Common questions.
The questions pet businesses ask us most, answered plainly.
What does a quiet month cost?
3% of what you take through Sable that month. No bookings, no fee. No monthly fee, no setup fee, no lock-in; Stripe’s card fee is separate: from 1.5% + 20p for a standard UK card, more for premium and overseas cards.
What does Sable actually cost?
3% of each payment made through Sable, taken by Stripe when the customer pays. No monthly fee, no setup fee, no lock-in. Stripe’s card fee is separate. You keep the rest, less Stripe’s card fee. Cash and on-account bookings carry no fee. Stripe charges you its card fee directly: from 1.5% + 20p for a standard UK card, more for premium and overseas cards.
What happens to my customer list if I ever leave?
It’s yours and it leaves with you. Ask, and we send your customers, pets and bookings within one working day, free, in a format any other system can read. Our terms promise your data is made available, never withheld, when you go.
Who do I actually talk to when something's wrong?
James, the founder. Every email reaches him. No ticket queue.
Do my customers pay extra to book through Sable?
No. Customers see one all-in price for their dates and that's what they pay — no booking fee or service charge added at checkout. That price is your price for those dates. Sable's 3% comes off your side of the payment, never the customer's.
Do I have to set it up myself?
No. We come out and set it up for you, free, at your door (starting in Scotland; elsewhere, ask us). If you'd rather do it yourself, you can, at app.sable.vet.
How long does setup take?
In person and free (starting in Scotland; elsewhere, ask us). We stay until it's done. We set up your services, rates, capacity and cancellation policy, bring your client, pet and booking records across, put your booking link on your website, and leave with your diary in use.
Do I need new card machines or hardware?
No. Online payments run through Stripe on your own account. Cash and on-account bookings can live in the diary too — nothing is collected through Sable on those, so there's no fee on them.
I'm not techy. Is that a problem?
No. We set it up for you, in person, and stay until you're comfortable with it. After that you can change your rates, capacity and business details by describing them in plain words. Sable proposes the change and you approve it. Your latest changes are listed in Settings, and you can put most of them back.
Can I keep taking bookings by phone?
Yes. Plenty of your customers will always ring, and the diary is built for it — you add the booking in seconds and everything else (payment, check-in, records) works the same.
Is my diary and customer data safe?
Your data is held securely in the UK/EEA under UK GDPR, with no ads, no tracking and no selling of data — see the privacy policy. You remain the owner and controller of your customer records.
Is Sable just a booking system?
Sable runs your diary and lists you where pet owners can find and book you. Pet owners find Sable businesses in the app. If you run kennels or a cattery, pet owners who add Sable’s connector to Claude or ChatGPT can also check your space there. Marketplaces charge 15–20% commission to bring you customers; Sable takes 3% of payments made through Sable. The other half is your diary: payments, an arrivals list, a check-in link you can send to clients by WhatsApp, and pet and vaccination records.
Ask the person who built it.
Every email lands with the founder.