Packing & Shipping Guides

Labeling:

  • Label each specimen with the owner's last name and the animal's name/number.
  • Clearly distinguish acute samples from convalescent samples.
  • Label serology tubes in numerical and consecutive order (1, 2, 3, etc.)

Packing:

  • Place the tubes into the serum boxes in the order corresponding to the test charts.
  • Do not send specimens in hypodermic syringes.
  • Samples shipped in cardboard boxes should be placed in a waterproof liner and sealed tightly to prevent leakage.
  • If shipping fluid specimens in self-sealing plastic bags, double bag each specimen to avoid leakage.
  • Ship frozen or refrigerated material in a properly insulated container, clearly marked on the outside as a frozen/refrigerated laboratory specimen.
  • Use gel packs for a refrigerant (never use wet ice).
  • Enclose the submittal form(s) in a waterproof bag and place it on top of the specimens in the shipping container.

Supplies

Shipping:

  • Shipping by overnight courier is preferred.
  • The sender is responsible for postage or special delivery charges
  • Please either use FedEx or UPS.  We do not recommend using the United States Postal Service for diagnostic samples.

UPS Shipping Program

If the VDL needs to package and ship your sample(s) to another laboratory you will be charged a base fee of $31.72. 

After-hours submissions

Saturday Deliveries (UPS)

Although we aren’t open for testing, you can still ship your samples to us for Saturday delivery. We’ll have someone here to make sure they’re stored correctly until we can process them on Monday morning.

Please use UPS. We do not recommend using the United States Postal Service for diagnostic samples.

Please ship to:
Veterinary Diagnostic Lab
1333 Gortner Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108

Use our new UPS Shipping Program to print your own label from home!

Evening and Weekend Drop-Offs

We have staff on call to accept cases after hours. The person on call can be reached by calling 651-775-0417. The phone number is also posted at the VDL entrance. Please be aware that the on call person is not normally on site, so it is a good idea to call an hour ahead of your expected arrival time. We have added a $20 fee for accepting cases after hours to help cover these costs.