It seems like everyone and their mother (or other relative who's a vet) built an AI scribe in the past couple years. We've tried them ourselves and heard from our community about them. We selected our top picks and partnered with them to offer special discounts for Hound users.
As a platform, our goal at Hound is to provide opportunity, resources, and value to the people behind the medicine. We've teamed up with 3 growing and category-defining scribes to give you options and, importantly, choices to use a great AI tool that aligns best with your preferences.
What is AI?
AI, or artificial intelligence, is the ability of machines, usually computers or software, to mimic human intelligence. That means they can learn from data, recognize patterns, make decisions, and even hold conversations or create content. Instead of being manually programmed for every task, AI systems get smarter over time by training on examples, kind of like how we learn from experience. From recommending your next favorite show to helping doctors document patient visits, AI is quietly working behind the scenes to make everyday tasks faster, easier, and more efficient.
AI has many applications in Veterinary Medicine, from diagnostics to radiology to documentation and more. We're focusing in this article on documentation.
How does a Scribe work?
Imagine this: You're in the middle of a busy appointment, your hands are on a patient, you're deep in conversation with a client and meanwhile, your notes are magically being written for you.
It's like having a super-powered notetaker in the room (but quieter and less awkward).
Here's how it works:
- It listens in (with consent, of course) to your convo with the client.
- It transcribes and understands what's being said, both medical stuff and everyday pet parent talk.
- It summarizes it into clean, structured SOAP notes or whatever format you need.
- You get to review it, make quick tweaks if needed, and boom: documentation is done.
No more staying late to finish records. No more memory gymnastics trying to recall every detail. Just more time for care, connection, and maybe even a lunch break (gasp!).
It's not replacing you. It's backing you up like a trusty sidekick with a photographic memory and zero need for coffee breaks.
What Makes a Great AI Scribe in VetMed?
Here's What We Looked For:
Not all AI scribes are created equal. When we set out to find the best partners for our veterinary community, we didn't chase the cheapest options or the trend-chasing copycats. We focused on rapidly-growing companies with experienced teams consisting of software and AI experts building alongside talented teams of veterinary professionals. Our requirements also included proven scale, thousands of patient records automated and millions of charting hours saved for veterinary professionals.
There are over 50 AI scribe solutions. Some are offered directly by your PIMS or your client communication platform. We focused on AI Scribes which are compatible with your PIMS but not tied to it, so you can easily adopt (or trial) different scribes seamlessly no matter which PIMS or communication platform your clinic uses. Some of the native PIMS or communication platform scribes are excellent choices, but we are not focused on those.
Here's what we focused on:
Speaks Fluent VetMed
We need more than basic transcription. A good scribe should understand species' differences, abbreviations, medical terminology, and how we really talk in exam rooms. Veterinary scribes should nail "osteochondrodysplasia" every time.
Actually Saves Time
If it's not freeing up your team to take a breath (or maybe even a lunch break), what's the point? We looked for scribes that reliably cut down on note-taking time without making you double-check every sentence.
Fits Into Your Flow
No one wants to add another clunky tool to their day. The best scribes feel seamless whether you're in a busy clinic, on a mobile visit, or hopping between appointments.
Keeps Data Safe & Clients Informed
Trust is everything. We only considered tools that take privacy seriously and make it easy to get client consent.
Supports the Whole Team
This one's big. We asked: Does this actually reduce stress and support a healthier work culture? The best scribes don't just help with notes, they help the people behind them.
Meet our top picks
(Not in ranked order.)
CoVet
Update, September 16, 2026: CoVet was acquired today by IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (Nasdaq: IDXX); financial terms were not disclosed. Read IDEXX's announcement. The profile below describes CoVet as it operated prior to the acquisition.
CoVet was created to help veterinary professionals reclaim their time and reduce burnout by eliminating the administrative overload that often comes with clinical work. Launched in 2024, CoVet positions itself as an AI Copilot, not just a tool, designed to support every step of the veterinary workflow. It automates SOAP records, summarizes medical histories, facilitates case discussions, and enhances client communication, saving vets up to two hours per day. What makes CoVet stand out is the deep veterinary experience embedded throughout the company, from product design to customer support. Every feature is built with real-world insight and tested for clinical impact. CoVet's mission is to build AI-powered tools that reduce friction, strengthen collaboration, and restore work-life balance for the people who care for animals every day.
From the Founder:
I'm Yannick Bloem, CEO and CTO of CoVet. I've always been a builder at heart. I launched a B2C startup in Switzerland that grew to over 100,000 users, and later spent five years as a senior software engineer at Apple, where I worked on productivity tools used by hundreds of millions. My time at Apple taught me the value of simplicity and intuitive design, lessons that now guide everything we build at CoVet. I'm passionate about bringing that same level of thoughtful, user-centered technology to veterinary professionals.
What do you love most about serving the veterinary profession at CoVet?
