Veterinarian website: what pet owners check before they call

Three people visit a vet's website: one with a sick animal who needs to know in seconds whether you can help, one choosing a vet who wants to know if you're taking new clients and what it costs, and a client who wants a refill or a form.

In October 2026 we opened 22 independent veterinary clinic websites in 8 states. Most had a phone number. Few said what to do after hours, and none showed what an exam costs.

This isn't legal advice. Veterinary advertising rules are set by your state veterinary board and differ by state. We read Texas, California, Florida and Washington; what we found is below. Ask your board, or a lawyer, if you're unsure.

Put your phone number and booking button at the top

Sixteen of the 22 sites had a tappable number on the first phone screen. Six didn't: they led with buttons for existing clients.

1. Click Business info in the left menu and fill in Phone. Visitors can tap it.
2. Click Menu. Under Header button, type Button text like "Request an appointment", choose Goes to and Another website…, and paste your scheduling link. Turn on Call bar on phones.

Your practice software keeps the schedule, so link to its page, or add its code in an Embed code section (Add embed code). See Business info and hours.

Say what to do after hours, and keep emergencies out of your form

Thirteen of the 22 sites named a 24-hour hospital or had a page for it; four said they aren't an emergency clinic; five said nothing. None claimed overnight care.

1. On your home page, add a Text or Highlights section: "Open 8 to 5 weekdays. After hours, call hospital, number. We don't see emergencies overnight."
2. For holidays and closures use the Announcement bar and We're closed today (Close for today).

Say only what's true. Florida wants an emergency ad to give the hours and say a vet is "on premises" or "on call". Texas treats round-the-clock claims without a vet there as possibly misleading. Don't pick "Emergency veterinarian service" on Google if you close at 5.

Keep emergencies out of your form. A form message goes to an inbox nobody reads at midnight, and two of the 22 sites warned about it beside the form.

1. In your contact page's Form section, under Start from, choose Choose a ready-made form… and Appointment request.
2. In Intro, add: "Not for emergencies. Call us at number, or hospital after hours."
3. Use Thank-you message to say when you'll reply, like "by the next business day".

See Start from a ready-made form.

Give your hours and say if you're taking new clients

Eleven of the 22 sites were open some of a weekend. Six said they were taking new clients; three said "limited" or "not now", which saves everyone a call.

1. In Business info, set Regular hours for every day, Saturday and Sunday too, and the Time zone. See Set your hours.
2. Add an Open today section near the top of your home page.
3. In a Highlights section, say "Welcoming new clients" or "A few new clients a week". If you're full, say so and the date.

Say which animals you see

Autocomplete is full of "vet for rabbits near me" and "vet that takes birds". Ten sites said what they see; Pawtown also says what it doesn't: "We don't take on exotic animals". In Services, name every animal and say who you refer elsewhere (exotics, birds, livestock). If you also board pets, give travel health certificates or take a few new clients a week, say that on the same page.

Show what things cost

None of the 22 sites showed an exam price, though "vet cost without insurance" is a long search trail.

1. On a "Pay for care" page, add a Price list / menu section. Under Groups, add items with Name, Price and Description: exam, vaccines, spay or neuter, dental cleaning.
2. Use "From $__" or a range, and Prices last updated.
3. In Fine print, say: "Everything else gets a written estimate before treatment."

Texas requires an estimate of treatment and price before emergency care. Don't post a price you can't keep.

Say how people can pay

Twelve sites named a way to pay: CareCredit (10), Scratchpay, Cherry. Seven mentioned pet insurance.

• Say when payment is due, and name the financing with a link to its own apply page. It's a credit product, and "no interest if paid in full" means interest is charged back from the start if it isn't paid off in time.
• Say whether you file pet insurance claims or the owner claims it back.

Show your wellness plan honestly

Four of the 22 sites mentioned a plan and none showed a price. Add a Packages section: Name, Price, Price note ("a month"), What's included, and Fine print: "This is not pet insurance," when it renews and how to cancel. A monthly plan renews by itself, and state automatic-renewal laws (California and New York, for example) require clear terms and an easy way to cancel. Point the Button at your sign-up page. Don't sell plans through payment links or the online store.

