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GuidesHow do you track vaccinations and recalls in a vet practice?
A recall brings an animal back for a vaccine or a check-up. The method is simple: write the next due date at the visit, keep it in one list and call from the list every week.
Short answer
- At each visit, write the date of the next vaccine or check in the consultation note.
- Keep one recall list of animals to call back, with the owner's phone number.
- Work through the list at a fixed time each week.
- Note the result of each call: booked, declined, no answer.
- The method works by hand. Automation is optional, not required.
The manual method
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1. Record | Write the follow-up date in the consultation note |
| 2. List | Add the animal to the recall list with the reason |
| 3. Call | Contact owners once a week, oldest due date first |
| 4. Book | Create the appointment for the vet and the room |
| 5. Close | Remove the animal from the list when it is booked |
Common mistakes
- Keeping due dates only in the head of one vet.
- Having two lists, one on paper and one on a screen.
- Never closing an entry, so the list grows until nobody trusts it.
- Calling only the animals that are already late.
How 4softvet handles recall
4softvet keeps a manual recall list. Your team adds the animals to call back, goes through the list when the calls are made and keeps it up to date. The list sits in the same account as the agenda and the animal files, so the history is one click away.
It sends nothing by itself. There is no automatic message to owners, and the list does not fill itself from the consultation notes.
When to add automation
Add a messaging tool when the weekly calls take more time than the practice can spare. Check that it can send in the language of your owners and ask what each message costs. Provet Cloud, for example, states that it confirms appointments and sends reminders by SMS and e-mail (consulted 2026-10-26).
Privacy
A recall message is contact with a person. Check the consent and marketing rules that apply to you before you start, for example the GDPR in the EU and the UK.
Decide who owns the list
Name one person who opens the recall list each week and one who covers when they are away. A list that belongs to everyone is read by nobody.
Agree what counts as late, for example two weeks past the due date, and what the next step is: a second call, a letter or closing the entry.