Question:
This is cross posted from chinchillas unlimited because I realized after I posted it that the majority of people there are from the UK or elsewhere, and the majority here are from closer to my home Sorry for any irritation cross posting may cause!
I have a friend in the US who has an older male chin that he might have to find a new home for. There's a big chance he's moving to Japan and won't be able to bring the chin with him if he does, so I was going to offer to take his chin on until I could find a great home for it, since he doesn't know anyone in his area at all, and I have met so many great people here that i know take great care of their babies. I was just wondering what the cost of shipping for these little ones usually is.
I'm just looking for a general figure, and neither of us have any experience with doing this kinda thing. I don't want him to have to give his little one up to someone he doesn't know, I think that would just kill him. I haven't made the offer yet, i know he's feeling pretty down about a lot of it, so I want to wait until I have all the info.


Answer:
Well, I would forget about shipping the cage...it would be cheaper to buy one here or even online at http://www.superpet.ca
About the chin, shipping usually runs about $100-$120 from the states. I have never shipped myself but I do know that you need to plan like mad! Some airlines will only let "known" shippers send animals and some of them can be really sticky on carrier requirements. Another thing to consider is the weather...it can't be too cold. Anyway, I'm sure that someone else can give you more info...I don't know much about it.


Answer:
don't forget that if you are shipping from the USA to Canada, you will also need a health certificate (most airlines require them) which can be about $30-$40 in addition to the cost of the vet visit to obtain the certificate.


Answer:
Yeah, i've looked up what I can, and it looks like small animals such as rabbits and other rodents can fly some airlines with no health certificate, but they fail to give a price for the actual shipping So really it just depends on what airline we go through to get it from USA to Canada, and if he has a health certif or not. I'm not even certain he'll go for this, but I want to know what i'm doing when I offer


Answer:
Where in the states is your friend located? It might be cheaper (and SAFER) to form a "railroad" to get the little guy to you- that way, he is always in the hands of known 'chilla people. I had several chins shipped this past fall from CA to NY and I was NOT happy- they ended up with a stopover in Atlanta, where they left half of the chins for an overnight while the remainder were sent on to NY.


Answer:
Shipping is expensive due to the US - Canadian exchange too. It's much easier to ship to the US, imo. If you call an airline live cargo division, they can give you a cost if you give them the departure/arrival airports, cage dimensions, and weight.