Mailed a LIVE Scorpion to Alor Setar via Poslaju; It Survived

Before you guys freak out, first, I'd address some of your concerns.

1. Isn't it illegal!?
Technically, yes. But this practice is more common than you think. In fact, it's the first choice of delivery for invertebrate trading in many, many countries. Not sure what happens if you get caught though.

2. Won't they be able to detect the contents of the package!?
Not so sure about this, but I'm assuming no since I don't know anyone who's got caught yet. The courier service can detect drugs and large amount of money, but the rumours have it that invertebrates can bypass the scans easily.

3. Won't the scorpion (or animals) die of suffocation??
Scorpions and invertebrates breathe differently from mammals. There is a myriad of breathing strategies they can adapt to, but they certainly can last a long time in a container that's all wrapped up and shipped from one location to another. The catch is, the container must be cushioned inside with enough humidity to keep the interior of the container cool when it gets a lil' too warm outside.

So there you go. TL;DR, shipping scorpions/tarantulas/insects via courier services isn't really a big problem in Malaysia. How to pack the animal, you ask? It's easier than you think.

Pictured above is a Pandinus Imperator, more commonly known as the Emperor Scorpion

STEP ONE
Ensure that the animal you're shipping is healthy and in a good condition for transport. For dessert scorpions (they rarely drink water), I would feed them a small snack 24 hours before shipping to ensure that it gets the hydration it needs. For tarantulas, just make sure their abdomen isn't too big because it might burst upon impact. For snakes, DO NOT FEED BEFORE SHIPPING because it might just throw up.

Yes, my friends. Snakes can be mailed too because breathing for them is a voluntary action.

STEP TWO
Make sure the container isn't too tight or too spacious. How to know if you're picking the right container? Just watch enough Youtube videos on packing invertebrates and you'll get the gist of it. Anyhow, layer the base of the container with enough paper towel as a comfy cushion. Then, mist-spray the paper towel until it's damp (NOT SOAKING WET) before placing your scorpion inside.

STEP THREE
Layer the container with more dry paper towels until you're sure that the scorpion will be cushioned when the delivery man tosses your package around. Some tutorials will recommend that you pierce tiny holes on the container, but I feel it's pointless because you'll be wrapping the container up anyhow.

Finally, pack the plastic container in a fitting cardboard box and wrap it up in brown or black paper/plastic. Please recycle and reuse to reduce wastage.

I hope you guys enjoyed this post and learned something new! If you are now super curious about this topic, you can start with this video that teaches you how to pack a huge tarantula for shipping:

Or this video that teaches people how to ship snakes:

If you'd like to get into the hobby of collecting exotic pets, tell me! I'll hook you up with a reliable seller so you don't have to pay retail price for your new pet. *wink wink