Every caller thinks it might be an emergency. Some of them are right
Vandial answers every call to your practice, books the consultations and the routine work into your real calendar, and sends the genuine emergencies to your after-hours provider right away — without ever telling an owner what is wrong with their animal.
From $99 a month · Robocalls are never billed
Incoming callSofia Ortega“He hasn't eaten since yesterday and he's very quiet.”
Booked — same-day 3:15, not eating 24h
- They ring
- rather than book online, because the animal is in front of them right now
- Routed, not booked
- collapse, seizures and suspected poisoning go to your OOH provider
- Handed over
- end-of-life calls reach a person, every time
This is what your callers hear
The same receptionist a practice gets, answering as the trades we already run. Yours is in the middle — press play.
One veterinary call, and what it left behind
Answered on the second ring. Every field below was captured during the call — nobody typed it in afterwards.
“He hasn't eaten since yesterday and he's very quiet.”
Classified0:15
- sick visit
- canine
- 24h inappetence
Captured0:34
- 6yr labrador
- drinking
- no meds
- 24h
Booked0:58
- today 3:15
- Dr Whitmore
- sick visit
Booked — same-day 3:15, not eating 24h
Read the whole veterinary call, line by line
- 0:02Sofia Ortega: He hasn't eaten since yesterday and he's very quiet.
- 0:05Vandial: Let's get him seen. Is he still drinking, and has he been sick at all?
- 0:13Sofia Ortega: He's drinking. No sickness, he's just flat.
- 0:15Classified — sick visit · canine · 24h inappetence
- 0:22Vandial: What breed and how old is he — and is he on any medication?
- 0:31Sofia Ortega: Six-year-old labrador, nothing regular.
- 0:34Captured — 6yr labrador · drinking · no meds · 24h
- 0:44Vandial: We've got a same-day slot at 3:15 with Dr Whitmore. If he becomes distressed or stops drinking before then, ring us straight back.
- 0:58Booked — today 3:15 · Dr Whitmore · sick visit
Answered, understood, booked
One number, picked up on the second ring — at 2am, on a Sunday, while you're already working. By the time the caller hangs up, it is in your calendar.
It answers
Answered at any hour, including the evening calls from owners who have been worrying about it since lunchtime.
- 0:00Incoming call
- 0:02Answered by Vandial2 rings
- 0:05“Hello, Marlow Plumbing.”
It understands
Factual questions only — how long, still eating, still drinking, what species and age — enough to pick a slot and nothing more.
- Job
- Water heater — leaking
- Where
- 14 Marlow Street
- Access
- Side gate, dog in yard
- Urgency
- Today if possible
- Still on
It books
Booked in your real calendar, or sent straight to your after-hours provider with the number texted and the clinic told.
Text to Dave · 13:01
You’re booked for today, 1–2pm. Reply R to move it.
It asks what you would ask
These are the questions the agent runs for veterinary practices, and the operational reason each one exists. Change them, add your own, or take them out — they are configuration, not code.
What's happening, and for how long?
Duration is what separates a same-day consultation from a routine one, without anyone assessing the animal.
Species, breed and age?
Decides appointment length and sometimes which vet — an exotic is not a labrador, and not every practice takes both.
Is the animal still eating and drinking?
A factual question with a factual answer, and one of the clearest signals for slot urgency that requires no clinical judgement at all.
Are they on any medication, and are they up to date on vaccinations?
Changes the appointment and occasionally whether the animal can come into the waiting room at all.
Are you an existing client?
New clients need registration and a longer first consultation, and some practices are not taking them.
Are they insured?
Decides the paperwork and the payment conversation before it happens at the desk with a distressed owner.
More than a veterinary answering service
An answering service takes a message and charges you for it. Vandial knows your prices, your patch and your diary — so it books the job, or puts a real emergency straight through to you.
It picks up out of hours, and while your line is busy
Veterinary calls are emotional and they are urgent to the caller regardless of what they are. Answering every one immediately, calmly, and at any hour is worth more here than in almost any other trade.
It knows your prices, your patch and your hours
Genuine emergencies reach your after-hours provider in seconds rather than being offered a Tuesday appointment — with the number texted and the practice alerted, so nothing depends on the owner remembering what they were told.
What it knows
Consultation
$75
After hours
Emergency vet, 2 miles
We see
Small animals and exotics
Insurance
Direct claims accepted
What matters reaches you. The rest waits
Routine work — vaccinations, boosters, nail clips, repeat medication, weight clinics — books itself without occupying a nurse. That is a large share of a practice's inbound volume and none of its clinical time.
Your rule: if they say gas, flood or no heat — ring Sam, then me.
Every call written up, tagged and searchable
Every call recorded and summarised against the animal's record, so what an owner was told, and when, is documented — which matters more here than in most trades.
Dave Whitfield · Sunday, 4m 12s
Water heater, leaking
Leaking from the base. Booked for Tuesday 1–2pm. Side gate open, dog in the yard. Asked whether the service call fee applies — told $99, waived on repair.
