Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

I haven’t received any order confirmation or shipment confirmation emails. Did you receive my order? Was my order shipped?

If you haven’t received any order confirmation or order update emails in your email’s “Inbox” please make sure to check your Spam or Junk folder. Unfortunately, even major email providers may think sometimes that our emails are spam/junk. This applies especially if you have a hotmail.com, outlook.com, aol.com, or yahoo.com email account. We’ve had issues with email accounts provided by internet service providers too. Once your order has been shipped you will receive a shipment confirmation email with a tracking number.

When will my order be shipped?

Our regular shipping days are Mondays and Tuesdays, and sometimes Wednesdays. Occasionally we may send out orders on Saturday for Monday/Tuesday delivery. After your order has been shipped it will arrive usually arrive in 2-3 days. You will receive an email notification with a tracking number once your order has been dispatched. Make sure to check your Spam/Junk folder frequently after ordering as notification emails may end up there.

What is your cancellation policy?

Orders can be cancelled at any time prior to shipment. You will be refunded your order amount minus the credit card processing fees that we pay our credit card processor, which is about 3% of the order amount. We do not get these fees back when we issue refunds. In special circumstances, we may decide to refund the credit card processing fees as well.

What shipping carrier and service do you use?

Most orders containing live animals will be shipped USPS Priority Mail. If you have only plants or dry goods in an order that are not too heavy, we may use USPS First Class packages instead. Heavier dry goods and plants orders are shipped via USPS Priority Mail. All customers will be sent tracking numbers to their email addresses after their order has been shipped. Your order should arrive in 2-3 days barring any delays.

Do you have a live arrival guarantee?

Although deaths are extremely rare, we do offer a live arrival guarantee so you can shop risk-free and with confidence. Our live arrival guarantee covers all animals/plants, and even shipping costs if there is a total loss. Just send us a picture or pictures of the dead animal/plant still in its shipping bag within two hours after the package arrives (we check tracking information for that) and we’ll issue a refund or send you replacements.

Do you ship live animals or plants during extremely hot or cold weather?

In the summer we usually ship to areas where day time highs are below 95 degrees on the day your package is scheduled to arrive. In the winter we usually ship when your nighttime lows are above 32 AND your daytime highs above 45. The animals are shipped in an insulated container and we include a heat pack whenever appropriate. If your weather is too cold or too hot we wait until the next week and check your weather again to see if shipping is possible. We repeat this every week until we see that your temperatures are in the “safe” zone.

But I need my animals ASAP despite bad weather. What to do?

In that case please contact us via the contact form so we can upgrade your shipping to next day delivery (USPS Express Mail/Priority Mail Express) for an additional cost. Even then we won’t ship unless your temps are above 28/20 (high/low) in the winter, or below 102 in the summer.

Can the package sit in a hot mailbox/parcel locker or direct sun outside? How about rain and freezing weather?

Absolutely not! Mailboxes and parcel lockers get extremely hot and direct sunlight can heat up the shipping box to extreme levels too, which will kill the animals and plants. Similarly, the box should not be sitting outside in very cold weather. It’s in the best interest of the animals to bring the box in as soon possible. Ideally, someone should be at home to receive the package. Also, our live arrival guarantee does not apply if the package has been sitting in a hot mailbox or in front of your door for hours.

Why are my shrimp not red when they arrive?

The shrimp are all various shades of red when shipped. However, these shrimp lose coloration when stressed out during shipping. They will regain their coloration days, weeks, or months after arrival depending on how well they feel in their new home. It’s completely normal for Supershrimp to lose coloration when are disturbed, even when you are simply moving decoration around in their tanks. Having said that, this species has individual variability, so even when they regain their coloration, you’ll have still have shrimp with different coloration intensities, some will be really red, others kinda in the middle, and there will be some that are pale. Even the same shrimp can go from pale to super red to pale again over time.  However, once your tank matures and these shrimp are completely happy, most of them will be a pretty nice red.

My snails arrived, why are they not moving/rolling around in the bag?

The snails we send tend to retrieve into their shells during shipping. Frequently you will receive a bag with the snails rolling around on the bottom, seemly dead. Just put the snails into your tank (after temperature acclimating) and within minutes/hours (at the latest overnight) they will move and disappear into your substrate. Remember, these are burrowing snails and will spend most of the time in the substrate, so do not be alarmed if you do not see them all the time.