🚚🐟 Southwest Cargo — Live Tropical Fish

🧭 At-a-Glance Essentials

• ⏱️ Next-day/perishable services (e.g., Next Flight Guaranteed / Fresh Fast). Ship Mon–Wed; avoid holidays and severe weather.
• 🏭 Tender & pickup are at Southwest Cargo facilities (not passenger counters or doorsteps). Consignee brings Air Waybill (AWB) # + photo ID.
• 🧾 Cargo account + Known Shipper status required (TSA). Expect application and site/validation steps.
• 📦 IATA-compliant packaging, built to survive 48 hours (no re-oxygenation en route).
• 🏷️ Use required LIVE ANIMAL / THIS WAY UP marks and clearly add LIVE FISH. As a best practice, add bright labels on all sides + top.

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💼 Account, Products & Routing

• ✅ Open a Southwest Cargo account and complete Known Shipper setup before planning live shipments.
• 🚀 Service choices
  • Next Flight Guaranteed (NFG): highest priority to the next available flight—ideal for live fish.
  • Fresh/perishable options: time-definite cargo products with cold-chain awareness.
  • Use the appropriate commodity line (e.g., “Live Tropical Fish”; many shippers reference code 0114 on the AWB).
• 🗺️ Routing: Southwest is a point-to-point network with frequent frequencies. Verify origin/destination station hours and acceptance cutoffs.

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🧪 Pre-Ship Prep (Fish & Water)

• ⏳ Fast 24–48 hours to reduce waste and ammonia production.
• 🌡️ Use clean, conditioned water at shipping temperature; an ammonia binder is optional insurance.
• 🧊 For warm routes, set water at the cooler end of the species’ safe range to reduce oxygen demand.
• 📋 Pack for 48 hours minimum regardless of booked product—delays can happen.

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🫧 Inner Packaging (Inside the box)

• 🛍️ Bags: heavy flexible plastic ≥3-mil; double-bag (minimum), triple for spiny fish (corys, plecos). Square-bottom bags resist rolling.
• 🫧 Gas headspace: start around ~1/3 water : 2/3 gas. If using pure oxygen, many pros run 25–40% water / 60–75% O₂ to maximize reserve.
• 🔒 Seals: fold (“pillow”) and bind with tight rubber bands; heat-seal only if you’re practiced.
• 🧻 Absorbent + liner: wrap bags with absorbent material; place the bundle inside a secondary sealed liner (large poly) to contain leaks/condensation.

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🧊 Outer Packaging (Thermal & Impact Control)

• 🧳 EPS foam cooler or foam-panel liner inside a new, rigid corrugated carton (appropriate board grade/ECT).
• 🔥❄️ Heat/cold packs: pre-condition first; never let packs touch bags—buffer with cardboard/foam.
• 🌡️ Seasonal rules of thumb (12×9×6 → 14×10×8 shipper; adjust for size/route/time):
  • 🌤️ 70–85°F route: often no pack (or a small cold pack for hot hubs).
  • 🍂 50–70°F: 1–2 heat packs.
  • ❄️ 32–50°F: 2–3 heat packs, thicker foam, tiny vent hole for heat-pack chemistry.
  • 🥵/🥶 <32°F or >95°F sustained: delay shipping unless you have proven, pro-grade solutions.
• 🧵 H-tape every seam; use snug void fill (outside the inner liner) so bags can’t bounce.

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🏷️ Markings & ID (High-visibility on every panel)

• 📐 Required minimums: IATA LIVE ANIMAL label and THIS WAY UP arrows (two opposite sides), plus LIVE FISH clearly indicated (top and at least one side).
• 🌈 Best practice: add BRIGHT, high-contrast “LIVE FISH — PERISHABLE” labels on all four sides + top so staff can identify from any angle and find a separated box quickly.
• ☎️ Rapid contact: list shipper & consignee phone numbers and the AWB # in large type on one side.
• 🔁 Redundancy: place a duplicate shipping label + packing slip (species list, order #, both phone numbers) inside the box in a zip bag under the lid.
• 🥽 Protect paper labels with clear tape/overlays (do not cover barcodes).

