Help with aggressive snake please!!

[WhompingWillow]

IMHO, babies SHOULD be nippy. You want a healthy lively animal. My baby boa hated me for the first three weeks. Nothing but hissing and striking. What else did he even know??? He arrived in November. I didn't push it. I can now pick him up out of the enclosure with my bare hands, no issues, and no huffy displays; Zen.

It happens....give it some time.

They live with us, and have no choice about it. We are the ones who have to be patient and understanding.

To be fair, I don't think health and nippiness can really be correlated. Yes, some snakes when they first arrive can definitely be nippy and defensive (I mean, who can blame them), but others are as calm as can be. Some others are very confident right from the start. I think it partly depends on species, partly on the temperament of the snake. So far out of 17(ish), only one of mine has been consistently defensive (hissing, striking, etc.), and that's my BCO - a species notorious for this when young. On the other hand, all 3 of my juvenile carpets (another species notorious for nippiness as babies) are some of the most pleasant snakes I have to handle.

I do agree that it's important to let snakes settle in and get comfortable and take things slow. No need to rush things when you'll be building a relationship for the next 20+ years.