It is a toss up. Some water snakes are pretty easy to work with while others are nasty little biters. I have kept almost every species of North American water snake at one time or another. I have found the redbelly and plainbelly to be the easiest to work with but the least hardy. Northern water snakes tend to be biters but I did have one which was relatively easy to work with. Diamondbacks and browns have the reputation of being the worst tempered but I have never had problems with either. I would never trust a child to handle one. It is a good way to develop fear in a young herper.