When I used to have a Dumeril's boa she always wanted to be held with all support. She did not enjoy being put down because she didn't feel secure. So, when I would set her down, she would flip out and move everywhere--obviously she wasn't happy. When I would put her down in her enclosure she would sither FAST to her hide. Dumeril's boas are very nice snakes and are calm, but are normally very frustrating to get to eat once they are brought home. It took me two months to get her to eat (live), then it took me 5 months to switch her over to F/T.

Since your boa is new, he might have gotten frightened and quickly tried to protect himself. Once you have him for about a month I'm sure he'll be settled in. If you have troubles feeding, I could definitely tell you some ways that I found very affective.