Gaining confidence with new bp

[Bogertophis]

Agree with the others, it's not a bite worth losing sleep over, lol. Far less damage than many other pets (dogs, cats, birds, rodents) can easily do & with far less risk of infection. As for what the teeth of a harmless snake feel like, just go bump your hand on a holly bush, or do some hand-sewing & poke your hand (not deeply) several times with a needle or straight pins. It's the sort of bite that makes you jerk back* with surprise but does very little in the way of actual damage. *Ironically, jerking back is what you should try to resist, as sometimes you'll break their tiny teeth off & they'll stay under your skin like translucent splinters. So if your "battle-wound" doesn't heal rapidly, you might have some embedded teeth, but you'll still live...you just want to get them out.

Happily, most bites are avoidable & preventable: pay attention to your snake's body language (once you learn what it means, lol) & develop empathy for this shy snake of yours- he's not after you intentionally & will only bite either out of fear & self-defense, or if you confuse him by smelling like a rat/mouse. I don't think you can blame him for either one, do you? You're a lot bigger & scary to a snake...they assume you're a predator about to EAT them until they learn otherwise, so be patient & handle him gently & with respect. If you do that, you may never find out what his teeth feel like.

BPs especially can be shy feeders, so before you take off handling him, wait until he's fed about 3 times easily for you at normal intervals BEFORE you handle him. I know it's hard to be patient, but it's easier than trying to get a snake to eat when it's too scared & just won't...trust me on that. Eating is "job #1". Once you get him feeding, you'll have PLENTY of time to make friends & handle him. OK?