blatent lies

Does it ever amaze you how comfortable people are with lying? I mean, lying with the knowledge that they will be caught in their lie. It happens so often. I'm sure veterinary medicine isn't the only field where people do this... but unfortunately, it IS a field where people can get away with it on a fairly regular basis. People are afraid they'll 'look bad' if they tell the truth... don't they realize they look even worse when they are caught in their lies?

Example #1 - a typical scenario... Rex comes in with vomiting & diarrhea of 3 days duration. Has Rex had any unusual food? Gotten into the cat food? Eaten scraps out of the trash? Been fed any people food? "No. Absolutely not. We don't give Rex ANY table food." Any toxin, chemical, poison exposure? "Nope. None of that in our house, and he hasn't been anywhere else." Ok... well, lets start talking about other causes. Wait - it appears Rex is going to give us a fresh stool sample for analysis. Aaannndd... yes, he's going to demonstrate the vomiting as well. Hhhmm.... is that pork bones, green beans, and partially digested bologna? "Yes, he wasn't feeling well and he wouldn't eat his dogfood, so I gave him what we had for supper - plus a little bologna because he just LOVES bologna. Its so cute how he will sit and beg for bologna!" Hhhmmm... I thought he NEVER gets any people food? "Well, nothing that WE wouldn't eat, doc." *sigh* I'm fighting a losing battle here... Maybe I can't convince Rex's family that their feeding table food has directly contributed to his nausea / diarrhea. Maybe there is no point in trying... but my line of thought? If you're going to feed it, you'd better be willing to own up to it!

Example #2 - a family comes into the clinic, knowing that payment is due upon receipt of services... they approve an estimate, sign a form saying that they will pay in full, or that they will pay 1/3 down and make payments on the rest... they are given chances to ask questions... to clarify any misunderstandings they may have... and yet, when the time comes to pay, they 'forgot' their checkbook, or 'didn't know' that their credit card was maxed out... they say "I have $200 to pay today" and then 'realize' they only brought $50 with them. I understand that they have good intentions... they want the best for their pet. They want to do everything, but don't have the money to pay for it. But do people go into the grocery store and try to get $200 of groceries for $50? Do they think they can go to the bank and request a loan, simply on the good-faith-promise that "I'm good for it - I swear - I'll pay it off the Friday after the first Monday of December, because thats when I get my disability check, and my car will be paid off by then, and...."

*sigh* When did people drop all sense of honesty, trustworthiness, and responsibility?