I have been bitten a few times but the worst time was when my BRB, Nod, nailed me on feeding day. He was about 3 1/2 years old at the time and for whatever reason he had quite striking and coiling around his FT rat for the past several months so I had just been laying it in his enclosure (front opening Boaphile) and closing the door.
Nod was curled up down by his water bowl on the right end and I had just picked up his rat with the tongs in my left hand and was moving to lay the rat inside his enclosure when all of a sudden out of nowhere Nod went for the rat but missed and got my hand, clamping down between my thumb and forefinger, and then proceeding to coil around my wrist and up my arm.
Nod’s teeth sunk in and the blood flowed but I couldn’t feel anything because he had coiled around my arm so tight my hand was numbing a bit! Lol! I was trying not to panic and scream because my husband was in the next room and given that he hates snakes, Nod would have ended up in a dumpster. Or worse.
So trying not to get blood on the carpet, I tried to unwind Nod from around my arm but I had to wait until he realized that I was not food and that his yummy rat was still in the enclosure. I think? lol!
After what seemed like an eternity, he finally released his “hand sandwich” and unwound himself, grateful to nose his way back into his room. After pouring a half a bottle of peroxide and then a half a bottle of alcohol over my hand, the bite marks were not that bad, and by the next day there was just a faint hint of a bruise, and that was about it. And to this day my husband has no clue about what happened! Lol!
This is really going to depend on the species, as well as the individual snake. Some snakes will happily eat f/t or live, and can easily be switched back and forth at the whim of their keeper(s) and never refuse a meal. Others may take some time to switch to f/t, but will eventually become reliable eaters of f/t prey, and still others will insist on live feedings no matter what you do. Since you don’t want to feed live, the safest option would definitely be to get a snake that’s already established eating f/t (and maybe consider avoiding ball pythons, African house snakes, and other species known for being picky eaters who won’t always accept f/t). While many snakes can be switched from live to f/t, there are never any guarantees they’ll make the switch, even with species that are usually known for being good eaters. But if you pick a species that is known for being reliable with feeding and an individual who is already feeding consistently on f/t, you’re unlikely to have any issues in that department.
I don’t know all that much about iguanas, but it’s my impression that males are generally going to be more hormonal and moody than females as a rule, regardless of species. I feel like a female would probably make a better pet (though someone please correct me if I’m wrong). Though as with all animals, I’m sure there are exceptions.
Wow—-I can’t imagine how you did that all so quietly, lol. I’d have at least probably yelled in surprise for a second, or generally made enough noise to get someone’s attention. I have a rather strong reaction to irl jump scares.
I saw video once of someone handling a small-ish yellow anaconda, and the snake was agitated about getting taken out of its enclosure (he was deep cleaning the tank). The anaconda gave him a very quick nip before pulling back into a defensive position. The injury was barely visible after he washed the blood away. If it’s a defensive bite, do they always let go immediately? Do they only hold on if it’s a confused feeding response?
Generally speaking, defensive bites will be quick strike-and-release type bites. In my admittedly limited experience, those are the only defensive bites I’ve seen or experienced.
That doesn’t mean that no snake would ever latch on and/or wrap defensively, but I feel like those would be the exception rather than the rule.
I have a rather strong reaction to irl jump scares. 