What I love most is the opportunity to genuinely support veterinary professionals in a way that makes their day-to-day a little lighter. This profession carries an enormous load, emotionally, mentally, and clinically, and it deserves tools that truly ease that burden. At CoVet, we focus on reducing admin friction so people can stay focused on delivering better patient outcomes and leave work on time for a change. That's what drives us. And being part of a team that contributes to that shift? It's a privilege.
What do you like about building alongside VetRec?
We welcome others in this space; it's a sign that AI is becoming a more accepted and valuable part of veterinary care. The presence of platforms like VetRec reflects a shared desire across the industry to make veterinary work more sustainable and rewarding.
It's encouraging to see multiple teams working toward solutions that aim to ease the burden on veterinary professionals. While we all bring different approaches to the table, we're ultimately aligned in our mission to improve clinical life.
HappyDoc
HappyDoc was built to solve one of the most persistent sources of burnout in veterinary medicine: the hours doctors and technicians lose to notes instead of patients. Founded in 2023 by Emerson Smith, HappyDoc was one of the very first AI scribes built specifically for veterinary teams, and is now one of the most used veterinary AI scribes in North America. Its AI scribe listens in real time and writes fully structured SOAP notes back into the record, and the company reports it as the world's most accurate veterinary AI scribe.
HappyDoc also offers unlimited-user pricing, some of the deepest bidirectional integrations available for on-prem PIMS including AVImark, an array of user-friendly features (including dental charting), and support from a Denver-based team available by phone, email, 24/7 chat, video call, and on-site visits.
From the Founder: Emerson Smith
I grew up with family in veterinary medicine, so I saw firsthand how much time doctors and technicians were losing to notes instead of patients.
Before I wrote a line of code, I wanted to understand the workflow at a granular level, not just read about it. I found a practice manager willing to let me sit in on appointments for a month straight, and I built the first version of HappyDoc right there in the clinic, in real time, getting feedback from doctors and techs after every single appointment. If something didn't work, I heard about it right away and rebuilt it before the next patient came in.
That month is why HappyDoc feels the way it does today. We launched before almost anyone else in this space (Scribenote came out just a bit before us). Being early meant we didn't have a playbook to copy. We had to earn trust directly from the people using the product, appointment by appointment, and that's still how we build.
What do you love most about serving the veterinary profession at HappyDoc?
Every day I talk with doctors and practice managers, and there's this shared sense of relief when they realize a tool like this actually exists for them. That reaction never gets old.
We've worked incredibly hard to build the most accurate AI scribe in the industry, with the deepest integrations of any scribe for on-prem PIMS, and it's genuinely satisfying to watch that work translate into something real: doctors who are less exhausted, techs who get their evenings back, and patients who get better care because the person examining them isn't half-thinking about the note they still have to write. That's the whole point.
What do you like about building alongside CoVet & VetRec?
Honestly? The quality of what they're building. Everyone in this group is pushing the industry forward in a different way, and seeing their progress pushes me and our team to keep raising our own bar.
At the end of the day, the people who benefit most from that competition are the doctors, practice managers, and techs actually using these tools, because it means the products across the board keep getting better, faster than they would if any of us were coasting. It's a genuinely exciting time to be building software for veterinary medicine.
VetRec
VetRec aims to improve patient care and elevate the quality of veterinary medicine by helping professionals work more efficiently through cutting-edge AI technology. Founded in late 2023, VetRec offers an enterprise-grade veterinary assistant that generates fully customizable notes, reports, dental charts, discharge instructions, and transcriptions, all with best-in-class accuracy and speed. Known for its unmatched customer service and highly customizable template builder, VetRec supports cloud-based and on-premise PIMS and meets HIPAA and SOC 2 Type II compliance standards. With a mission rooted in helping both pets and the people who care for them, VetRec is building a future where AI agents seamlessly support intake, communication, documentation, and more, so clinicians can spend less time managing data and more time doing the work they love.
From the Founder:
Our mission is to improve patient care and advance the quality of medicine by empowering veterinary professionals to work more efficiently. This is at the core of every person working at VetRec who has a deep sense of purpose in advancing this industry through cutting-edge technology. I couldn't be more proud of the journey so far and where we are going over the next 5 to 10 years.
What do you love most about serving the veterinary profession at VetRec?
The people. Veterinarians and veterinary professionals are extremely friendly and honest. It has been an absolute pleasure serving them all over the world and learning their workflows to better tune our application. We are building a company whose mission is rooted in helping the pets and the people who care for them, it is an incredible feeling.
How do you see AI shaping the future of veterinary workflows over the next few years?
Veterinary professionals know this: There are a lot of workflows in the clinic that could be automated. AI Agents (digital twins, assistants, you name it), are coming and will be able to help with tasks like intake, client communications, insights, and much more. Integrations won't be a topic of discussion for too long. Tools like VetRec will be able to communicate with cloud-based or server-based PiMS in ways that were not thought possible before. Stay tuned, the future is bright!