have made it to their destination with out a problem. My office ships 10 to 20 packages a day with UPS and in the last 9 years I can only think of 5 issues we have had.
Admittedly any shipper has their problems but in reliability and accountability the other two are miles above the postal service. They are in the business of making money and thus have motivation to make customers happy. USPS has no such motivation. Also they most UPS or FedEx can do to you is not let you ship. USPS can levy fines and put you in jail.

I am not saying you are wrong but I actually hate using fedex and UPS as both have been a much bigger pain than USPS especially when it comes to refunds for a late shipment. They also have all these extra little charges they like to tack on to my bill. Individuals using Fedex or UPS could see shipping rates that are crazy usually about double that of USPS. I did have late shipments in the begining with USPS but after they fixed that I never had many problems with them again except close to christmas. Now I don't want all this to turn into a debate about which shipping service is better cause like I stated everyone has thier favorite one I just targetted one. If USPS legalizes it then I think it will be easy to get UPS and Fedex to change thier rules also.

 

[satanslilhelper]

But you do not ship Scorpions via USPS, UPS or Fedex?

Please, come out from under the rock which you stay and open your eyes. :wall:Everyone still ships T's and scorps on a daily basis. You have to be careful and not advertise what your shipping to the service you are using though. I got one yesterday as a freebie with a T order.

It's been against the rules for these companies to ship T's and scorps(except for medical research) since you probably got into the hobby to begin with. Nothing has changed.

We are trying to change that. Join the fight if this is an issue that affects you so much.

 

[Loudog760]

Keep this thread updated!

 

[Blinx]

Hey.. Why is it EVEN listed as an OPTION by some breeders!? Seriously it is unfair to the consumer. We consumers rely on you breeders to be by the book and on the ball with what you need to do. Hey, listen, I support a change by the post office to allow the shipping of pet tarantulas, but how are they going to ever be able to employ enough people who can on the spot identify a pet tarantula with 100% accuracy? They do not have the money. This issue here right now is for the consumer. They buy, they wait, they get a package unknowing it was sent illegally and become repeat customers UNTIL they find out it is not by the book, then the breeders take a loss when they took a huge risk just to bring a customer satisfaction and provide more quality to the quantity of their customers lives. Hi. It is so unfair to the breeders also. They spend all their time trying to just get by on the money they make or with it on the side, going with fex ex mainly, having to ship it like it was a reptile. But it isn't right that customers get duped into thinking legit only to find out later the tarantula they are waiting on might be shipped illegally and because of that might never make it. The pet stores rarely stock tarantulas because of the shipping issues. When they do the price is high because of the shipping regulations. It isn't fair for anyone in this. The breeders shouldn't be punished, the consumers shouldn't have to wonder or be worrying and there shouldn't be any legal issue for the consumer if they receive the package they paid for and the pet stores shouldn't have to take a financial loss because they cannot bring the pets people want to retail because of the shipping. It is just strange. It is like one of those weird laws people would of never though would of existed till it got brought up. So what do you do if you purchased and you wind up getting it in the mail and you didn't know it wasn't legal?

 

[BobBarley]

Wow this is incredible! Hope they say yes!

Edit: Oops just saw that this thread is pretty old lol.

 

[stevoblue]

I know this is an old thread but I wanted to chime in. I just got back into the hobby as an adult a couple of months ago.
My first two tarantulas I bought from a well known breeder with positive reviews. The breeder ships USPS.
I had a problem where the shipment was literally lost in my local post office. I went down in person twice that day to pick them up. Luckily i never told them what was in the box.
Earlier this month I was reading the blog of another tarantula breeder. That person had a couple of rants about breeders shipping USPS. That was the first time I heard that it was illegal. I was pissed. Although it is my responsibility to know the shipping laws, this breeder ships via USPS daily. Although unlikely I could have unknowingly gotten in some trouble.

 

[shawno821]

Old post,damn it

 

[BobBarley]

http://tarantula-shipping.rallycongress.com/2714/shipping-tarantulas-usps/

Thought I'd share this. You can sign a petition at the bottom of the page.

EDIT: I just sent mine, I hope you all will do the same!

 

[Blinx]

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1716
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/39/3015


Let me try and work this over in my logic for a bit. Check up on it for yourself also. First lets establish who, what and show it is not considered injurious.

First: the Secretary of the Interior is Miss or Lady, Ms or Mrs. Sarah Margaret Roffey Jewell


A person who knowingly deposits for mailing or delivery, or knowingly causes to be delivered by mail, according to the direction thereon, or at any place at which it is directed to be delivered by the person to whom it is addressed, anything that section 3015 of title 39 declares to be nonmailable matter shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.

A.
(a)Injurious Animals.—
Any injurious animal, the importation or interstate shipment of which is prohibited pursuant to section 42 of title 18, constitutes nonmailable matter.
--------
*This section above deals primarily with things such as the Secretary of the Interior is responsible.:
---------
ie.: and such other species of wild mammals, wild birds, fish (including mollusks and crustacea), amphibians, reptiles, brown tree snakes, or the offspring or eggs of any of the foregoing which the Secretary of the Interior may prescribe by regulation to be injurious to human beings, to the interests of agriculture, horticulture, forestry, or to wildlife or the wildlife resources of the United States, is hereby prohibited.

------
is not wild. Is not applicable. Could be however, so do study up.
-----

18 U.S. Code § 1716 - Injurious articles as nonmailable

---------
is not listed. is not applicable. Still, please read up.
---------

https://about.usps.com/publications/pub141/standard-prohibited-and-restricted-items.htm
STANDARD PROHIBITED AND RESTRICTED ITEMS
-----
Read it.
-----

THIS: http://pe.usps.gov/text/pub52/pub52c5_007.htm

THIS:
525 Nonmailable Live Animals

All poisonous insects and all spiders, except scorpions under limited circumstances (see 526.5), are nonmailable. Other nonpoisonous and non-disease-conveying insects are permitted as stated in Exhibit 526.6.

-------
Excuse me, politely if you would. However the wording of this sentence is a bit fragmented. Fragmented defined as existing or functioning as though broken into separate parts; disorganized; disunified: on http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/fragmented

1. A spider is not an insect.
2. A scorpion is defined as any of numerous arachnids of the order Scorpionida, widely distributed in warmer parts of the world, having a long, narrow, segmented tail that terminates in a venomous sting. on http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/scorpion

3.The law contradicts itself. It says all spiders are nonmailable.
4. Arachnid is defined as: any wingless, carnivorous arthropod of the class Arachnida, including spiders, scorpions, mites, ticks, and daddy-longlegs, having a body divided into two parts, the cephalothorax and the abdomen, and having eight appendages and no antennae. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/arachnid
5. Spider is defined as : any of numerous predaceous arachnids of the order Araneae http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/spider

So while I will not under any circumstance mail any tarantula, or any nonmailable item, personally. I cannot advise. I am not an entomologist. How are people supposed to have their tarantulas shipped? Exactly how is this to be made sense of any further? Personally I don't have to further. There are the resources. Thanks for the time.

 

[Biollantefan54]

People use Fedex and UPS as it isn't against the law, just their policy ^

 

[MrsHaas]

Thanks to ken and Paul! Every little step counts!

 

[King Sparta]

Sigh....
Unfortunately people in Canada can't sign this petition that sucks. I know usps is american, but we canadians still use it lol

 

[Kroogur]

http://tarantula-shipping.rallycongress.com/2714/shipping-tarantulas-usps/

Thought I'd share this. You can sign a petition at the bottom of the page.

EDIT: I just sent mine, I hope you all will do the same!

I just sent mine too!