Too Proud?

"Hello, Gimli Vet Services."

" Hi, I was wondering if my bag of cat food was in? They said it would be in Tuesday or Wednesday."

"What kind of food is it?"

"Urinary SO."

"OK, hold on one second, let me check"

HOLD

"Yes, we have your bag of food in."

"Ok, I will be there this afternoon, to pick it up."

Two or three hours later, the customer walkes in.

"Hi, I am here to pick up my cat food"

D:"Oh, sorry, your bag didn't come it yet"

I step in.

"Yeah, it is, I checked earlier. You are looking for Urinary SO cat food, right?"

"Yes"

I drag the bag out from beneath 5 other bags and show it to her.

"That is not it"

"This is Urinary SO."

"No, the bag I want is pink."

D: "Oh, you mean ST/OX. That will be in on Friday."

"WHAT?!? I called and she said it was in!"

Quietly "You asked for Urinary SO."

D: "Sorry, I haven't ordered that food yet. It will be in on Friday"

"Well, my cat is all out of food and the lady I talked to said it would be here on Tuesday or Wednesday."

D: "I am sorry, but it has not yet been ordered. We have smaller bags you can buy to tide you over until the big bag comes in..."

"I drove 15 miles to get here, I guess I will have to go buy my cat other food then."

D: "Do you mean you want to cancel that order?"

"NO, my cat needs that food!" Angrily storms out.

Situations like this frustrate me. I don't like to make a customer upset, but there is really nothing I can do in this situation. I am sorry they drove that far for nothing, but the customer did tell me the wrong kind of food, over the phone and when I asked in the clinic. Both foods are made for the same thing, but they have completely different names and are made by different companies. Clearly it was the customer's mistake. But instead of admitting the mistake, it was easier to storm out and be angry at us.

Not that this was really a big deal, but it makes me think about human nature. Far to often when we are angry or upset, we try to blame others. Surely it is someone else's problem. But how often do we take a step back and ask ourselves what we did wrong. Why is it so hard to admit our own mistakes? Even if they are little things? I have found that is is not easy. It is very humbling. But I really think that we would be happier if we could do that more often!