Nobody here has mentioned Cold Blooded Cafe. I use multiple suppliers but they are my #1 choice most of the time.
When I was getting started, I tried to source my feeders from local shows. If you need bulk feeders on a regular basis, this gets problematic.
- You have to drive. For some people, this can be a time suck.
- You have to pay $8 or whatever to get in the door. No guarantee that the vendors will have what you need.
- The vendor has what you need but they sell out before you get there.
- You try to be smart about it and reach out to the vendor before the show, but they don’t respond to your text/call/email/whatever.
- The rodents that are available are disgusting and you have no idea where they came from because by the time you get there, they have been passed through 3-4 middlemen.
You can easily get exactly what you need shipped to your door if you take the time to evaluate what’s out there. For most regular orders, I use CBC. If I am going to be stocking up prior to breeding season where my collection is eating big, I’ll go to Big Cheese because their rodents are vaccuum sealed. If I need quantity very quickly, I’ll go to ARS.
Its worth it to figure out the nuances of each supplier so that you know what the best option is at any given time. For example, Big Cheese vacuum seals, but they are sold out A LOT. ARS is a great bang for the buck but they have a $500 minimum order and that bumps the shipping up to $58. CBC is a great product that is packaged well and consistently sized, but their price fluctuations can be nutty. Perfect Prey and Layne Labs are stellar products but get ready to pay $$$$$
If you have a smaller collection, reach out to other local keepers and split the cost of a large order. That knocks down shipping by 1/2 or 1/3, depending on how many people are ordering.