Collection fee woes

[PonyLove222]

I am looking at breeding to a local stallion. I’ve been in contact with the owner who invited me to come see him. Went to see him and really liked him so requested a contract. In looking it over, he has a $300 flat collection fee which includes all Fed-Ex shipping charges. I asked if I would be able to pick it up instead and they said yes but didn’t address cost. Would you expect a reduced rate/would it be unreasonable to ask for one since I don’t need it shipped?

For reference, this is a mid sized private facility with multiple stallions. They limit bookings and I would estimate they don’t breed to more than 10ish outside mares max each season. They have a lab and collection equipment on-site so it’s not like they’re being charged by a clinic.

I realize $300 isn’t that much in the scheme of things, and I’d be thinking it was a great deal if I was across the country. I think I’m overthinking it because I feel a little tapped out by the $2500 stud fee already for a stallion with less than 10 foals on the ground. Part of the reason for going to him was the convenience factor of not having to deal with Fed-Ex. I don’t want to be a pain in the @$$, especially since I went to look at him which I think is unusual for them. I’m just trying to figure out if I need to suck it up and pay. Insight appreciated. (You won’t hurt my feelings if you call me a cheapskate )

[trubandloki]

I have no experience in this actual market but I look at it this way - You can ask (nicely) but do not be shocked if the answer is no.

Not having to ship will remove them having to pay Fed-Ex, you are right.

It will add the hassle of them having to hand product over to you. And though I am sure you are always on time and never a nuisance, other people can be difficult.

I just bought a product from someone on Etsy, that included shipping. I am local to the person who made it so instead I made arrangements to pick it up somewhere local. No discount. (I did not ask for one, and they did not offer one and I think that was fair.)

[Fuego1]

You can ask, but $300 to include both collection and shipping is really reasonable, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t discount it. My experiences have all been a $300-600 collection/farm fee in addition to around $300 for shipping…

[fordtraktor]

When I was in a similar situation I just took my mare to the breeding farm for a month/6 weeks. It was much cheaper than paying the collection fee and also my vet to inseminate the mare and check her. They charged a lot less to inseminate her because it didn’t require a container at all, and the checks were less than half the cost of my vet.

[Festivity]

One of the times I bred my mare I went and picked up the container instead of using FedEx. For that stallion the collection fee was $275 and the shipping fee was extra so they didn’t charge me the shipping fee. It wasn’t super close to pick up but not dealing with FedEx during the pandemic was worth it to me. You can ask, worst case they say no. Since it’s a combined fee it might not have occurred to them to offer a discount, especially if they don’t usually breed locally.

[eightpondfarm]

i recently had semen collected and shipped to Oregon. The shipping cost alone (overnight, arrive by 10am) was around 250 (FedEx)

[exvet]

I charged a flat rate collection fee(s) on my stallion(s) regardless of how the semen was handled afterwards (always was examined and analyzed and sent with a full report)- fresh and placed in mare or cooled shipped by fed-ex or picked up in person or transported by some other means. I’m surprised that collection fees aren’t higher than $300 considering I charged $250 10 years ago. Even though I’m a veterinarian and could collect my stallion myself, I only stood one stallion at a time and found it impractical to maintain a dummy and the collection equipment so I was always charged a collection fee at the stallion station to collect my stallion. At times it was more than the $250 I charged my customers because it also depended on whether or not I had to ‘rent’ a container or if mine had been returned in time. Some of use with really small operations simply do are best to stay afloat.