I'm prob no extra help...
BUUUT I always ship Express just to be safe. Have the customer buy the shipping box, then I wait for it and the MO.
I call the PO to let them know im bringing in live chicks in a few days (i give them an exact date im bringing them in). I dunno why but mine likes to know when they are coming.
I pack up the chicks... a line of bedding, then 2 plastic cups taped in teh corners, one with gel and sliced and chopped up very finely apples, then in the other filled to the brim with chick crumbles. Throw in thte chicks...weigh them in the box one last time (all packed up and ready to go)... make sure they are under or at 5lbs (that's my minimum weight I'll ship out at).
Then off to the PO....with the customers address AND phone number (and I always forget to ask for the dang phone number...so like righ tnow im waiting for michiganwoods to get back to me so i can have her phone number for tomorrrow!
LOL)!
I put the chicks on the counter, tell her that im shipping express, she weighs them, tells me the weight and price, I write in her info, and my return address and number... then we pay, then we say our goodbyes LOL that simple.
Then I take home my copy of the recepit and send the customer the tracking code
Which is most of the time annoyingly useless...but it comes "free" with express shipping.