# Client and Patient Records

The record guides for Veterian — creating a client, adding their pets, and the fields that later drive appointments, vaccinations, invoices and notifications.

Client and patient records are the foundation of everything else in Veterian. Every appointment, visit, vaccination, prescription and invoice attaches to a client and, in most cases, to one of their pets.

Each pet belongs to a client, so the client is always created first.

## Start Here

Work through these two in order. A visit record needs a pet, and a pet needs an owner.

1. [Add a client](/patients/add-a-client) — the pet owner
2. [Add a pet](/patients/add-a-pet) — the patient

## Guides in This Section

| Guide | What it answers |
|---|---|
| [Add a client](/patients/add-a-client) | Required and optional fields, customer groups, the notification switches, and the mobile app invitation that sends on save |
| [Add a pet](/patients/add-a-pet) | Species and breed, protocol number, microchip details, and what entering a death date does |

## Worth Knowing First

- **The notification switches are on by default** on a new client, and one of them sends the client a message the moment you save. Read that section before entering clients in bulk. See [Add a client](/patients/add-a-client).
- **Species and breed are picked from lists your clinic maintains**, not typed. If a breed is missing, it is added under Clinic Admin.

## Related

- [Create an appointment](/appointments/create-an-appointment) — book the client you just added
- [Record a visit](/visits/record-a-visit) — the medical record kept against a pet
- [Create an invoice](/billing/create-an-invoice) — what the client owes