PLEASE READ- here is some info you may not know about shipping live

[eggcited2]

The post office (usps) may not be telling you that express shipping does NOT mean next day arrival for any live animals.

Live animals are exempt from the 'next day delivery guarantee'.

My post master told me that since animals can not be placed in cargo holds of planes, they are sent by over the road freight (in trucks). So it very well can take three days for a bird or birds to be in the system before being delivered.

I did speak to someone else with the postal service and they said that birds (and any live animals) can not be placed in the cargo hold of planes (due to lack of ox, warmth, etc) but that they are put up in the area the pilot and crew set - passenger area. But that even if sent via plane, live animals can take up to three days to arrive at their destination.

So I do not know which of those two stories is correct, about if shipped over ground via truck or by plane. But the fact is: they are not guaranteed next day delivery and in fact can take up three days to be delivered.

Review of the facts: express is guaranteed arrival the next day, **except** for live animals. They (the usps) does not and can not guarantee any live animals will arrive the next day, nor do they guarantee the animals will arrive alive.

I also found out that it is not at all UNcommon for the animals to take three days and to arrive sick or dead.

 

[dutchhollow]

I believe most chick shipments are flown. We ship dogs all the time in the cargo area.

 

[eggcited2]

Quote:
I know things were supposed to be changed about live animals being put in the cargo hold on planes cause of too many deaths. There was a major incident at St. Louis a few years ago that about 100 puppies were found dead, dieing, and/or really sick and bad off because of being in the cargo hold of a plane, and the pilot had either forgotten to turn on the ox and heat or had not done it cause no one had told him there were live animals on board. It made national news and a big uproar.


As I said, someone from the national level (called the number on the usps) website said the live birds and/or chicks are not put in the cargo area, but in the passenger area. My post master said he was told by his superiors (bosses high up) that they are not even put on planes any more and are sent over road by trucks.

I have talked to people who are directly in charge of "express mail" and got some major facts and info from them.

Fedex is who provides the air service for the usps express mail. They are contracted with the usps to do all flying of express mail.

 

[gofasterstripe]

I moved to SC from Scotland and brought my cats with me. They went into the cargo hold, the paperwork I got with them said they do put on heating and air down there for the animals. They both arrived safely and none the worce for their journey

 

[jojo@rolling acres farm]

I don't know if my birds arrived via plane or truck. In the last 4 years I've ordered several times and have had no losses during shipment or any shipping issues - thank the LORD!

I've ordered chickens, ducks & geese from several sources both businesses and private parties. I'm also one of those people that likes her post office.

!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Live animals must be placed in a compressurized compartment, unlke cargo such as packages of clothing or books or ... If you go to the post office website, you can access postal regulations (hugely long document). I've been told that there is no 24-hour guarantee on ANYTHING.

I DO know that birds are shipped via plane, but depending on the location of a particular post office, travel via truck for some or even all of the journey may be considered the most time-conscious method.

 

[eggcited2]

jojo@rolling acres farm :

I don't know if my birds arrived via plane or truck. In the last 4 years I've ordered several times and have had no losses during shipment or any shipping issues - thank the LORD!

I've ordered chickens, ducks & geese from several sources both businesses and private parties. I'm also one of those people that likes her post office.

!

Last year my order of chicks arrived within 24 hrs of shipping (from the hatchery).

This year, it has been a problem with every shipment.

The first shipment of birds (from a privet person,not hatchery). Their post office took the box of birds for express shipping. The next day the post office got them back and called the person who shipped them. At that time they told her they could not ship express to my address/zip code. I got a zip code for a friends house at a different town; 40 miles away, and within about 10-15 miles of lambert airport at st louis. Her post office once again said they could not ship. They said they could not ship to any zip code that started with 633. I happened to be going up to my cousins house in mid Illinois for the weekend and we used her address and had them shipped to her post office. They arrived the very next day. They went out in the afternoon from NC and arrived in mid ILL the very next morning. Way less than 24 hours.

The second shipment of this year was my package of day old chicks from hatchery. It was shipped from Ohio, to arrive in eastern Missouri. when I checked the tracking number, it said the shipment had been misshipped. It had arrived in Memphis, TN. I contacted the usps and the service person there was cold as ice and had no compassion nor concern. When I asked if I could talk to anyone else with more power, she told me to call consumer affairs for express shipping for st louis and finally gave me the phone number for that office. I called and only then did I get a person who had any compassion or caring. The lady there took my information and said she would investigate. She called me back and had talked to consumer affairs at Memphis. The chicks were indeed there. Seems as how they had been put on a wrong plane. They had been put on the plane for memphis instead of the one for st louis. They promised the chicks would go out on the plane that very day for st louis and would arrive the next day. The next day arrived and they did not show up at my post office. By 1:30 in the afternoon, I called the consumer affairs lady again. She once again started investigating. Finally, at 6:00 that night they were located at a main sorting post office in st louis city. We drove down to the facility (60 miles each way) and got the box of chicks. Some were alive, but lost two out of the eight. and the rest took intensive care to live at all.


My latest episode of the post office and live chickens: I bought a beautiful cochin rooster from a privet person and she shipped him just this past Tuesday. She was told upon actually shipping him:" guaranteed arrival by 3:00 tomorrow". Wednesday came and no box with the rooster. The tracking number only had info from the day before, that said at 7:59 a.m., it was re-routed due to incorrect address or zip code on the shipping label. No, there was no incorrect address and no incorrect zip code. The package did arrive, later on Thursday. The bird was dead. I had some experts look at his body and they said that by the way the rigor was, he was alive the day before. If he had been delivered on Wednesday, he would not have been dead.

It has not been my post office that I have had trouble with. It has been the "service" of the usps itself.

I do think people deserve to be made aware that the express mail actually does not mean the bird, chicks or what ever will arrive in the time frame. My post office said that the mailing post office is supposed to tell the person that live animals are exempt from any time guarantee and also are not guaranteed to arrive alive at all. But a lot of the post offices are not telling people that. A lot of them are letting people think that the birds will arrive by the next day.​