Shipping Ancistrus Fry?

[emsquared19]

Hello,

I am wanting to start shipping my ancistrus fry and want as much info and tips as possible. Best method and carrier? Straight oxygen or no? How many per bag? Min size for shipping? Bag buddies or no? Everything you know about shipping them, please share! Thanks!!

Marc

[Richard B]

What exactly is your definaition of fry - i.e. what size will they be? Some people have vastly different opinions on this and it will influence the answers - also, how far would you be shipping them?

[emsquared19]

Thanks for the reply Richard. They are about 1/2" to 3/4" right now. I was thinking of shipping them at 1 inch.

[emsquared19]

And I will be shipping within a 200 mile radius probably.

[[email protected]]

Double or triple bag, foam lined shipping box (labeled and tested by shipper), heat/cold pack as needed, FedEx overnight.

Jeff

[emsquared19]

Is overnight absolutely necessary? I've seen some people shipping their ancistrus fry via USPS Priority. And is pure oxygen necessary?

[Suckermouth]

Is overnight absolutely necessary? I've seen some people shipping their ancistrus fry via USPS Priority. And is pure oxygen necessary?

No and no, but it's a better guarantee of survival.

[apistomaster]

I buy all my insulated shipping kits from:
http://www.uline.com/BL_2157/Insulated-Shipping-Kits
For up to 7 plecos individually packed in breathable bags I use the #S-9903 boxes.
I prefer breathable bags because I can fit more fish in a given amount of space.
I use an impulse sealer to seal off the corners of the bags at approximately 45* angles to reduce the chances of fin punctures. It is also possible to round off the corners with a strip of electrical tape. The idea is to end up without any corners.
I use the 5" X 8" Kordon Breatheable bags.
No oxygen is necessary. Read about Kordon Breatheable Bags here:
http://www.novalek.com/kordon/breathing_bags/index.htm

I mix up 2 liters of shipping water with one blended Bag Buddie tablet mixed into the shipping water as a mild tranquilizer. I use 3/4 cup of prepared shipping water per bag.

Tie off the bags with a rubber band or two and leave no bubbles of air in the bag. Then I wrap each bagged fish with a paper towel so all the bag's surface area can breathe. I use a piece of masking tape to hold the paper towel outer wrapping in place.
I avoid sending more than one pleco per bag because should one die the rest will too.
My boxes are expensive because they have to be shipped to me but they are the best money can buy.

I sell larger size plecos than most breeders and none are cheap so I do not cut any corners.

I ship via USPS Express Mail, 2nd day delivery although the way my fish are packed they could be shipped Priority Mail 3 day delivery but any shorter transit time is good. It isn't usually necessary to ship overnight unless the weather is cold and you need to use a heat pack.

[apistomaster]

Is overnight absolutely necessary? I've seen some people shipping their ancistrus fry via USPS Priority. And is pure oxygen necessary?

No and no, but it's a better guarantee of survival.

Hi Milton,
You have seen how I packed and shipped my plecos.
Didn't they ship fine packed and shipped per my previous post?

[Suckermouth]

You have seen how I packed and shipped my plecos.
Didn't they ship fine packed and shipped per my previous post?

Yes, they shipped perfectly fine.

[emsquared19]

So is it alot better to use the Kordon breather bags for ancistrus fry?

[MatsP]

I know my opinion is probably not really solving what you asked for, but I do feel it may be a good idea to challenge the initial idea of shipping fish in this case...

Is it really worth it to SHIP ancistrus (less than) 200 miles? Would it not be easier to "meet halfway", and use the shipping company's money for fuel? With the added benefit(?) of meeting your customer(s) and shorter travel time for the fish. And you don't need any special shipping material, just a re-usable cooler that you stick your regular fish-bags in.

Are they regular

Ancistrus cf_cirrhosus

or something more exotic? The regular ones tolerate a fair bit of "abuse" when it comes to transporting...

And if you think "putting fish in a bag and not releasing it for a few hours", I can say that I have had fish in my car, in a polystyrene box, for about 12 hours. Yes, we put one fish in a medium-sized bag (1qt bag volume), rather than putting 3-5 fish in the same size bag if you take them straight home in half an hour...

--
Mats

[emsquared19]

Thanks for the reply Mats.

I actually prefer meeting halfway, but some people have requested shipping from me, and I would like to open up more area to sell to with me living in a small town.

The ancistrus fry will be calico/albino/and regular ancistrus. Which I've heard are the hearty fellas, lol.

[apistomaster]

I know my opinion is probably not really solving what you asked for, but I do feel it may be a good idea to challenge the initial idea of shipping fish in this case...