Refills, medicine and the pharmacy

Eighteen of the 22 sites link an online pharmacy. Link yours from the header and footer. The online store can't sell prescription medicine or prescription diets, since it can't check a prescription or an exam. Say that prescriptions need a current exam and that you'll write one for any pharmacy. Most states already require you to give a written prescription on request; if you charge a writing fee, say so.

Introduce your vets, and say who owns the clinic

Click Lists, then Edit team, then Add person: Name, Role, Photo, Short bio, Credentials. Add a Team section to your About page (Your team). Staff bios that name their own pets were the warmest thing on the sites.

Nine of the 22 said "independent", "locally owned" or "family-owned". Say it only if it's true. Five more sites that looked local belonged to a corporate group.

Be careful what you promise

Texas, California, Florida and Washington tie "specialist" to board certification in a specialty the AVMA recognizes. Six of the 22 used "best" or "top rated" in a title or headline, and one called its exotic vet "our in-house exotic specialist".

• Instead of "specialist", say "our exotic vet" or "Dr. Lee sees rabbits and birds".
• Instead of "best vet in town", give a fact: "Caring for pets here since 1998", or your real Google rating with its count.
• Skip "painless" and guarantees of a cure. Say "AAHA-accredited" or "Fear Free certified" only if you hold it.
• No online diagnosis or prescriptions without an exam. In most states the vet-client-patient relationship needs an in-person visit first, and states are changing their rules one by one.

A page for goodbyes

"Euthanasia for dogs near me" is a common search. Six of the 22 sites used the word. Add a short, quiet page from the Service page template: how it works, the room, the time you set aside, aftercare and cremation. Keep it plain and short, and leave stock photos off this page. Never send a review request after one of these visits.

First visit, forms and your policies

Twelve of the 22 sites had a new-client form. Make a "New clients" page from the Service page template: what to bring (old records, medicines, a stool sample if you like), a button to your new-client form in your practice software, and how you get records from the old vet. State any new-client deposit and your cancellation and no-show fee (Policies template); at least 7 of the 22 did.

Show your reviews

Thirteen sites had reviews; only one showed a rating with its count. Add your best Google reviews word for word to your Reviews list (Reviews), a Reviews section on your home page, and your rating and count in Highlights.

• If you reply, say nothing about the animal's care. State veterinary laws keep records confidential (California does, in § 4857); "Please call the office so we can talk" is safe.
• Don't offer a discount for a good review. The FTC bans paying for them. Share your Leave-a-review link at the desk (Reviews).

What we can't do for a vet clinic

• Appointments. The Bookings & RSVPs add-on keeps its own calendar, not connected to your practice software, so two calendars could book one doctor twice. Link to your software's scheduling page (Connect a booking calendar).
• Records, a client portal, telehealth or triage. Link your software's portal. The Ask us chat answers hours and policies from your site; it can't triage a sick animal, so skip it unless it says "for emergencies call".
• Review requests. They run off bookings here, and a clinic keeps its calendar elsewhere.
• Treatment consent forms. Keep them in the medical record.

Photos, accessibility and your domain

Real photos of your building, exam room and team beat stock; shoot without clients' faces or screens in the frame. Until then, see Free photos. Nine of the 22 sites ran an accessibility "overlay" widget, which can't make a site meet the guidelines. Describe your photos and add an Accessibility statement page. Keep your domain renewed: one clinic's old address now serves a gambling page. See Connect your domain.

Describe your care and answer questions

List each main service in Services, and give the ones people search for (dental cleanings, spay and neuter, puppy shots) a page from the Service page template with a search title that has your town. Say if you refer it out. See Set a page's search title and description. Hiring? Post openings in Job openings; 11 of the 22 sites had a careers page.

Add an FAQ section: new clients, hours, emergencies, cost, payment, pet insurance, wellness plan, refills, cancellation. See Use suggested questions.