"There is no refund on shipping costs unless the carrier has failed to ship on time and has issued us a refund. Livestock death/damage due to carrier mishandling must be claimed through the carrier."

Just a quick question about that statement. Does your carrier i.e. UPS, know they are shipping a live animal? If so, will they refund the costs if it dies?

Just curious, because every shipping company I have talked with says...ship at your own risk..no refunds or replacement for dead livestock.

Curious...maybe rules are different in Quebec?

Two tips for you shipping UPS:

Only deliver to UPS stores in the winter, otherwise the box sits on a cold truck all day out for delivery.

Use at least 2 heat packs. Almost all of the SPS i ordered lately arrived dieing and only a few recovered due to cold water, and that was from a supplier who in my opinion packs extremely well.

I know neither UPS or FedEx will guarantee any livestock shipped. As far as FedEx is concerned they don't even ship livestock, according to the people I spoke to on the phone. (even tho I have received tons of orders thru them)
The only way they will give you a refund is if the package does not arrive at all. They are not responsible for delays due to weather or anything else. I know that from personal experience.

Without an actual arrive alive guarantee from the vendor shipping in winter in Canada is very risky.

I love that you guys are offering advice about UPS shipping. Keep it coming! :)

UPS will be aware that we are shipping livestock. We love the idea of shipping to the closest UPS store for the winter months. This may not be an option for some customers living in rural areas.

We use thick styrofoam boxes with 40hr heat packs in the winter months. If the package arrives colder than usual, please let us know so we can improve. Feedback is always appreciated!

If the package is damaged by the carrier, please accept the package either way. Take some pictures of the package and send it to us.

We don't expect the customer to take any risks. That is what our arrive alive guarantee is for. :)

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Was just checking your drygoods section for stuff we order frequently.

The prices on the first two items seem pretty steep compared to what we can get them for on the West Coast. (Epoxy and Coral Rx cost almost twice as much)

Just thought I'd mention it since we buy lots of both and obviously couldn't afford to purchase thru your store. I realize there may be higher costs where you're located which dictates higher prices.

So will you issue a refund if the livestock comes in damaged due to the carrier?

If so, I would remove that line from your site. If not, I would double check that UPS will cover live stock losses.

Most dry goods are purchased from the same supplier. My prices reflect my costs. If ever I can get better prices, I would be more than happy to pass on those savings to my customers. :)

There are two sizes for the epoxy. The epoxy I am offering is the biggest 8" stick size.

The customer should not be responsible for anything that is out of their control. The only time we will refuse liability is if the customer is not home to receive the package.

I will give UPS a call and see what my options are. The shipping page will be updated once I get the details.

Excellent.

Great quick responses and I love that you have the customer and the livestock as the number 1 priority.

Do you have any photos of your commercial setup?

Not yet.

We will be taking those pics very soon.

The guys @ EcoTech are asking for them also. Apparently we are getting exceptional SPS coloration with their Gen1 Radion lights and they want to feature us on their Facebook page.