terms & conditions

general terms

By placing an order with Marshall Arachnids, LLC, you confirm that you have read and agree to all of the terms below.
U.S. sales only. limited to the 48 contiguous states (No AK or HI sales at this time).
Must be 18 years or older to make a purchase.
We reserve the right to refuse sales to anyone at any time, and for any reason.
Minimum purchase amount on live arachnid and mantis orders is $49.
We allow local pickup near Cookeville, Tennessee and at any of the trade shows we are scheduled to attend (see dates here). You can place an order through our website and select ‘Pickup’ at checkout (as of 15 May 2023, this is temporarily disabled while we move!)
Shipping rates are calculated automatically at checkout and depend on product weights and shipping box dimensions. our shipping calculator sometimes makes mistakes - if this happens after an order is placed, we will reach out to the customer to remedy the issue.
If you have any issue with your order at all, before or after receiving it, please contact us ASAP to make it right.
All listed sizes of animals are approximations. If you believe there is a significant discrepancy with the listed size of the animal you ordered and the actual size upon receipt, please contact us.
All sexed animals are guaranteed by molt-sexing or visual dimorphism characteristics (NOT ventral sexing), but we are human and we are capable of making mistakes. If you believe you purchased an incorrectly sexed animal from us, please contact us so we can make it right. This does not include animals that are ventrally sexed by the purchaser. We require photo/video proof of the inside of the abdomen of a molt to confirm, or the presence of palpal emboli for mature males.
All photos in the shop are representatives of the actual animal that is available, and the animal you order may look slightly different. most listings feature both adult and juvenile representatives. the animal you receive will always match the product description and quality in terms of species, size, and sex (if applicable).
All sales are final and full payment is required at time of sale. We accept many different types of payment (indicated at checkout).
All photos are owned by Marshall Arachnids, LLC unless otherwise noted. We do not allow our photos to be used on any other platforms without permission.
We are not responsible for carrier delays, but we will do all we can to help you avoid them and to keep track of your shipment if it is delayed.
We are required by law to charge sales tax for orders billed to Tennessee addresses. Tax is automatically calculated at checkout.
Please read our Privacy Policy.

Live Arrival Guarantee (LAG)

All live arachnids MUST be shipped via FedEx Priority Overnight. it is illegal to ship venomous animals via USPS.
[UPDATE 31 OCT 2023] OVERNIGHT SHIPPING DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU WILL GET YOUR ORDER DELIVERED TOMORROW, OR EVEN THIS WEEK. We arrange delivery of your animals according to your local weather, and we make no exceptions to this nor do we risk the safety of our animals.

Live non-venomous animals (mantises, roaches, and isopods) may be shipped via USPS Priority Mail Express. If your order contains both venomous and non-venomous animals, it MUST be shipped via FedEx or you must place two separate orders.

After your order is placed, we will reach out to the purchaser via email or text to arrange an ideal shipping day as soon as possible. This ship date will depend on weather, shipping delays, and availability. We will not send live animals until we confirm a shipping date with the purchaser. If we do not receive a response from the purchaser within 14 days of the order placement, the order will be cancelled and refunded in full.

We do not send any live animals without arranging a day of receipt with the purchaser, no exceptions.

The purchaser will receive tracking information via automated email after the shipment is picked up/dropped off for shipping. Check your spam folder if you do not see it in your inbox.

We only ship live animals at temperatures above 32°F and below 85°F at our own discretion.

If your local LOW temperatures are below 50°F, you must arrange to pick your package up at your closest FedEx Ship Center or US Post Office. We will locate your nearest hub that accepts live animal shipments and verify it with you before shipping.
If your local HIGH temperatures are above 85°F, you must arrange to pick your package up at your closest FedEx Ship Center or US Post Office. We will locate your nearest hub that accepts live animal shipments and verify it with you before shipping.

Your package must be accepted on the first delivery attempt. For home deliveries, your order must be unboxed and examined within one hour of the delivery time recorded by FedEx. If you arrange for pickup at a FedEx Ship Center, it must be picked up and examined within two hours of arriving there.

At this time, we ship all live products on Tuesday or Wednesday for next-day delivery. we do not ship on federal / bank holidays.

We are not responsible for carrier delays, but we will do all we can to avoid them. If a delay happens that results in the death of an animal, we will do all we can to help make it right.

All live animals must be unboxed and examined within two hours of receipt. We require photo and/or video evidence of animals that arrive dead. In the case that an animal arrives dead, the purchaser may choose to receive a free replacement depending on availability, or a refund of the price of the animal(s), not including shipping costs.
[UPDATE 15 MAY 2023]: we reserve the right to postpone any live animal order at any time to preserve the safety of the animal(s). Examples of this include pre-molt / post-molt recovery, anticipated holiday delays with FedEx, supply issues, etc. orders postponed by Marshall Arachnids will typically be fulfilled within the next 1-2 weeks. if for any reason we must postpone an order for longer than 2 weeks, the customer may choose to cancel the order and waive the cancellation fee.

price match policy

At Marshall Arachnids, we strive to provide the most competitive pricing on live products produced by us. we offer price matching on a case-by-case basis on most of the live animals we have available.

