
Shipping season due to comfortable weather conditions is April - October. I need 4 months notice in advance to plan a shipment.
Before I explain my terms, I must tell you that I am a mother hen and I worry about each and every baby born in my care. And I love them all dearly. So I do worry, and because of that I like to do things in the following manner to insure their safe arrival.
My Preferences on whom I ship to: I love shipping and it's something I enjoy doing for the benefit of the rat, however, I
prefer only to ship to breeders, no exceptions. Breeders at times need my
help because they need new blood and or do not have certain types of rats in
their state, so they come to me. This allows me to truly help the animal become
better. Shipments take months to plan and execute and I would prefer the rats
go to a home where they can be used to better the breed. This also allows pet
owners to obtain good quality rats from breeders in their states, once they
have them. If you are a pet owner wanting rats you are very welcome to come to
my rattery for your ratty needs, I would be happy to help you in that way since
I do not ship to non breeders. My facility is not large enough to accommodate
shipping to everyone who asks. For the most part I only do 2 to 3 litters a
month and I try to have wait lists filled in advance, I can only ship to a
select few and I choose to limit that to breeders only. All breeders I ship to
will get references checked by me and then I will let you know if you qualify
for a shipment from my rattery. All breeders must be verifiable by other
respectable, known breeders. All breeders I ship to are required to have a website so I can track my lines.
Reserving
a rat: If you see future babies from one of my planned litters
please let me know, I do require 4 months advance notice on all shipments, no
exceptions. I cannot hurry up and pack up my next available litter and ship it
to you, these things take time and patience and I appreciate your thoughtfulness with that. If you are interested in one
or more of the future planned litters please e-mail me and tell me what you are
looking for. I will NEVER ship just one or two rats, the time and effort in
putting together a shipment is NOT worth it.
Shipping: This is
only done legally through airlines. It can be very expensive to do! If you
would like rats or shipped you will need to contact me about it. All the
shipping costs (transportation, shipping crate and airport fees) will have
to be paid by you as well as the cost of health
checks (Continental does not require health checks but if you want that
done you can pay for it). I do not charge breeders for the animals themselves. Shipping animals is a very lengthy and time
consuming process. This is because of the amount of time it takes to get shipping
arrangements made. I will require a $50 deposit for shipping plans; this
will cover the shipping crate and my gas. This deposit will not be returned if
you change your mind on getting the animals. This is because the cost and
planning is a very long and intensive costly process. If I am unable to ship
the animals at my own fault the deposit will be returned. Shipping
will be done from the Denver International Air Port (DIA), and I
will only ship during safe weather conditions. Continental does ship via cargo
and the environment for the rats is climate controlled, but only on the plane and in the cargo building. Not on the tarmac. So we have to ship during comfortable outside temperatures.
Payment: I
accept checks, and money orders. I only accept checks and money
orders if they are cleared before the animal (s) is placed with you
and or shipped to you. Please ask for our mailing address if you are
planning on paying by check. If you have questions or need our mailing
address let me know.
Contract: All of
my rats will go with either my pet only contract or my breeder's contract
(depending on what you and I have agreed on). If you are getting your
rats shipped I will not charge for a breeder's contract fee, I just ask
that you print and sign my contract and send it to me
before I ship the rats to you. This will insure that my animals
are handled the proper way.
Rat
age and requirements: I will only ship a rat at 6-7 weeks of age for the babies and I will ship adults too. Rats younger
than that do not stand a chance of surviving the trip. However, due to
situations outside my control, I cannot guarantee the animal's health condition
when they arrive at their final destination. I request that the buyer contacts
me via phone or email about the condition of the animals as soon as they get
home. This is for my peace of mind, as each animal is special and has been
raised with love in my home. I do worry about all the rats that leave my house. It's the mother in me.
Pedigrees: I will
give you a pedigree for all of the rats you requested. I can get you
a rough copy before you agree to anything and I will send you the final copies
with in 2 weeks after the shipping date. I will never send rats to you without
pedigrees. All of my rats have pedigrees and it is only right that you get them
from me. I do have them posted to my site. Also all of my rats are registered
through NARR so you can get even longer pedigrees for your records on the NARR
site.
Costs:
I ship Via Continental Air Lines. The cost of the flight (as per
Continental) in 2009 is $149 + tax and airline fees equaling $161.00. However Continental allows only 9 lbs of weight
for that price. Rats are shipped around 6-7 weeks-old, up to 8-9
youngsters fit in one box under 9 lbs. E-mail me for an estimate on
larger shipments of 9 lbs or more. Also I may have to adjust pricing if the
airlines adjust theirs at any time. But I will let you know ahead of time
should that be an issue. I do require that you send the entire shipping amount
and total for the animals before I ship as I need it to put them on the plane. And I will e-mail you with
confirmation that I got your money and again when the check clears. At that
time I will work with you on a shipping date and I will get the flight arranged.
After
I ship: I do require that you call me as soon as you get them
home! And I want to be updated on their health while in quarantine. I would
also like to be updated through out the life of the animal (s). I like to keep
in contact with my adopter's, whether in state or out of state.
Please Remember:
1) I would be happy to help!
2) I would like to make sure your lines are healthy enough to be bred to mine so that you can help mine as well.
3) Thank you for your patience as shipments take lots of time!
4) Thanks for your interest in my rattery!