I wanted to create a throwaway account for this, but that account can't post, even after waiting a couple of days. Not sure what went wrong there. So I will be deleting this account once this is over, for privacy's sake.

I live in Chico, California. For anyone who may be keeping an eye on the news, the Camp Fire is raging right next to my town. It has burnt down the only reptile-certified vet office within a 45 minute drive of me. I've called every vet in the Chico area, and there's one who is familiar with reptiles, but not certified. I will most likely have to go to Redding to find the next closest reptile vet. Therefore, I'd rather not have to go to a vet unless absolutely necessary, as Virgil hates long car rides and I don't want to stress him unnecessarily.

Virgil's not eating. I wasn't particularly concerned initially, as he is 1) a ball python and 2) we are heading into winter. However, Virgil keeps fasting, and at this point, has not eaten in four weeks. If he reaches five weeks, it will be the longest he hasn't eaten since I went on vacation a year ago and the UTH broke.

Here are the facts:

Virgil is a two year old pastel ball python. He weighed 1729 grams as of November 14th. He has not been losing weight, despite his fasting (the main reason why I haven't dragged him to a vet yet).

He lives in an AP T8. The hot side is ~90 degrees F, cool side ~84 degrees F. He is heated through a Radiant Heat Panel (RHP) and it is controlled by a Herpstat 2. He sleeps in two modified kitty litter boxes that has newspaper in them to help him feel more secure. Despite this, he often likes to wedge himself between the cool hide and the wall, and hide under the fake flowers.

I have been having massive problems with humidity, which have gotten much worse since the Camp Fire began. The air quality here is horrible, and the smoke has been leaking through the apartment door and windows. I have a fan with two filters attached in an attempt to filter out some of the smoke next to the front door. Humidity fluctuates between 34 and 67, depending on the time of day. During the daytime, it sits around 50-54. It tanks at night, and I have been keeping the humidity up during the day with four terry cloth towels (which sit on top of his hides) and two massive fistfuls of sphagnum moss. The humidity spikes when I wet the towels and moss in the morning, and just before bed. I measure the humidity and temperatures with an Acurite thermometer.

Virgil eats medium sized f/t rats. Previously, he has not been a picky eater. In fact, when I last visited the vet last November due to an eye issue, I was ordered to start feeding Virgil every two weeks, as he was becoming overweight. The vet said to do this for the rest of his life, so I have. Virgil has occasionally gone on fasts before, but usually no longer than three of four weeks, and with months in between them.

Virgil last ate on October 17th. Before that it was October 3rd. When he ate on October 3rd, I was ecstatic because he hadn't eaten since September 5th. Before that, he was eating normally and on schedule. I naively thought on October 17th, that since he had started eating on schedule again, he would keep eating on schedule. Nope!

Behavior wise, Virgil hasn't changed. He enjoys doing a couple lazy laps around his tank between 10pm-midnight, but otherwise spends all day sleeping in his cold hide. When I take him out, he is inquisitive and curious, with his tongue going, but doesn't try to escape anywhere or move particularly fast. He just cruises lazily around. His eyes are clear and undented, and the rest of him looks normal.


My Plan of Action:
I am going to follow the Psychology of Problem Feeders (https://jkrballstreetjournal.com/201...-eating-again/) from the sticky thread. First, I am going to change all of his bedding before his next feeding. I am going to make new, smaller hides, since I can't place him in a new tank or tub. I am not going to feed him on a Wednesday like I normally do. I will make sure all the lights are off, and try to stay out of his line of sight next time I feed him.

Does this sound like a good plan? Is there anything I should keep an eye out for, or do? How can I protect Virgil from the smoke?

Due to multiple reasons, I cannot currently leave Chico to get out of the smoke. Unfortunately, packing up and leaving is an option that is only left if I am forced to evacuate.