If you find a comparable product from another source at a lower price, feel free to contact us including a link, screenshots, photos, or other proof of said pricing and we would be happy to match the pricing if we deem it appropriate.

We cannot match sale prices, and we do NOT match Backwater Reptiles or Underground Reptiles prices.

return / refund policy

live animals are non-returnable.
full or partial refunds are only issued on a case-by-case basis if the animal arrives dead or in very poor condition deemed preventable by Marshall Arachnids. contact us ASAP if this happens to your animal(s). please keep in mind that our Live Arrival Guarantee states that you must examine the animal within 2 hours of arrival and contact us within this time.
all dry goods in unused, unopened condition are returnable for a full refund for the cost of the item(s) less shipping. All shipping fees are non-refundable, and the customer is responsible for shipping the item(s) back to Marshall Arachnids.
dry goods in used condition are non-returnable. If you are unsatisfied with the item(s), please contact us to discuss a refund and/or replacement.
see below for information on refunds pertaining to order cancellations.

freebie policy

we do not send surprise freebies under any circumstances.

freebies do not count toward the minimum live arachnid order amount of $49.

freebies are non-refundable. if your freebie happens to arrive deceased, we will replace it (depending on availability) but you must pay for overnight shipping. we can also add the replacement on to your next live order for free.

freebies are offered according to availability and are subject to change at any time.

in order to activate your freebie coupon, you must add the product to your cart and then enter the applicable coupon code at checkout.

warm weather shipping

all live animals are available for shipping when recipient daytime high temperatures are below 85°F.
we may choose cancel or delay shipments of live animals until temperatures fall into a more optimal range. in these cases, we will make contact with the purchaser as soon as possible to schedule a new tentative date. we will delay shipping an order if we believe the animal has a chance to suffer during shipping for any reason, including inclement weather.
we highly recommend choosing to have your order shipped to a FedEx Ship Center for pickup (NOT a FedEx hub or sorting facility) regardless of temperature and weather. You can locate your closest FedEx Ship Center that accepts live animals at ReptilesExpress.

at this time, we ship all live products on Tuesday or Wednesday. we do not ship on federal / bank holidays.

cold weather shipping

we do not ship live arachnids or other invertebrates December through January. For February through November, all live animals are available for shipping when recipient low temperatures are above 32°F on the night prior to arrival.

we may choose cancel or delay shipments of live animals until temperatures fall into a more optimal range. in these cases, we will make contact with the purchaser as soon as possible to schedule a new tentative date. we will delay shipping an order if we believe the animal has a chance to suffer during shipping for any reason.

if overnight low temperatures at the destination are lower than 50°F, the package must be held at a FedEx Ship Center for pickup (NOT a FedEx hub or sorting facility). even in temps above 50, we highly recommend having your animals shipped to a Ship Center anyway to reduce time in transit. You can locate your closest FedEx Ship Center that accepts live animals at ReptilesExpress.
at this time, we ship all live products on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. we do not ship on federal / bank holidays.

local pickup

all products are available for local pickup near Cookeville/Crossville/Jamestown, Tennessee. local pickup is an option at checkout. we will contact you via email or text after you place your order to schedule a pickup time and date. please allow at least a 24-hour notice for scheduling so we can properly prepare your order.
we allow pickup at shows and expos that we are scheduled to vend. please visit our trade shows page for show dates.

deposit / preorder policy

we only accept paid-in-full orders at this time. We cannot accept partial deposits on any available products, as this would be unfair to other customers.
we will never ask for payment for a preorder, and customers cannot request to preorder any live or dry goods. Customers may only purchase items when they are in stock.
all items that are out of stock or coming soon have a sign-up form for you to enter your email or phone number so you will receive notification when they are in stock.

cancellation policy [updated 15 February 2023]

The safety of our animals ALWAYS comes first, which is why we have our Terms of Service and Live Arrival Guarantee spelled out very clearly here. We DO NOT ship animals unless the recipient's conditions fall within our LAG parameters. Every order requires the purchaser to acknowledge that they have read and agree to our Terms. These safeguards are put into place to set both our customers AND our animals up for success.
Any live order that is cancelled as a result of not reading or understanding our Terms of Service (all of the policies on this page) will be subject to a 5% cancellation fee.
Any order that is cancelled as a result of not reading or understanding product descriptions (for any and all products on our website) will be subject to a 5% cancellation fee.
Any order that is cancelled without reason will automatically be subject to a 5% cancellation fee.
Any order (live or dry goods) that indicates a medium to high fraud analysis level according to Shopify will be cancelled and subject to a 5% cancellation fee. Please verify your billing address prior to ordering.

Please check your local forecast BEFORE placing your order, read our Terms page thoroughly, and understand that your order MAY be postponed until your weather is within our LAG parameters. If you cancel your order because you do not wish to wait for safe temperatures, 5% will be deducted from your total refund.
We completely understand that life happens and things can come up that are out of our control, so we will only be charging cancel fees for cancellations that result from a failure to understand our terms failure to read product descriptions, or impatience. You can always reach out to us via Facebook messenger, email, or the contact form on our website with any questions prior to ordering!