Don't get me wrong - I'm not suggesting that you take that verbiage out of your TOS...I'm just saying that it's something I'd recommend disregarding when the time comes. The customer will be appreciative, and you'll look better because of it.
As far as the shipping thing - once upon a time it was fairly common practice to not include shipping in a DOA refund, and people's TOS would include the various reasons. Luckily, common sense and good business practices won out, and full refunds are the standard. Just for the record, if you send an incorrectly sexed animal, return shipping is on you (so is the shipping of the replacement). Sure, you might occasionally lose a few bucks...but chalk that up to a lesson learned. It serves as a reminder to step up your game.
Just think about it from a customer's perspective - how would you feel if you received a DOA, and were only given part of your money back? Or if you ordered a female, and received a male, and the seller tried to make you pay for them to make it right? Would you purchase from that seller again? Would you recommend them to your friends? Doing the right thing is cheaper in the long run, and a happy customer is likely to be a repeat customer.
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