my first ball came from petsmart, the girl that sold it to me didn't give me a pamplet she told me what I needed to know because she keeps several different types of snakes including balls. She was also the one that recommended I use sterilight tubs over a tank because the keep husbandry easier and cheaper in the long run. at the petsmart all the employs that worked in petcare had a lot of good knowledge, however the petco across the street was a different story. there Red Tail Boas where in great shap and better housing. the balls looked like a word I can't say here. Stuck on shed 8 in one 10 gal tank poop everywhere and When I asked if I could get a discount for how bad they looked I was only offered a 10% discount off of $80. now 3 weeks after I bought my first snake and a lot of research I found that my friend bought two balls from that same petco. one died a week later. they told him he needed a hotrock and a heat lamp. his cage had no hide how ever it was the right size. and whats worse they sold it to him as a Boa. the snake stayed with stuck on shed for 5 weeks thinking he was going to do some research after I told him to. nothing changed. I had found a local petshop that we went to where I bought my second ball that was an adult. I picked up proper equipment for my friend (heat pad, hides, and the right size feeders since petco told him to feed a pinky once a month [you could see light shinning through this snake for how skenny this snake was] took my 10 gal fish tank over to his house let the snake soak for about 3 mins all the stuck on shed came off. His dad was like wow that thing has been shedding for more then a month. Luckly there was no eye caps even after the stressful bath and getting the stuck shed off the snake pounded a hopper in less then 2 seconds of sticking it in the cage, took the heat rock cut the cord off re set up the cage explaind things on how to keep humidty and the snake is now thriving very good and is on medium rats now...

every petco I have been into since the balls look bad but the few petsmarts I have been to the balls are always only two to a tank and everything is spot on