I recently got a boa from a local man who took 6 adults that were found in a rub dumped in a park. The one I picked seemed a bit nervous but was ok to handle. Having no experience with the breed personally i had my reservations about giving one a home but always wanted one in my collection.

It wasn't long before I discovered he/she had mites and needed to be treated asap. I used mite off spray which really annoyed the thing which caused it to strike at me. I wasnt able to cover all of the snake and since he/she has become very defencive, making it difficult to undertake basic care needs.

I'm unsure of the sex but I'd guess its male, its about 6ft. Cleaning it out today it was in a strike position the entire time and had 3 goes at biting me.

Question is can or will it calm down? Is there anything I can do that might help gain his trust other than careful minimal handling and persistance.

I dont want to give up on the poor thing but in need of some advice and reassurance lol. Anyone had experience with this kind of of thing?