NovaVoice for Veterinary Clinics

How Greenfield Animal Hospital stopped losing new patients to unanswered calls — and gave their front desk team room to breathe.

See the Results

CASE STUDY

VETERINARY

APPOINTMENT SCHEDULING

Greenfield Animal Hospital

A 4-veterinarian practice seeing 60+ patients per day, with a two-person front desk team drowning in phone calls.

The Challenge

Veterinary front desks face a uniquely brutal phone problem. Unlike a dentist or doctor's office where appointments involve one patient, every vet call requires collecting detailed information about both the pet owner and the animal patient — species, breed, age, weight, vaccination history, symptoms, behavioral notes, and existing medications. A single booking call takes 5-8 minutes. During peak morning hours when Greenfield was receiving 15-20 calls per hour, their two-person front desk simply couldn't keep up.

42%

of morning calls went to voicemail, with fewer than half of those callers ever calling back

6.5 min

average call duration for new patient intake — tying up a receptionist for nearly 7 minutes per booking

~30

new patient inquiries lost per month — at an average lifetime value of $2,800 per client, that's $84,000/year in missed opportunity

The front desk staff were stretched thin. Between answering phones, checking in patients, processing payments, and managing the waiting room, they were constantly interrupted and stressed. Hiring a third receptionist would cost $40,000+/year, and even then, the phone problem wouldn't go away — it would just be slightly less overwhelming. Dr. Patel, the practice owner, needed a fundamentally different approach.

The Solution

We built a NovaVoice agent designed specifically for the complexity of veterinary intake. This wasn't a simple "book an appointment" bot — it needed to collect structured, multi-entity patient data through a natural conversation and deliver it to the practice management system ready for the appointment.

Collecting Complex Patient Information Through Conversation

A veterinary booking requires two sets of information — the pet owner and the animal patient — plus the reason for the visit, urgency level, and any special handling needs. The NovaVoice agent collects all of this through a conversational flow that feels natural, not like a form being read aloud.

  • Multi-Entity Data Collection: The agent separately tracks owner information (name, phone, email, address) and patient information (pet name, species, breed, age, weight, sex, spay/neuter status). For households with multiple pets, it can handle booking for more than one animal in the same call.
  • Medical History Intake: The agent asks about vaccination status, current medications, known allergies, chronic conditions, and prior surgical history. It understands veterinary terminology — when a caller says "he's had his DHPP and rabies but not bordetella," the agent knows exactly what that means and records it accurately.
  • Symptom & Urgency Assessment: For sick visits, the agent asks targeted follow-up questions about symptoms, onset, severity, and duration. It uses this information to assign an urgency level — routine, soon, or urgent — and adjusts scheduling accordingly. If symptoms suggest an emergency (difficulty breathing, seizures, suspected poisoning), it immediately provides the emergency clinic number and advises the caller to go now.
  • Behavioral & Handling Notes: The agent asks whether the pet has any behavioral concerns during vet visits — anxiety, fear-aggression, muzzle requirements — and flags these in the booking so the care team is prepared. This detail, often missed in rushed human calls, directly impacts the safety and quality of the appointment.
  • Intelligent Scheduling: The agent checks real-time availability across all four veterinarians, accounts for appointment type and duration (wellness exams are 20 minutes, new patient visits are 40), and matches the right vet to the right case. It can accommodate preferences — "Dr. Patel saw Max last time, can we see her again?"
  • Practice Management System Integration: All collected information is structured and delivered directly into Greenfield's practice management software. The front desk sees a complete new patient record with the appointment already on the schedule — no re-entry, no callbacks to clarify missing information.

What a New Patient Booking Sounds Like

NovaVoice Agent

Good morning, Greenfield Animal Hospital! Are you calling about an existing patient or would you like to schedule a new patient visit?

Caller

We just moved to the area and need to get our dog in for a checkup. He's also been scratching his ears a lot lately.

NovaVoice Agent

Welcome to the area! I'd be happy to get your dog set up as a new patient. Let me collect some information so we're all ready for the visit. First, can I get your name?

Caller

Jennifer Walsh.

NovaVoice Agent

Thanks, Jennifer. And the best phone number to reach you?

Caller

555-891-2340.

NovaVoice Agent

Got it. Now tell me about your dog — what's his name, breed, and approximately how old is he?

Caller

His name is Cooper, he's a golden retriever, about 4 years old, around 75 pounds. He's neutered. He's had all his shots — rabies, DHPP, bordetella — but I think he's due for his annual soon.

NovaVoice Agent

Cooper sounds like a great boy. I've noted he's a 4-year-old neutered golden retriever, 75 pounds, with current DHPP, rabies, and bordetella vaccinations — and we'll check on those dates during the visit. You mentioned he's been scratching his ears — how long has that been going on, and have you noticed any redness, discharge, or odor?

Caller

Maybe a week or so? His left ear looks a little red inside. No smell that I've noticed.

NovaVoice Agent

Thanks for that detail — I'll note that for the doctor so they can take a close look. Is Cooper on any medications currently, and does he have any known allergies?

