How to Ship Rabbits

I've done several shipments of animals and I wanted to make a little short guide to help out folks considering shipping.

Pre-Shipping

*Decide the breeder you want. Sounds like a duh right? Seriously, know what breeder(s) you want to purchase from and make sure there is an opportunity to coordinate getting all the rabbits together right before the shipment.

*Decide how many holes/rabbits you can afford. You can usually put together 2-3 carriers to count in one shipment. However- remember you will have to buy those carriers! So, you could fill up 18 holes, but think of the cost of 18 rabbits + carriers + carrier cups + shipping. If you plan to sell holes in a shipment, you'll want to have a firm number on how many are available before you start advertising the holes for sale.

*If you are selling holes get the payment in advance. Also set up when the animals are to be picked up by and be prepared to have to hold them at least a few days.

*Get the full dimensions of the carriers- L x W x H. Estimate the weight. I prefer to go OVER the estimate, that way there are no surprises.

*Decide what airline to use- this involves convenience for you and the shipper. They will not want to drive 10 hours to get your animals to a Frontier shipper and you won't want to drive 10 to get the animals (more than likely- if you do go so far, so be it, but remember to add in gas to your costs!)

*Make sure you have the address and the phone number of the breeder who will be doing the shipping.

*Call the airlines and find out several things a.) Are health certificates needed? b.) what is the cost estimate- this is where your LxWxH and weight come in to play, c.) when do the animals need to be at the airline and d.) when will they arrive at the airport. If everything works out for you, book your shipment!

Shipping

*Make sure to have the phone number of the person shipping for you- and make sure they have yours as well! You never know when a flight will be canceled at the last minute.

Post Shipping

*Check the animals over IMMEDIATELY. This means putting your hands all over them. You want to know as soon as possible how they handled the flight.

*Keep a very close watch on the animals for the next few days after the shipment. Check water intake, how much they are eating.



That's basically all there is to it! :D

-Kristen
Keep's Rabbitry