My first was an eyelash viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) and it is still one of my favorites. Good feeder, rides a hook well, rarely need to clean the cage. As a baby it did need tease fed pinky parts and getting him untangled from his perch is tough, but it is the easiest of all my snakes to care for other than my daughters corns. I have a few copperheads and they are pretty easy as well. They don't ride a hook as well and get larger but are still a pretty good first. My small rattlers are a pain on a hook but some aren't too bad. The pygmies are faily easy to care for. My mohaves are evil. Stay away from the big rattlers. I have a timber that will "dash" across the cage if he thinks you are going to open the door and every time i walk by I hear a "thump" from him striking the glass. They are also harder to move around or remove from the cage due to size and weight. Gabboons are easy as baibies except that they often have to be led to water, but they quickly get so heavy that you have to use you hooks to drag them around since they are hard to lift. The fact that they are super fast will make you jump the first time it feeds, but you shouldn't be in strike range anyway. No elapids are good beginner snakes in my opinion. They are just too active and excitable.
Hope i helped

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