Caller

He's on a monthly heartworm preventative — Heartgard. No known allergies.

NovaVoice Agent

Perfect. One more thing — does Cooper have any anxiety or behavioral concerns during vet visits? Some dogs need a little extra patience and we like to be prepared.

Caller

He gets a little nervous but he's not aggressive or anything. He just shakes.

NovaVoice Agent

Noted — we'll make sure the team knows Cooper's a gentle nervous boy so they can take it slow with him. Now for scheduling — I have a new patient appointment available this Thursday at 10:30 AM with Dr. Patel, or Friday at 2:00 PM with Dr. Kim. The visit will be about 40 minutes since it's a first visit with an ear concern. Which works better for you?

Caller

Thursday at 10:30 is perfect.

NovaVoice Agent

You're all set! Cooper is booked for Thursday at 10:30 AM with Dr. Patel for a new patient wellness exam plus ear evaluation. I'll send a confirmation text to your number with directions and what to bring — if you have any previous vet records, it's great to bring those along. We'll also send a reminder the day before. Is there anything else I can help with?

Complete patient record created in practice management system — owner info, pet profile, vaccination notes, medication list, symptoms, behavioral flags, and 40-minute appointment with Dr. Patel.

The Results

After 90 days with NovaVoice handling intake and scheduling calls:

Morning Calls to Voicemail

42%

Under 5%

Only complex cases requiring a technician's judgment are transferred — everything else resolved by the AI agent

New Patient Bookings Per Month

up

+62%

From ~30 lost inquiries/month to capturing nearly every new patient call — converting directly to booked appointments

Front Desk Phone Time

down

-70%

Staff spend their time on in-clinic patients, not phone intake — reducing stress and improving the in-person experience

Intake Data Completeness

60%

98%

The agent never forgets to ask about allergies, medications, or behavioral notes — fields that busy receptionists often skip

"The biggest surprise wasn't the number of calls it handled — it was the quality of the intake information. When a patient shows up now, we already know their vaccination history, medications, behavioral notes, and the specific reason for the visit. Our technicians are better prepared, our appointments start on time, and our front desk team can actually focus on the people standing in front of them. That's been the real game-changer."

— Dr. Anita Patel, DVM, Owner, Greenfield Animal Hospital

Healthcare Phone Calls — By the Numbers

36%

of healthcare consumers prefer voice calls — the highest of any industry surveyed in Hiya's 2024 report. Pet owners calling about a sick animal have even higher phone preference due to urgency and emotional stakes.

Only 11%

of medical groups report a majority of patients self-scheduling digitally. In veterinary, the number is even lower — complex patient intake requires human-like conversation, not a web form.

$126,000

lost per year by the average small business from unanswered calls. For veterinary practices with a $2,800 average client lifetime value, losing even 2-3 new patients per week compounds rapidly.

85%

of callers who reach voicemail never call back. For a worried pet owner, a voicemail isn't an answer — they'll call the next clinic on Google until someone picks up.

391%

more conversions when businesses respond within one minute. NovaVoice answers every call in under 2 seconds — before the first ring finishes.

70%

of routine healthcare calls require no human intervention when properly configured AI is in place (Deloitte). Appointment scheduling, intake collection, and basic questions are fully automatable.

67%

of voicemails are ignored entirely by businesses. Even when a pet owner leaves a message, the odds of a timely callback are poor — and in veterinary medicine, timing can matter.

75%

of consumers worldwide prefer speaking with a human over AI. NovaVoice is designed to sound and respond like a trained receptionist — natural, empathetic, and knowledgeable about your practice.

Sources: Hiya 2024 State of the Call Report, Deloitte Healthcare AI Study, BrightLocal 2025, Invoca 2024 (60M+ calls analyzed)

What the Agent Collects Per Call

Owner Information

  • Full name and preferred contact method
  • Phone number and email address
  • Home address (for records and emergencies)
  • Preferred veterinarian (if any)
  • How they heard about the practice

Patient (Pet) Profile

  • Pet name, species, breed, and color
  • Age (or date of birth), weight, and sex
  • Spay/neuter status
  • Vaccination history (rabies, DHPP, bordetella, FVRCP, etc.)
  • Current medications and preventatives

Visit Reason & Medical Context

  • Primary reason for visit (wellness, sick, injury, follow-up)
  • Symptom details — onset, duration, severity
  • Known allergies and chronic conditions
  • Previous surgeries or hospitalizations
  • Urgency assessment (routine / soon / urgent)

Behavioral & Handling Notes

  • Anxiety level during vet visits
  • Fear-aggression or muzzle requirements
  • Special handling needs (e.g., towel wraps for cats)
  • Diet and feeding notes
  • Multi-pet household details

Your Front Desk Shouldn't Be a Bottleneck

Every missed call is a pet that doesn't get seen and a client your practice never meets. NovaVoice handles the phone so your team can focus on what they do best — caring for animals.

Get NovaVoice for Your PracticeLearn More About NovaVoice