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🏭 Tender, Cutoffs & Pickup (Cargo facility flow)

• 🕘 Tender at the origin Southwest Cargo station before the live/perishable cutoff; bring your AWB and identification as required.
• ✈️ Transit: prioritized according to your product (NFG/perishable/standard).
• 🏁 Pickup: the consignee collects at the destination Cargo station with AWB # + photo ID. There is no doorstep delivery—plan timing accordingly.

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🛎️ Receiver Readiness (Critical)

• 📲 Be available at ETA. Monitor flight status and station notifications; cargo facilities operate on posted hours—don’t risk after-hours holds.
• 🥵🥶 Apron exposure is real: even without doorstep delivery, tarmacs and docks can be hot/cold—pick up immediately on arrival.
• 📦 Bring a towel/cooler to insulate during the drive home if weather is extreme.

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📦 Handling Reality & Risk Mitigations

• 🚫 Assume rough handling can happen: boxes may be stacked, jostled, or flipped.
• ⬆️ Orientation not guaranteed: arrows help, but build for flips—double/triple-bag, sealed secondary liner, buffered heat/cold packs, snug fit.
• 🧪 Redundancy beats hope: more O₂ headspace, lower fish density, and slightly cooler water (within species limits) increase survivability if delayed or jostled.
• 🧊 Some stations may have limited refrigeration; there is no re-oxygenation service—package accordingly.

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📋 A→Z Pack-Out Checklist (Printable)

1️⃣ Fast fish 24–48 h; prep conditioned water at ship temp.
2️⃣ Bag: ≥3-mil; double-bag (triple for spiny); generous O₂ headspace; tight bands.
3️⃣ Absorbent wrap around bags; place all inside a sealed secondary liner.
4️⃣ Foam-lined shipper; buffer heat/cold packs (no direct contact).
5️⃣ Snug void fill outside liner; H-tape all seams.
6️⃣ Markings: LIVE ANIMAL, THIS WAY UP ×2, LIVE FISH (top + side); add bright LIVE FISH — PERISHABLE stickers on all sides + top.
7️⃣ Book AWB (NFG/perishable/standard; correct commodity line).
8️⃣ Tender at origin Cargo before cutoff with account/ID as required.
9️⃣ Notify consignee with AWB #, station address, and pickup window.
🔟 Consignee pickup at destination Cargo with AWB + photo ID.

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🧠 Bag Count & Sizing (starting points—adjust for species/temps/time)

• 🐠 Small tetras/rasboras: 6×20" bag, ~1 qt water + O₂ headspace; 8–12 fish/bag.
• 🐟 Cory/pleco (spiny): 8×20" bag, triple-bag; 6–8 fish/bag.
• 🐡 Labyrinth (betta/gourami): individual 4–6" wide bags; shallow water to limit slosh.
• 🎨 Cichlids/rainbows: 8×20" or 10×20", lower densities; double/triple as needed.

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🧰 Optional Pro Upgrades

• 🗺️ Route-temp check (origin apron → cabin → destination apron) to decide pack counts.
• 🧊 Phase-change packs for tight thermal bands.
• 📈 Temp indicator/data logger for high-value shipments.
• 🧴 Carbon/Poly-Filter square inside the liner (odor/toxin buffer—never in the fish bag).
• 📦 Shock/tilt indicators (documentation/claims; may encourage gentler handling).

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🏁 Bottom Line

• 🫧 Oxygen & temperature decide outcomes—maximize O₂ headspace, keep fish-per-bag conservative, and insulate for a true 48-hour worst case.
• 🏭 Southwest Cargo is station-to-station: tender and pickup at Cargo facilities using AWB & ID.
• 🌈 Meet required labels and add bright, high-contrast markings on every panel so staff can locate a separated box fast.