Is it really worth it to SHIP ancistrus (less than) 200 miles? Would it not be easier to "meet halfway", and use the shipping company's money for fuel? With the added benefit(?) of meeting your customer(s) and shorter travel time for the fish. And you don't need any special shipping material, just a re-usable cooler that you stick your regular fish-bags in.

Are they regular

Ancistrus cf_cirrhosus

or something more exotic? The regular ones tolerate a fair bit of "abuse" when it comes to transporting...

And if you think "putting fish in a bag and not releasing it for a few hours", I can say that I have had fish in my car, in a polystyrene box, for about 12 hours. Yes, we put one fish in a medium-sized bag (1qt bag volume), rather than putting 3-5 fish in the same size bag if you take them straight home in half an hour...

--
Mats

Mats,
At least in the US, it is very cheap to ship by 3 day Priority mail. Much less expensive than even driving and meeting half way between destinations 200 miles apart. Postage could run between $9.00 and $12.00 depending on the size and weight. Surely cheaper than costs of petrol. If the fish were rare and expensive then meeting half way would be a good idea but here in the US the price of small Ancistrus on aquabid is often less than the cost of USPS Priority Mail, 3 day delivery for shipping a dozen 1 inch fry.

[MatsP]

Another random thought: Would it not work out better for you to find a larger independent shop in a central location (bearing in mind I've nerver been to Missouri - I have been to some 20 or so states, but there are plenty left to visit!), that could take a bunch of your fish, and your customers could pick the fish up there - obviously, the shop would take some of the money, but it's a good way to distribute the fish...

@Larry: But the $9 doesn't include breather bags, shipping boxes and possibly heat packs...

--
Mats

[apistomaster]

For a half way meeting the fish would not get cold nor need anything more than air filled regular barrier fish bags or a small covered plastic bucket. Even mailing them air is fine. Oxygen isn't necessary for bags containing few small fish.
Minutes ago I just received two pair of Fundulopanchax scheeli Killiefish in great shape from a breeder near Chicago, some 1700 miles away, via 3 day priority mail in air filled barrier bags which could have easily accommodated 12 cheap, small, Ancistrus and postage was $9.30. The generic cardboard box was just filled with styro "peanuts".
Not the expensive materials I use.
Shipping in the winter is very hit and miss even when all precautions are taken and the fish are sent overnight. I very rarely buy nor ship fish on line during the winter. Mainly I buy wild Discus during the winter because the selection is best then. Discus are always expensive FOB let alone to ship them properly overnight from 3000 miles away.
During the winter the amount of protection and shorter shipping times all cost a lot so the fish better be worth paying all the higher associated prices.

[[email protected]]

Tie off the bags with a rubber band or two and leave no bubbles of air in the bag.

My plecos have freaked out in bags with no air, even though they don't need it. I stopped using Kordon bags for them because of this. Not sure if that's a unique experience to me or others as well.

Jeff

[apistomaster]

I use Bag Buddies for their tranquilizing properties.
It works fine with the Peckoltia compta(L134) and Hypancistrus sp (L333) that I raise.
I know it also works well with common Bushy Nose Plecos.
Maybe it would not work for some species but I think it would.
What does it matter if fish freak out inside a bag before the tranquilizer takes effect?
Fish always are alarmed by being caught and bagged.
They are just fish. I do not care what they "feel".
Feelings are for humans and to apply them to fish is to anthropomorphize.

[Barbie]

Be sure to fast fish for at least 24 hours before shipping. That keeps them from fouling the water in the bags during transit.

Barbie

[apistomaster]

Be sure to fast fish for at least 24 hours before shipping. That keeps them from fouling the water in the bags during transit.

Barbie

I fast my plecos 48 hours prior to bagging and shipping.
I only ship the more carnivorous species but even after 48 hours they still can excrete some. I always see it happen while they are in a temporary container. I use one to hold them during packing but it would be much worse without fasting. I use such small amounts of water in breathable bags with sealed off corners to minimize puncturing from their spines. Each fish is separately bagged. In such small amounts of water, about six ounces, no pollution is tolerable.
Bushy Nose Plecos have longer GI tracts than Hypancistrus and Peckoltia so fasting long enough is that much more important.

[bsmith]

Here is how I ship my L183's-

Fish are 1" or over, no fasting. I use 4"x8" kordon bags and also put about a .5"x.5" cube of polyfil in each bag. I have put up to 5 in each bag and just put as much water as I think I need. I ship either USPS Priority (No DOA guarantee) or Express (DOA guarantee) and use the USPS priority 7x7x6 boxes lined with .5" styrofoam cut to the box that I purchase from lowes/home depot.

I have shipped over 100 and still have not lost a single fish either Priority or Express.

HTH