Intake forms for new dog clients

A good intake form is short. The urge is to ask everything at once, and clients can feel that on the page. The skill is deciding what you need on day one and leaving the rest for the chat at the door.

Start from your own list

Don't ask a tool "what should be on a dog grooming form?" It'll hand you a generic list, and half of it won't suit your shop. Write down what you need, then use the tool to word it.

Most shops want these groups of information:

• Owner details. Name, a phone number you can text and an alternative contact for pick-up.
• The dog. Name, breed or mix, age, size and how often it's groomed.
• Coat and look. What the owner wants done, plus anything about mats or knots they know of.
• Handling notes. How the dog reacts to dryers, clippers, nail trims and being lifted. Whether it's nervous, bites or is best handled by a certain person.
• Records. Where the owner will show or send vaccination records, if your shop asks for them.
• Pick-up. Who may collect the dog.

Notice what's missing: health history. You can ask owners to tell you about anything you should know, but diagnosing or judging a dog's condition isn't a grooming desk job. For that, send them to their vet.

Let the tool tidy the wording

This is where a chat tool is handy. Give it your list and ask for plain, friendly questions at a school-year-seven reading level. Ask it to group them under short headings and to mark which are required.

Then check for three habits of drafted forms.

First, they ask too much. If you won't use the answer, cut the question. The US Federal Trade Commission's guide for businesses says to hold onto only what the business needs¹.

Second, they get vague. "Does your dog have behavioural issues?" is hard to answer. "How does your dog react to the dryer?" is easy.

Third, they invent. A language model can write smooth text that sounds right and isn't². On a form, that might be a rule you don't have, such as "vaccinations must be within the last six months". Only your own policy belongs there.

Handling notes are your private working notes

Handling notes deserve their own box. Ask the owner what they've noticed, then add your own after the first visit. Keep them factual and kind, for example "wriggles during nail trims, calms with a treat". A tool can help turn your scribbles into a clear line. Don't paste in the owner's name or number while you do it. Why that matters is covered in handling client data.

Vaccination records

Keep this part simple. Ask where the record will come from and when you'd like to see it. Store a copy or a note that you've seen it. The rules about which vaccines you require are your shop's policy, and your vet or local authority may have separate rules for your area. Don't let a tool decide this for you.

Tell people what you do with their details

In Australia, the privacy regulator's APP 5 guidance says reasonable steps must be taken at or before the time of collection, or as soon as practicable afterwards³. A notice can be prepared in advance, on paper, online or as a phone script³. A sentence at the bottom of the form may do the job.

Whether that rule applies to you depends on your business and country, so check the regulator's own page.

Test before you print

Hand the draft to a friend who has a dog and no grooming knowledge. Watch where they pause. Where they pause, rewrite. Then keep the form in one place, such as your booking software or a document you control, and update it by hand when things change.