Just got an e-mail that everything is ready to ship from my Aug hunt in Namibia. I live in Ohio
Looking for broker in Chicago, NJ, DC or anywhere else close by. Any recomendations?
Thanks in advance.

The guy I use is in Pa and he clears trophies, has a tannery and a taxidermy shop. Interested in more info PM me.

I have to give the nod to Fauna and Flora in New York. They are very attentive and seem to get everything right. John Meehan is the main agent there. His e-mail address is Jmeehan@faunaandflora.com

I have used Coppersmith and Fauna and Flora. I was very much impressed with Fauna and Flora this time around.

I have used Fauna & Flora 6 times, will continue to do so in the future. It is good to get an estimate of costs ahead of time so you know what to expect in terms of thier various fees.

It used to be that one could drive there and pick up the crates, but now the USDA regulations require that they be sent to an approved facility for treatment (which would/should be your taxidermist but could be a tannery such as Carolina Fur who does great work). Be careful of using particular taxidermists for all the above... Feel free to email me.

Here is F&F's contact info:

Matthew M Mayers
Sr Import Agent
 
Fauna & Flora Customhouse Brokerage Co. Inc.
152-31 135th Avenue
Jamaica, NY 11434
Phone: 718-977-7700 ext. 110
Fax:     718-977-8230
mmayers@faunaandflora.com

Bill, I assume you are refering to my post, could you expand as you are from Pa. I have used F & F in the past and like my new agent much better.

DOJ, I guess I should have asked who is your agent? I recall that at one point you were using a taxidermist out of the Raystown Lake area, who I had dealt with several years ago but had all kinds of problems...you say "new" agent, have you moved on?

Well one usually hears about the big three:

Flora & Fauna in New York

Coppersmith in Dallas

Hunter International in San Francisco

From the comments here, it looks like F & F has cleaned up their act. They used to get a lot of complaints on the forums a couple of years ago.

No matter which of the big Three brokers you use, the trophies will shipped to the tannery (most pro taxidermists seem to use Carolina Fur or New Method in San Francisco) or to the taxidermist who will ship it to the tannery (of tan it himself). You might want to find out from your taxidermist which tannery he uses and where it's located.

You might save a few $$$ by having the trophies shipped to the port of entry closest to the tannery to reduce the domestic shippiing charges.

Watch out if you have warthogs because they might have to be repacked and sent to a USDA approved facility first (some tanneries and taxidermists are USDA approved, others are not). Your broker should be able to brief you on all this stuff so you can decide to which port to ship it to.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for all the info. I have e-mailed my shipper to leave the warthog in Namibia to be tanned. Seems to make things a lot easier.

I would beware of coppersmith.

When I received word that my trophies were being sent from Africa I called Coppersmith to make sure everything was in order, I gave them the anticiapted arrival date, and asked if they had my contact information. They assured me they had everything they needed.

I then received word that there then was a delay in the shipment in customs in Atlanta, while en route to Dallas, and I called them 2 or 3 times to get updates and coordinate the date of arrival of my trophies so I would not incurr storage fees.

The guy on the phone acted annoyed at my request, and said he did have all my contact information and I would be called to collect my trophies when they arrived. He added that there would be no reason to call him...he would call me.

I waited patiently. Eventually I received a letter stating that my trophies had arrived some 5 or 6 days prior. They would have called me but guess what....they didn't have my phone number! They then wanted me to pay for the storage of my trophies that had been sitting, collecting dust, while the letter was being sent to notify me of their arrival.

I explained that I had called them several times in order to prevent such an occurance. The broker aknowleged this and recalled the converstaion, and then graciously offered to pay for half of the storage fees. I think they should have paid for all the storage fees, but I was tired of getting the run around and they would not budge.

I am sure that many have had good experiences with Coppersmith. This may be an isolated incident, and I hope it is, but I will not being using Coppersmith again.

Bill C, it isn't that I have moved on I have added to my suppliers if you will. I still use Eagles Bend for some of my work and will do so in the future. He used the tannery Pa Fur Dressing in Aspers Pa (Mike Showers) who is also a taxidrmist and has and importing service. I had Mike handle my stuff from NZ last June and then had him tan it and mount the trophies, last week he delievered four of the NZ pieces, 2 feral goats (euro) and one shoulder mounted, an Arawpawa sheep SM and at turkey back fan. He is presently working on my Giriaffi shoulder mt. from 04 in Namabia the delay is my fault, and my Tahr and Chamois. Where in Pa are you? As a post script Mike clears thru Baltimore and is authorized for hogs.

I have to cast another vote for Fauna and Flora.

@ jjmeehan@faunaandflora.com

I have used their Ocean Cargo shipping scheme for completed trophies and was very happy with the results - AND the $ savings over AIR Cargo.

They quote you a complete price from Africa to your door. For those of us on the East Coast it is the best method of shipping completed trophies.

[They obviously do air shipment of raw trophies as well!]

Les Howell

As far as I know, ther are only a few trophies that require a special F&W license to import and those are the primates and pigs, ie warthogs, bushpigs, etc...otherwise you can do it yourself. When I ship or have friends ship I state on Docs "NO BROKERS", provide the destination airport, making sure it is a port of entry, and provide my own contact info...the airline calls me, not the broker. I call the local USF&W office at that airport or in town, make an appointment so I will find them in the office and not in the warehouse, fill out the papers, 10-12 trophies might take 30 minutes. Take the Docs to US Customs and have them stamp the Docs, go back and have USW&W do their magic, BINGO, trophies released and load them in your truck with a fee of about $30 to the warehouse...off to your taxidermist.
I used to have my taxidermist do it...then he got so busy he started using an agent...and charging me $180-250 for clearance. I have since dropped the taxidermist too!!
I have seen charges as high as $400 on 8 trophies by Hencky in San Francisco...who just pops into the picture for many "non-designated" shipments from Namibia & South Africa..
If I do use a Broker I select International Freight Systems, Seattle 206-433-2614, Mary Terry, 206-433-2614. These folks are VERY knowledgeable, very reasonalbe in price and don't treat hunters like the neuvo-rich and charge by the size of the shipment...a document is a document... regardless of how many trophies are there...as long as the papers are done right on the other side.
ALWAYS designate either No Brokers or your designated broker and ALWAYS prepay your shipment...otherwise be ready for huge tack on charges by every Tom, DICK and Harry [forwarder]that touches your shipment enroute...AND by selecting someone like Mary at IFS above, they can also advise you on how to designate the routing for the BEST airfreight rates and handling...air freight rates vary by huge amounts...know that amount BEFORE you ship...or you are STUCK!!
ALSO, make sure that your PH is handling your tophies properly on his end PREFERRABLY by doing the dip, pack and ship himself...or you pay a FIXED fee for that service...I recently saw a charge by a Namibia taxidermist for these services + documentation and it was about what they would normally mount the animals for!!...Yup, the client squaked and he cut it by 50%...still averaged over $100/trophy...a rip off.
Yes, folks we are a target for everyone making a bundle from our hunts...if we don't keep a viligant eye...and keep things in line.
Cheers

I am in Ohio as well but use Hunter International out of San Francisco. Maria does a great job. Golden State Tannery and New Method are both right there for the tanning. It happens one of my favorite taxidermists Anthony Maxwell is there as well. Regardless who you choose a little comparison shopping is always a good thing.