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shipping fish during winter

11K views 11 replies 11 participants last post by  Deeda 
#1 ·
I've been having trouble finding a home for my fish locally so I'm looking into shipping them.

Is it any more difficult to ship fish during winter months? Or is it really as simple as making sure to include heating packs and I'll be fine?

What is the most common shipping method? I read in the article about shipping via the airport, but IME I've always gotten fish shipped to me via UPS. Is UPS overnight an alright choice for shipping my fish?

It'd only be 6-7 small fish total so I'd have no problem fitting them all in one box if that helps.

The library post was very helpful, would just like a few bits of extra advice for a first timer from some more experienced fish shippers.
 
#3 ·
Styrofoam insulation is also necessary for cold weather, heat packs alone won't be enough when the temps are below 40. I usually ship fish Priority Mail, 2-3 days. Breather bags, fresh water, and a little chunk of polyfilter in each bag to absorb ammonia works great. I cut styro insulation to fit the inside of the box (but don't make it completely airtight) then tape the heat pack to the inside of the top with a small hole (push a pencil through the styro) to vent the heat pack. The idea is to keep thye temp inside the box relatively stable, but allow a little air to get through (heat rises, so it circulates out the hole in the top) for the fish to breathe.
 
#4 ·
you will need a styrofoam cooler with a heat pack. I would be sure to ship them overnight via FedEx of UPS and have someone accept them at delivery. The heat packs that I have seen in my shipments are ok for 24 hours, but wouldn't be helpful over 2-3 days or if left outside for a day on a very cold porch.
 
#5 ·
Yes, you can ship quite successfully during winter. I just received a shipment of 12 fish last weekend, no losses. The overnight temperature where I live dropped to 0 degrees F or maybe even a little below zero, and when the fish arrived, it was still only 10-15F. Use styro on all 6 sides, with heat packs taped to the inside top. Wrap the bag with the fish with brown paper - I presume to keep the heat pack from directly touching the fish bag.

see this thread for a picture of the packaging my fish arrived in: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... highlight=
 
#6 ·
Hlo buddy, i want to tell you that shipping through UPS might not be safest option due to several reasons as they are not specifically ship fishes and they don't ship fish frequently. You must chose any one who are specifically ship pet like fish. In last winter i (link removed)ship fish using Citizenshipper. And i found them quiet good. They done all the arrangement required for it. You can check pricing over there also.

Secondly, which might not be very important for you is that UPS has high overnight charges.
So do some research before shipping.

Cheers,
 
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