A Tale of Two Tails

The past two weeks have been filled with anxious visits to the vet. Whippy the iguana had an injury to her tail several years ago, before I adopted her. The scar tissue from the old injury constricted the tip of the tail, impeding its growth. Two weeks ago, she shed a bit of skin at the tip of her tail, and the skin beneath was black. The circulation was inhibited by the scar tissue to the point that the tip of her tail became necrotic. I rushed her to the vet for an emergency tail amputation.
The day she had surgery was one of the worst days of my life. I was so busy at work, but I was so worried about Whippy that I had a stomach ache. Finally the vet called and told me that she was out of surgery, and even though she was groggy from the anesthesia, she was trying to climb. My little fighter! She was so feisty that she even tried to whip the vet tech with her tail as we loaded her into her carrier to go home. But that was not yet the end of this difficult day.
As soon as Whippy was settled in her enclosure, resting after surgery, I plopped down on the couch. Mystic the kitty hopped up next to me, and as I petted her, I noticed a scary-looking red bald spot on her tail. She's had a cyst on the tip of her tail for about three years. It was caused by an infected oil gland, and the vet was reluctant to drain it because of the poor circulation and thin skin at the tip of the tail. Well, for some reason, that day it became irritated. Mystic had a tail amputation on Monday. In addition, the vet removed another cyst from her side. She looks like Franken-kitty. Her tail and side are shaved bare, and covered in thick stitches. Poor Mystic. I secretly always thought she was the most beautiful of all my pets. Her black fur is silky and her bearing regal.
For the past week I've been administering antibiotic injections to Whippy. I was a little nervous about giving a four foot long lizard a shot every day, but I waited until she was a bit sleepy at bedtime. She barely noticed. Her tail looks well - I know this because last week she whipped off her bandage and I had to take her for another visit to the vet to get her tail wrapped up.
Mystic is wearing a not-so-stylish Buster collar, a strange, plastic device that looks like an upside down lampshade. She usually wears a shiny, black collar with sparkling rhinestones, and is embarrassed to be seen in the Buster collar. I know, because I wrestle with her every morning to put it on after she eats. The purpose of the Buster collar is to prevent her from chewing her stitches, but unfortunately, it also prevents her from chewing her cat chow. So twice a day I chase her down, take it off, feed her a tuna-fishy meal, and then try to slide it back on when she's distracted.
I'm happy to say that Whippy's and Mystic's tails are on the mend. They both have a follow-up visit yet, but I'm confident the vet will pronounce them healthy. Whippy is climbing up and down her shelves and banging on the door of her enclosure (trying to escape) almost daily. Mystic refuses to leave my bedroom, because she likes to lick plastic bags, and she's convinced I've forgotten a shopping bag in my closet. This tale of two tails will have a happy ending.