What it will never do
You are handing your phone to something that talks to your customers when you are not there. These are the lines it does not cross in veterinary, and the words it uses instead.
It never says what is wrong with an animal
Not what it might be, not whether it is serious, not whether it can wait, and never whether something an owner has described is dangerous. It asks factual questions to choose a slot, and everything else is for the vet.
What it actually says
“I really can't tell you what's causing it — I'd only worry you or reassure you wrongly. Let's get him in front of Dr Whitmore today.”
Emergencies go to after-hours immediately
Collapse, seizure, difficulty breathing, a road traffic accident, bloat symptoms in a deep-chested dog, or a suspected poisoning — the agent stops and directs the caller to your emergency provider with the number texted, then alerts the practice. It does not offer an appointment.
What it actually says
“Don't wait for us — go straight to the emergency clinic now. I'm texting you the address and ringing ahead to tell them you're coming.”
It won't discuss euthanasia on a booking call
That call reaches a human, every time. It is the one conversation where being efficiently handled by an automated system is an insult, and the agent is built to recognize it and hand over rather than to manage it well.
What it actually says
“I'm going to put you through to someone in the practice rather than take this myself. Just a moment.”
The job lands where you already work
Google, Outlook, Apple, Exchange, CalDAV — whichever calendar you already keep. Then your payments, your CRM, and whatever you automate with.
…and a lot more besides
- Warm transfersWarm transfersAnnounced — who is calling and why, before you take the line.
- Spam never billedSpam never billedRobocalls are spotted, zero-rated, and never become a customer.
- A number per sourceA number per sourceVan, yard sign, Google listing — see which line brings the work.
- Team & on-callTeam & on-callTries you, then a second number, then whoever is on call.
- Run it by textRun it by textReply to a text to move a job, block a morning, clear a day.
- Clear a day, everyone toldClear a day, everyone toldCall off a wet Tuesday; every customer is told and re-offered.
- Never invents an answerNever invents an answerNo price or slot it was not given. It takes a message instead.
- Any trade, no codeAny trade, no codeGoal, questions and guardrails are settings, not a rebuild.
What veterinary practices say before they say yes
Three objections, in the words they are usually put in. Where the objection is right, it says so.
“Every owner thinks it's an emergency.”
And some of them are right, which is why it asks factual questions rather than forming an opinion. How long, still eating, still drinking, has there been vomiting — those map onto your own slot rules without anyone assessing an animal.
“It must never tell an owner what's wrong.”
It never does. Not what it might be, not whether it is serious, not whether it can wait until morning. Collapse, seizures, breathing difficulty, road accidents and suspected poisoning are routed to your emergency provider with the address texted and the practice alerted — not offered a Tuesday appointment.
“Some calls should never be handled by a machine.”
End-of-life calls go to a person immediately, every time. It is the one conversation where being handled smoothly by an automated system would be an insult, and it is built to recognize it and hand over rather than to manage it well.
Veterinary questions, answered
What veterinary practices ask before handing over their phone number — and what a veterinary answering service can and cannot do for you.
Will it tell an owner what's wrong with their animal?
Never. Not what it might be, not whether it is serious, not whether it can wait until morning. It asks factual questions — how long, still eating, still drinking — to choose the right slot, and everything else is for the vet.
What happens in an emergency?
It directs the caller to your after-hours or emergency provider immediately, texts them the address, and alerts the practice. Collapse, seizures, breathing difficulty, road accidents, suspected poisoning and bloat symptoms are routed, not booked.
How does it decide what's urgent without assessing the animal?
By asking factual questions with factual answers. How long has it been going on, is the animal still eating, still drinking, has there been vomiting. Those map onto your own slot rules without anyone forming a clinical opinion, and you set where the lines are.
Can it handle repeat medication and routine bookings?
Yes, and that is most of the volume. Boosters, flea and worm treatment, nail clips, weight clinics and repeat prescription requests are handled end to end without occupying a nurse or a receptionist.
What about end-of-life calls?
Those go to a person immediately. It is the one conversation where being handled smoothly by an automated system would be an insult, and the agent is built to recognize it and hand over rather than to manage it.
Does it work for mixed and equine practice?
Yes. Farm and equine calls can be qualified differently and routed to a different vet entirely, including the visit and travel questions that only apply to them.
What does it cost?
Three paid rungs — Starter, Professional and Business — differing only in how many unique clients you answer for in a month. Call flows, vets and full call history are unlimited on all of them. Robocalls are identified and never billed.
Already decided you want AI to answer it?
Then the question is which one, and that is a different page: what a generic AI receptionist gets wrong on a veterinary call, and what is configurable about this one.
Not your trade?
The agent's questions, urgency rules, escalations and vocabulary are all configuration. Nothing about a trade is hard-coded, which is why there are 31 of these and not one.