What If Your Pet Software Shuts Down?
On this page (9 sections)
In short
Any software company can close, change its prices or remove a feature. You cannot control that. You can control two things: what the contract says about your data, and whether you have a recent copy of it.
Before you choose any software, ask the 7 questions below. Then download your data on a regular schedule, whatever tool you use. This post does not say that any company is closing. It is a checklist for choosing well.
What should I ask before I choose any software?
These questions work for every tool: an app, a booking website, or a spreadsheet service.
| Question to ask | Good answer | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|
| Can I download all my data myself? | Yes, with a button in the app, at any time, at no cost. | Only "on request", only through support, or only for a fee. |
| What format is the download? | Spreadsheet files (CSV or Excel) that open without the software. | PDF only, or a file that only that software can open. |
| Who owns the data? | The terms say you keep ownership of what you put in. | The terms do not say, or they give ownership to the company. |
| What happens to my data when I leave? | A written clause says when the data is deleted, and how. | No clause, or "data may be kept" with no time limit. |
| How long can I still download after I stop paying? | You can still see and download your data. | Access ends the day a payment fails. |
| Do photos and documents come with the download? | Yes, or the help page says clearly which files are not included. | Nobody can tell you. |
| Is any of this in a contract? | A Data Processing Addendum (DPA) or terms with clause numbers. | Only a promise in a sales chat. |
Two habits help with any tool:
- Download a copy once a month. Keep it outside the software, for example on your laptop or in your own cloud drive.
- Open the copy once and check it. Count the clients in the file and compare the number with the app. A download you never opened may not have what you need.
How do I download my data from petboard?
The business owner can do this (help guide):
- Open Settings (on a phone: More, then Settings). Tap Compliance & Data.
- Go to Data & Privacy. Under Download all my data, tap Download zip.
- Wait while the button says Preparing zip…. For a big business this can take a few minutes.
In most cases you can do this at any time while your account is open. Today, if an automatic payment fails and cannot be collected after the payment retries, petboard pauses the account. A paused account is not deleted. In most cases the download still works while the account is paused. If it does not, write to support@petboard.in.
What is in the petboard zip?
The zip has 3 kinds of file:
- operator-data.json. One file with the records petboard exports for your business, table by table. It covers clients, pets, bookings, payments, intake forms, training sessions, packages, staff, tasks, expenses, inventory, clinic records (prescriptions, consultation notes and lab orders) and pet weight history, among others. Staff login links and parent signing links are left out, because they work like passwords. Links between records are kept, so a booking still points to its pet.
- CSV files for the main tables: clients and pets, bookings, payments, intake forms, training sessions, packages, expenses, overhead expenses, prescriptions and their medicines, consultation notes, lab orders and their tests, and pet weights. In the clinic files, a status column shows which records were voided, removed or cancelled. They open in Excel or Google Sheets. A CSV file is only included when that table has at least one row.
- README.txt. It lists how many rows each table has, so you can check the zip against the app. If any table could not be read, the README says so at the top, so you know to run the download again.
What is not in the zip?
A checklist is only useful if the answers are exact. Here are the main things the zip does not include today.
| Not in the zip | What you can do |
|---|---|
| Photos, videos and uploaded files, such as vaccination cards | The zip has a record of each one, but not the file. Save the files you need yourself. |
| Ready-made invoice PDFs | Your bookings and payments are in the zip as data. |
What does petboard's contract say about my data?
petboard's Data Processing Addendum (DPA), version 2.0, effective 1 August 2026, has the clauses that matter here. In the DPA, "Category B Data" means the personal data petboard handles for you: your clients' details and contact data, intake form answers, booking and payment history, messages, consent records and similar data.
- Clause 4 lists this duty for petboard: "Return or delete Category B Data upon termination in accordance with Clause 11."
- Clause 11, "Deletion on Termination", says: "Upon expiry or termination of this DPA, PetBoard shall securely delete all Category B Data, including backup copies, within thirty (30) calendar days, except where retention is required by law." If you ask in writing, petboard must confirm that the deletion is done.
- Clause 11, "Retention as per Law", says petboard may keep records the law requires, such as invoices, payment information and tax records, for the period the law sets.
- Clause 11, "Inactive Accounts", covers an account that is not used for 12 months in a row. petboard must first notify you. If you do not reply within 15 days, petboard may delete the data. The notice must include a way to export your data before any deletion takes effect.
- Clause 8 is about helping you answer your clients' requests about their data. It says petboard's help may include tools in the platform to access, export, correct or delete your client data, and acting on your "lawful and documented instructions" where you cannot reasonably do something yourself in the platform.
One point is easy to miss. Clause 11 sets a deadline for petboard to delete data. It does not give you a set period to download your data after the account ends. petboard's Terms of Use (Section 21) say that when an account is terminated, the operator's access ends at once. So download your zip before you close your account.
On ownership, Section 11 of the Terms says users keep ownership of the content they submit, and that nothing in the Terms moves that ownership to petboard. Users give petboard a limited licence to use that content for the purposes that section lists, such as running, securing and improving the service.
These quotes are from the versions in force on 18 October 2026. The current versions are always at the links above.
Spreadsheets in, spreadsheets out
Data moves both ways in petboard through ordinary spreadsheet files:
- Coming in: petboard imports a client list from a CSV, TSV, XLSX or XLS file. See how to move your client list from Excel to software.
- Going out: the export gives you CSV files that open in Excel or Google Sheets, and a JSON file that other software can read.
A spreadsheet does not need petboard to open. That is the point of the format.
Who is responsible for your clients' data in India?
India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 uses two roles. Parliament passed it in 2023. Under the timeline the government has notified, most of its duties, including Section 8 below, start in May 2027.
- Section 2(i): a Data Fiduciary is "any person who alone or in conjunction with other persons determines the purpose and means of processing of personal data".
- Section 2(k): a Data Processor is "any person who processes personal data on behalf of a Data Fiduciary".
- Section 8(1): a Data Fiduciary is responsible, "irrespective of any agreement to the contrary", for complying with the Act "in respect of any processing undertaken by it or on its behalf by a Data Processor".
Source: the Act as published in the Gazette, checked 18 October 2026.
petboard's DPA already uses these roles. It names you as the Data Fiduciary for your clients' data, and petboard as your Data Processor. In plain words: the business decides why client data is collected and what it is used for, and the software company stores and handles it for the business. So it helps to choose software that lets the business take the data out, and that deletes the data when the business leaves. That is why an export button and a deletion clause matter. This is a summary, not legal advice.
Check the export before you rely on it
- Sign up for petboard.
- Open Settings, then Compliance & Data, then Download all my data. Download the zip on your first day and open it, so you know what it looks like before you add your real clients.
- After that, download a copy from the same place whenever you like, for example once a month.
Moving from another tool or from a spreadsheet? See how migration to petboard works.