Tim Even though the Copperhead has a fairly mild venom, they do have a tendency to be a little wirery,and often become sparatic feeders in the off season, which frustrates novice collectors.If you can deal with these small hurdels they are very nice snakes. On another note I would not recomend Cantils as a beginer snake under any situation. I have had some experience with these guys ,you need to be at the top of your game with these.Think it through,and make the right choice,any and all of them can kill. Chris