Shipping Hints

Putting it Together

Okay, so you've got a shopping list and want to go out and get a little more prepared for your next trip. Start with what you can scrounge and/or borrow, then determine your needs and purchase or acquire what best works to fill them.

empty Picture 21 is an example of one of my packed containers. It's been packed for a road trip with just horse padding and the outside container packing. If it had been for air travel, I would have put a layer of egg crate or a few layers of bubble wrap laid flat between the horse layers. I avoid using peanuts as padding when traveling because of the nuisance of chasing little pieces of Styrofoam. If going to a show, I always try to leave a little extra room, and pack that with extra bubble wrap and a couple of plastic bags, for the horses that I invariably purchase.

A few other tips:

When packing, distribute the weight evenly through the container. Don't put all of your heavy items on one side (left, right, front, or back). Try to pack them in the middle. I have had at least one "topple" of boxes occur from a luggage cart because the heavy items were not properly distributed.

If packing for storage, you might want to consider packing them "on their back", to avoid stress on legs which might occur if "stood up" or "on their sides" where the weight of horses stacked on top could affect the horse. But be careful about ears and manes that may have additional stress placed on them in that position.

Also don't put all your heavy items in one container; place them in different containers so your containers are more evenly weighted.

Don't pack extremely fragile pieces in with heavy pieces. One extra hard bump in the "wrong" direction could find your fragile piece underneath that heavier one. Hand carry the really fragile horses for travel.

Pay extra attention to the fragile ears, limbs and tails.

Put extra padding between layers of horses and even between horses when rough handling is expected.

Allow for some movement during transit, but don't leave too much "shaking" room.

Don't forget to put your identification on the outside and inside of each container.

When determining the size of the box you need, you should plan on at least 2" of padding around whatever you're shipping. UPS has had me purchase a second box to pack one in because of the amount of insurance requested. With the change of USPS postage rates (5/14/2007), items that fly to their destinations for Priority shipping (zones 5-8) of more than one cubic foot are subject to "dimensional shipping"; however, ancedotal evidence suggests that packages shipped Parcel Post are not treated with care during handling, even if insured, so extra care may be needed to pack for some rough handling.

Check the limits on insurance for your carrier. Some may have an upper limit for domestic or international travel. Others may have a limit on "art" (which could include horse figures by their definition).

Some carriers require signatures at time of delivery (especially for insured items). So check to see if there will be someone available to sign for the package or your carrier allows items to be left without signature.

And ensure that the recipient knows the package is coming. (If sending to show location, it's only common courtesy to allow hotel or hostess know the number and size of packages shipping. Some hotels may charge for delivery of packages.)

Enjoy your next trip with horses.

I'd like to thank all of those who provided stories, examples, suggestions and tips, directly or indirectly that helped for the writing of this article, including: Jackie Arns, Kathy Bateman, Cindy Dalton, Michelle Grant, Paula Hecker, Laurie Jensen, Lesli Kathman, Rachel McCaw, Kathy McKenzie-Boss, Laura Pervier, Tierney Read, Heather Wells, Jane Morehouse, Chris Jones. I'd also like to thank all of the members of Haynet circa 2003 for bringing up this subject as a topic of discussion.

Web Sites of interest:

FedExpress

United Parcel Service

United States Postal Service

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