Clients
Manage owner contact information, households, and portal access.
A client is the owner or responsible party for one or more patients. Clients receive appointment reminders, discharge emails, invoices, and โ if invited โ access to the owner portal. A client can belong to a household, which lets you group multiple owners under one family account.
Adding a new client
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Search before creating
Search by name, email, or phone number first. Creating duplicate client records splits communication history and complicates invoicing.
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Go to Clients โ New client
Click Clients in the sidebar, then + New client.
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Enter contact details
First name, last name, email address, and phone number. Email is used for portal invitations and appointment reminders. Phone is used for SMS reminders if enabled.
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Assign to a household (optional)
If this client shares pets with another client already in the system, link them to the same household. Both clients can then see the shared pets and receive communications.
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Link their pets
Search for existing patients to link, or create new patients from this screen.
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Invite to the portal (optional)
Toggle Invite to owner portal to send an invitation email immediately after saving. The client will receive a link to set up their portal account. You can also do this later from the client profile.
Households
A household groups multiple clients who share the same pets โ for example, two partners who both bring in the family dog. Household members can:
- Both be linked to the same patients
- Both access the owner portal and see the shared pet's records
- Both receive appointment reminders (if they've each opted in)
To create a household, go to Clients โ Households โ New household, or link clients to an existing household from their individual profiles.
Portal access
To invite a client to the owner portal, open their client profile and click Invite to portal. An invitation email is sent to their address on file. The invite link expires after 7 days โ if they miss it, click Resend invite.
Once a client has accepted their invite, their portal status shows as Active. You can revoke access at any time from the same panel.
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Name | Appears on invoices and discharge emails |
| Required for portal invitations and reminder emails | |
| Phone | Used for SMS reminders if your clinic has SMS enabled |
| Preferred contact method | Email, SMS, or both โ controls which reminders are sent |
| Linked patients | One client can be linked to multiple patients |
| Household | Optional โ groups clients who share the same pets |
| Portal status | Not invited / Invited / Active / Revoked |
FAQ
Go to the client profile โ Edit โ update the email field. If they have an active portal account, their portal login email does not change automatically โ they'll need to update it themselves in Account settings, or you can revoke and re-invite them.
Yes. Each client gets their own portal invitation and their own login. They'll both see the shared patients but have separate accounts.
On the client profile, set Preferred contact method to None, or remove their phone number to stop SMS. For portal messages, the client can manage their own notification preferences from Account settings.
Yes. On the client profile, click Deactivate client. Deactivated clients won't appear in default search results, but all their linked patients, visit history, and invoices are preserved.