your over thinking this.
its going to be one of two things.
1. either the distributor seen someone new and figured he could dump his garbage on them for a quick profit or
2. this guy who admits he knows nothing is doing something so wrong he is kiling them quickly.
i dont believe you can kill a ball python from shipping it to young. they are hardy animals.
they wont starve to death in 2 weeks unless they had been starved for months before shipping.
maybe this guy is cooking them with over heating. under heating wouldnt kill them that fast, if his shop is 75 then their not "that" cold.
has he used any flea medicine in the shop? flea powder = death quickly
i personally wouldnt give him any advice until you have seen the setups and the animals. hes willing to learn if he called.
i give advice for free to petshops. the person that recommended you charge is wrong. if you are gonna charge then he isnt gonna pay and will continue to lose animals. most mom and pop shops will hook you up if you hook them up. i get EVERYTHING at cost from my local shop for helping them out. i also get wholesale lists forwarded to my email from her as well. all for giving her free advice and giving her deals and guarentees on my offspring.
adam jeffery