What's the right thing to do?

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Accidentally selling a ball with a barely noticeable kink? Selling a sick snake (RI, mites, internal parasites, scalerot, etc..)

That fall under the same category so I will respond both at the same time. You should obviously inspect your animal not only when they hatch but also prior to shipping, if you notice an issue when packaging the animal your customer should be advised immediately and a refund or exchange for another similar animal should be offered. Being pro-active and not shipping the animal is better than shipping it and have a dissatisfied customer that will have to return the snake before being able to get their money back.

Selling a ball that refuses to eat after a move?

Sadly you can NEVER guarantee that an animal will eat for his new owner, when I sell hatchlings I can guarantee that they eat for me, and will informed any potential customer if the animal is off feed (which generally occur in proven breeders). If the animal does not eat for is new owner I will try to guide the new owner the best I can (especially if the owner is inexperienced) but there is not much I can do asides from that.

Selling a het that doesn't prove out? (sperm retention mistake*)

While rare it can happen and if the owner does not produce any visual after 2 breeding season I would compensate my customer with a visual and allowed him/her to keep the animal purchased. Of course this would apply if the het is paired to a visual or if both hets that were paired were produced by me. If it is het x het and one of the het comes from someone else it would be slightly different.

Shipping a ball that shows up dead, or not at all (shipping mishap?)

Carrier mistake leading to DOA can happen, I had 2 packages lost this year but because the animal were packed properly the slight delay did not affect them. Make sure you learn to pack properly, use common sense and do not ship in extreme conditions, ship Monday through Wednesday, make sure the information are correct and that the customer will be home to open the package immediately upon arrival...etc. After following all that if the animal is DOA, DEMAND to be informed within 2 to 4 hours and DEMAND pictures to be provided. If the animal is indeed DOA issue a full refund or offer to ship another animal if the person has their eye set on something similar.

Selling a desert female to someone who plans to breed, but didn't do the research?

I believe buyers should research what they are buying it goes from car to houses to snakes. If someone has questions I will be more than happy to answer their questions or concerns (happens with Spiders all the time).

When it comes to Desert yes they make cool combos and males do not have any issues, however my dilemma is with females, and even if I were to sell a female as a PET and PET only I cannot guarantee that the customer will not decide to give breeding a try and therefore I chose not to work with this mutation.

If I was working with them I would make sure to have a disclaimer on my website regarding female Deserts and would have it linked to each available desert female.