Pet health record app: vaccinations, vet visits, reminders

PawVault is an app for keeping a pet's health records in one place: vaccinations, vet visits, medications, lab results and the certificates that prove them, with reminders for the next booster, flea treatment or dose. It's for dog and cat owners who are tired of searching email and the camera roll when a vet, a kennel or a border asks for proof. It runs on iPhone and iPad, and on Apple silicon Macs and Apple Vision Pro as the iPad app, and it's free to download on the App Store.

I built it, so this is how it works and where it stops.

Why your pet's vet records are never where you need them

A rabies certificate in a drawer. A lab report in email. A prescription label in the camera roll. A second clinic, because the emergency happened on a Sunday. None of it is findable at the counter of a kennel that wants proof of vaccination. PawVault is one record per pet that opens in seconds and becomes a PDF when someone needs a copy.

What PawVault keeps for each pet

• A profile: species, breed, sex, date of birth, weight, microchip number, allergies, chronic conditions and notes.
• A health timeline: vaccinations, vet visits, medications, lab tests, surgeries, symptoms, grooming, food and allergies, filterable by type or date.
• A document vault: vaccination certificates, pet passports, insurance, lab results, prescriptions, vet reports and receipts, as photos or PDFs, each with its issue date and an expiry date if it has one. Expired documents are marked in red.
• Reminders, covered below.

How scanning a vaccination certificate or prescription works

Photograph the document or pick a PDF. The app sends the pages to Google's Gemini model (Gemini 2.5 Flash, through Firebase AI Logic) and gets back a draft: document type, title, issue date, a short summary, and an expiry date only when the paper prints one, such as "valid until" or "booster due". The model is told never to guess a date.

You correct the draft and save; until then nothing is stored, not even the photo. Smart Input does the same for typed notes: "gave Luna her flea tablet today, next one on the 5th" becomes a draft timeline entry and, where it fits, a suggested reminder.

Both are part of PawVault Pro, along with Paw Scan, which describes what's visible in a photo of a paw and stops short of saying what anything is. Adding documents by hand is free.

Reminders for vaccines, flea and tick treatment and medication

A reminder has a date, a time and an optional repeat: daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or every so many days. iOS delivers them as notifications scheduled on the device, and anything past due shows in red until you tick it off.

It fires at the time you set, not days early, so pick the day you want to book, not the day a vaccine runs out. How often a vaccine or parasite treatment is due is your vet's call; PawVault remembers the date you give it and never suggests one.

Sharing records with a vet, a sitter or a new clinic

Vet Summary turns a pet's record into a PDF: profile with microchip number, an overview of allergies, conditions, recent symptoms and vaccinations, the timeline, every document with its dates, and the reminders. It's labelled as owner-entered records. Send it by AirDrop, Mail or Messages, or save it to Files.

The PDF lists documents but doesn't embed the scans; for the actual certificate, open it in the app.

Multiple pets and more than one device

The free version holds one pet. PawVault Pro removes the limit; it's a yearly subscription, listed at $19.99 a year on the US App Store, with a free trial.

To use the same records on another iPhone, an iPad or a Mac, sign in with email, Google or Apple on each. Whatever you entered before signing in is linked to the account. Sync runs through Firebase, not iCloud.

Where the records are stored

• No sign-up to start. The app creates an anonymous Firebase account on first launch and saves records under it.
• Records live in Cloud Firestore and files (scans, photos, saved PDFs) in Firebase Storage. Access rules let only the signed-in account, anonymous or not, read or write its own data.
• Not end-to-end encrypted. Data travels encrypted, but it's protected by those rules, not by a key only you hold.
• AI only when you ask. The text or images you chose go to Gemini when you start a scan or Smart Input.
• Analytics count feature use. Pet names, notes and document text are never sent. RevenueCat, which runs the subscription, gets only an account ID.
• Deletion. Signed in, you can delete your account from the account menu, which removes every pet, document, reminder and file.

Who it's for, and who it isn't

It's for owners dealing with more than one place: two clinics, a kennel that asks for papers, a move, a trip.

It isn't for you if:

• you want records that stay only on your phone.
• you want advice. It doesn't diagnose, recommend treatment or plan vaccinations.
• you expect it to pull records from your clinic. It holds what you enter or scan.
• you need a language other than English.
• you need household sharing with separate accounts.

How to get started

1. Install PawVault from the App Store.
2. Add your pet, including the microchip number and allergies.
3. Photograph each certificate you have, or pick the PDF, and set the expiry date where one is printed.
4. Log the last vaccination and current medication on the timeline.
5. Set reminders for the next booster, flea and tick treatment and doses.
6. Sign in if you want a backup or a second device.
7. Before a vet visit or a trip, generate the Vet Summary PDF.

How it compares with PetDesk, VitusVet, Digitail, GreatPetCare and others: Pet health record apps for iPhone: 7 compared.

FAQ

What's the best way to keep track of my dog's vaccinations?

Keep the certificates in one place, note when each vaccine was given and when your vet says the next is due, and set a reminder before that date. An app such as PawVault stores the certificates as photos or PDFs, keeps the dates on a timeline and sends a notification on the day you choose.

Where should I keep my cat's vet records?

Somewhere you can reach from your phone, because the request usually comes at a counter. PawVault keeps each cat's profile, vet visits, medications and documents together on iPhone and iPad, and exports them as one PDF.

Is there an app that reminds me about pet vaccines and flea treatment?

Yes. PawVault sets one-off or repeating reminders for vaccines, flea and tick treatment and medication, delivered as notifications on iPhone or iPad. The dates come from you and your vet; the app doesn't suggest a schedule.

What should I bring to a new vet or when traveling with my pet?

Bring vaccination certificates (rabies in particular), current medications and doses, allergies and conditions, the microchip number and recent lab results. Travel rules depend on the destination; for the US, the USDA APHIS pet travel pages explain them. PawVault's Vet Summary PDF puts the profile, timeline, document list and reminders in one file.

Is PawVault free?

PawVault is free to download, and the free version covers the timeline, documents, reminders and vet PDF for one pet. PawVault Pro adds unlimited pets and the AI features (document scanning, Smart Input and Paw Scan) for $19.99 a year on the US App Store, with a free trial.

Can PawVault scan a vaccination certificate?

Yes, with PawVault Pro. Photograph the certificate or pick a PDF, and Google's Gemini model fills in the document type, title, issue date and, when printed, the expiry date. Nothing is saved until you review and confirm the draft.

Where does PawVault store my pet's records, and does it use iCloud?

In Google Firebase, not iCloud: Cloud Firestore for records and Firebase Storage for files, under rules that let only your account read them. It works without signing up by creating an anonymous account; signing in with email, Google or Apple backs the records up and syncs them across devices.

Does PawVault give medical advice or vaccine schedules?

No. PawVault keeps records and sends reminders; it doesn't diagnose, recommend treatment or set vaccination schedules. Your vet decides those.