Keeping detailed pet records

Vaccination records are only one part of a pet's record. Over time, you learn more about each pet. Your staff needs this information. For example, a dog may get anxious around large breeds. A cat may need medication at a specific time. A dog may hurt a leg during play time, and you need to record what happened.

Petsoft has a few tools for this. You find them on the pet's profile page.

Logging an incident

An incident is an unusual event that you must record. Examples are fights, injuries, escapes, bites, and near misses.

To add one, open the pet's profile and go to the Incidents tab. Click Report Incident and enter the details. The list shows:

• Happened on — the date and time
• Pet's role — which pets were involved, and how (for example, "Bystander")
• Incident details — what happened
• Incident outcome — what you did about it

Use Edit Incident to change an incident later. If a pet has no recorded incidents, the list shows "No incidents reported for this pet."

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Pet parents cannot see incidents in the portal. Incidents are only for your team.

Adding notes

Notes are less formal than incidents. Use them for behavioral observations, feeding preferences, or other information that helps your team care for the pet.

Some examples of good notes:

• "Barks at men with hats but warms up after five minutes"
• "Will not eat unless the bowl is placed in the back corner of the run"
• "Needs a midday nap; do not schedule play time before 1 PM"

Each note has a Note Type. If you tick Display On Kennel Card, the note prints on the Kennel Card. Staff working that day can then see it without searching the profile.

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The Note Type also controls whether the pet parent can see the note. The Notes list has a Pet Parent Visible column that shows which types are visible. Check the type before you write information that is only for staff.

Vet information

Every pet should have a recorded vet. Go to the Vet Info tab. Attach a veterinary practice and doctor from your shared directory. If they are not yet in the directory, add them.

If you have an emergency and cannot reach the owner, you call this vet. Keep this information up to date.

You record the pet's Microchip Number separately, on the pet's General tab.

Medications

If a pet takes medication during their stay, record it on the reservation, not on the profile. The medication schedule prints on the daily medications report, so your staff know exactly what to give, and when to give it.

But you can also add a note about chronic medications on the profile. This helps you remember to ask about them at drop-off. For example, "Takes daily thyroid medication" gives useful information, even if the owner brings the pills.

Document uploads

You can attach images and PDF files to a pet's profile. Examples are vaccination certificates, vet clearance letters, medication instructions, photos of injuries (for incident records), and behavior assessment forms. These are all stored in one general file area on the profile. There is no field to sort documents by type.

Pet parents can see a pet's uploaded documents, and can upload their own through the portal. If a pet parent adds a document, the pet goes into the pending review queue for your team to check.

Adding participants to an incident

When you add a new incident, you can search for a pet by name. Add that pet as a participant. This search only finds pets for the incident you are creating. It does not search your history of past incidents.

You may need to review incident history for insurance claims or state inspections. You may also need to find patterns, such as the same dog having three incidents in two months. For these tasks, look through the Incidents list on the pet's profile.