A groomer or boarder does not need your dog's whole clinical history. They need to know, within the first minute of reading, what is wrong in ordinary words, what handling keeps him settled, and who to call if something changes. Shape the summary for that reader and it stops being paperwork and starts being care.
Conditions in Plain Language
Name each condition the way you would explain it across a counter. Write “sensitive stomach, fed small meals” rather than copying a clinic label nobody on shift can act on. Follow each condition with what it means day to day: a stiff back leg means short exercise and help onto a raised bed, a healing skin patch means no soaking bath, a heart condition noted by your vet means calm handling and rest breaks during grooming. Keep the wording factual and short. If a condition affects the service itself, say so plainly near the top — ears that must stay dry, a coat that cannot be clipped short, or a dog who cannot be lifted under the belly. Medicines belong on this page exactly as recorded on the label, with the time each one is due, because boarding staff work to a clock and a groomer needs to know if a dose falls inside the appointment.
Handling and Behaviour Notes
This section earns its space. Write what he loves: a chest scratch before brushing, a particular toy in the kennel, a slow approach from the side. Write what frightens him: clippers near his face, loud dryers, other dogs crowding his gate, being reached for over the head. Then write what must never happen, in direct terms — never picked up by his front legs, never left tethered unattended, never fed treats from the communal jar because of his allergy. Staff follow clear prohibitions far more reliably than hints. Add how he signals stress, such as lip licking, turning away, or going quiet, and what helps when those signs appear: a break, water, a quieter corner, a call to you. Honest notes protect him better than polite ones that play down a real fear.
Medicines, Allergies and Reactions
List medicines as recorded, with the name from the label, the time due, and whether each goes with food. Boarders should not have to guess whether a tablet belongs to breakfast or bedtime. Underneath, record allergies and past reactions in the same plain style: what he reacted to, what the reaction looked like, and when it happened. A note that says “reacted to a flea spray two summers ago, came up in hives within the hour” gives staff a reason to check a product before using it on him. If he wears a medical alert tag or has a known sensitivity to a grooming product, put that on this page rather than assuming the booking form captured it.
Contacts and the Handover
Close the page with two phone numbers that will actually be answered: yours, and an emergency contact who can reach you or make decisions if you cannot. Add his regular vet's name, clinic address and phone number, noting the clinic's out-of-hours arrangement if you know it. Hand the summary over when you book, not when you drop him off, and walk through the “must never happen” lines out loud. Ask staff to keep the page with his belongings or on his kennel card rather than in an office drawer. Update it after any vet visit that changes a condition, a medicine, or a handling need, and date the new version so an old copy is easy to spot. When KinsLe holds the summary ready for staff, its Pet Passport gives the groomer or boarder a clear page to work from at drop-off.