Pet Manager vs. DoggieDashboard: A Look at Two Pet Business Software Solutions
Finding the right software to manage your pet business can feel a bit like trying to herd cats—a whole lot of chaos and no clear direction. There are so many options out there, each promising to be the perfect fit. Today, we’re going to take a closer look at two popular contenders in the pet management software space: DoggieDashboard and Pet Manager. Both are designed to streamline your operations, but they approach the task with different philosophies and feature sets.
Let’s dive in and see how they stack up.
First Impressions: The Power of Simplicity vs. Robust Customization
DoggieDashboard’s biggest selling point is its simplicity and affordability. It’s often praised by users for being “user friendly” and “super easy to understand and navigate”. It’s a great starting point for smaller businesses, offering a free plan for up to 10 pets and clients. The creator, Patrick, is also highly regarded for his personalized customer service and responsiveness. Reviews often highlight the software’s ability to help a business manage clients, pets, and appointments with a no-fuss approach. It’s a solid, straightforward tool that gets the job done.
Pet Manager, on the other hand, is built for scale and deep customization. While it’s also user-friendly and intuitive, its power lies in its comprehensive, rules-based systems. It’s designed to grow with your business, whether you’re running a small-scale doggy daycare or an expansive multi-site pet resort. Pet Manager is built to handle the complexities of different business models, offering specific forms and features for various services like boarding, daycare, training, grooming, walking, in-home care, dog parks, and even canine hydrotherapy. This means less “hacking” the software to fit your needs and more of a perfect fit right out of the box.
Customer and Pet Management: More Than Just a Name
DoggieDashboard offers solid client and pet management features, allowing you to save information like pet names, breeds, vaccination expirations, and notes. It also has a neat feature for e-sign waivers and the ability to upload documents, like vaccine records, to a certain limit on the free plan. This is crucial for keeping track of your furry clients’ health and safety. The ability to send picture updates to clients is also a well-loved feature.
Pet Manager takes this a few steps further with a more comprehensive approach. Its Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is incredibly detailed, allowing you to store not just the basic contact info, but also secondary contacts, emergency contacts, vets, and lead sources. You can set customer alerts for staff, flag clients as “not welcome” if necessary , and even create different customer types (like “Pensioner” or “VIP”) to apply special pricing or packages. Pet profiles are equally detailed, with fields for behavior traits, microchip info, insurance, and Instagram handles, plus the option to create custom pet questions. For staff, a journal allows for recording date/time stamped notes, which is great for ensuring everyone is on the same page about a pet’s stay. Plus, vaccination tracking goes beyond a simple expiry date, allowing you to upload images of the vaccination certificates and set up automated reminders.
Scheduling and Bookings: The Heartbeat of Your Business
DoggieDashboard provides a clear appointment calendar for scheduling various services. It also has a kennel/run calendar, allowing you to see which spaces are occupied at a glance. A key feature is the ability for clients to request appointments through an embeddable page on your website. For businesses that sell passes or pre-paid packages, the redeemable passes feature is a huge plus, allowing you to track how many sessions a client has remaining.
Pet Manager’s booking and scheduling tools are exceptionally powerful and flexible. It offers dedicated schedulers for every service type, with multiple views (month, week, day) to suit your workflow. The system allows for “split bookings,” where a pet can move between different pens during a single boarding stay, and can even handle multiple animals in a single booking, or in different pens within the same booking. The price calculator is a standout feature, automatically calculating costs based on a complex set of rules you define, such as animal size, breed, seasons (like public holidays), length of stay, and even customer type. For service-based businesses, a detailed roster system lets you manage staff availability and even set up templates, preventing double-bookings and ensuring you’re always properly staffed.
The Financials: Getting Paid and Staying Organized
Both platforms offer invoicing and payment tracking. DoggieDashboard’s system allows you to create and send invoices, track payments, and analyze your business’s financial performance with a range of PDF reports. One user on a review site also praised the ability to “customize the forms for my business” and “color code different reservations”.
Pet Manager’s financial module is incredibly robust and built on proper accounting methods. It supports multiple payments per invoice, credit notes, refunds, and customizable deposits based on seasons or specific dates. The system can generate invoices and quotations automatically. It also has deep integrations with Xero Online Accounting, which automatically syncs customers, invoices, and payments, saving you hours of manual data entry. This level of financial detail and automation is critical for any growing business, especially as you start to manage more complex accounts.
Integrations and Growth: Beyond the Basics
DoggieDashboard has a strong focus on core features, offering tools like email reminders and a customer portal. It’s a great self-contained solution, and users have praised the developer for constantly adding new features based on their suggestions. It’s a testament to a company that listens to its users.
Pet Manager is also built on customer feedback, with a built-in feature request system where users can submit and vote on new ideas. However, its focus on integrations is designed to connect your business to the wider ecosystem. Beyond the Xero integration, it also integrates with Stripe for online payments , Mailchimp for email marketing, and Tyro for in-store payments (Australia only). The customer portal is also a major feature, offering a fully-featured online booking and management tool that can be seamlessly embedded into your website. This creates a professional and streamlined experience for your clients, which is a huge bonus in a competitive market.
Who are these products for?
DoggieDashboard is an excellent choice for a new or small business that wants a simple, affordable solution with great customer support. Its straightforward feature set is perfect for managing a manageable number of clients and pets without being overwhelmed. It’s a great way to transition from spreadsheets to dedicated software.
Pet Manager is designed for the business that’s already growing, or plans to grow significantly. Its powerful customization, multi-site capabilities, and deep integrations make it a long-term solution for businesses that want to automate more, offer a wider range of services, and have a comprehensive understanding of their financials and operations. It’s a system built to handle the complexities of a thriving pet business, giving you the tools to focus on what you love most—the animals!
So, whether you’re just starting out or looking for a long-term solution to scale your operations, both platforms offer a lot to consider. The best choice ultimately depends on your specific needs and business goals.
Ready to see how Pet Manager can help your business grow? Start your FREE 30 Day trial and discover how our robust features can simplify your life and give you back precious time. It’s a compelling solution for businesses ready to take the next step.
