INDUSTRY · VETERINARY
Bookkeeping for veterinary practices,
with pharmacy and services kept apart.
Bookkeeping for veterinary practices separates exam and service revenue from pharmacy and food sales, keeps drug and supply costs apart from outside lab fees, grosses up card and patient financing deposits before their fees, and splits equipment loan payments into interest and principal. ZeraBooks bookkeeping services keep clinic books this way from $150 a month.
Free call · from $150 a month (USD) · no patient records needed
WHAT MAKES CLINIC BOOKS DIFFERENT
Why is bookkeeping for a vet clinic different?
A veterinary clinic is a medical practice, a pharmacy and a small retailer under one roof, and the owner usually pays at the front desk. Each part needs its own lines in the books.
The client pays you, not the insurer
Most pet insurance reimburses the pet owner after the visit, so the clinic is paid in full at checkout. Unlike a human clinic, there are few insurance deposits to chase; the work is in the card and cash deposits.
Pharmacy is its own margin
Medications, preventives and prescription food sold to clients have a cost and a markup. Booked in with exams and surgery, you can’t see what the pharmacy earns or whether online pharmacies are taking it.
Drugs and supplies vs outside labs
Distributor invoices for drugs and medical supplies are one cost line. Reference lab and imaging read fees are another, and they track with how many tests you send out.
Financing arrives short
When a client pays through a third-party financing plan, the provider deposits the bill less its fee. Book the full bill as revenue and the fee as an expense.
Equipment is financed
Digital X-ray, ultrasound and dental units are usually on loans or leases. Only the interest is an expense; the principal pays the loan down.
Tell us about your books. We’ll scope the work and quote it before anything starts.
CHART OF ACCOUNTS
What chart of accounts does a veterinary practice need?
A starting list for a general practice. Specialty and emergency hospitals usually split service revenue further.
| Account | Type | What goes in it |
|---|---|---|
| Exam and service revenue | Income | Exams, surgery, dentistry, hospitalization, diagnostics |
| Pharmacy and food sales | Income | Medications, preventives, prescription diets |
| Drugs and medical supplies | Cost of goods sold | Distributor invoices |
| Outside lab and imaging fees | Cost of goods sold | Reference labs, radiology reads |
| Cremation and aftercare | Cost of goods sold | Amounts paid to the cremation provider |
| Wages | Expense | Vets, technicians, front desk, from the payroll report |
| Merchant and financing fees | Expense | Card processor and patient financing provider fees |
| Equipment loans | Liability | Principal owed on financed equipment |
WORKED EXAMPLE
What does a vet clinic’s month look like in the books?
Cedar Hollow Animal Clinic is a fictional two-vet general practice. Here is September 2026, cash basis.
| Line | Amount | Account |
|---|---|---|
| Exams and services, card and cash | 61,200.00 | Exam and service revenue |
| Pharmacy and food sales | 14,800.00 | Pharmacy and food sales |
| Services paid through patient financing | 3,500.00 | Exam and service revenue |
| Card processor fees | (1,976.00) | Merchant and financing fees |
| Financing provider fee | (245.00) | Merchant and financing fees |
| Drug and supply distributor invoices | (18,940.00) | Drugs and medical supplies |
| Reference lab invoices | (4,310.00) | Outside lab and imaging fees |
| Payroll, gross wages | (32,600.00) | Wages |
| Employer payroll taxes | (2,493.90) | Payroll taxes |
| Ultrasound loan interest | (412.50) | Interest expense |
| Rent | (6,800.00) | Rent |
| Cremation provider | (1,150.00) | Cremation and aftercare |
| September profit | 10,572.60 |
Revenue is $79,500 and expenses are $68,927.40. The ultrasound payment was $1,992.50, but $1,580 of it was principal and went against the loan, so only $412.50 is a cost. The financing deposit was $3,255; the $245 fee is shown on its own line. See how to record loan payments for the split.
WITH ZERABOOKS
How does ZeraBooks keep a veterinary practice’s books?
Our team keeps the books on our own AI-native ledger. You upload documents and see the result in a read-only login.
- 1
A free call
Number of vets and locations, your practice management software, financing plans you accept and how owners are paid. The price is agreed on the call.
- 2
Upload each month
Bank and card statements, the practice management daily or monthly sales summary, distributor and lab invoices, loan statements and the payroll report. No patient records are needed.
- 3
Revenue split the way you run
Services and pharmacy kept apart, financing and card deposits grossed up, loan payments split.
- 4
Proven before it closes
Every account tied to its statement to the cent, then the month’s P&L with drug cost as a share of pharmacy sales in your dashboard.
MORE INDUSTRIES
Books for other kinds of business
- Church accounting softwareFunds, restricted gifts and several bank accounts in a general ledger.
- Bookkeeping for nonprofitsRestricted grants, functional expenses and a worked month.
- Bookkeeping for restaurantsPrime cost, tips and sales tax, with a worked month P&L.
- Bookkeeping for law firmsTrust accounts, three-way reconciliation and a worked month.
- Bookkeeping for property managementTrust accounts, deposits and a 12-unit worked month.
- Bookkeeping for contractorsRetainage, over and under billing, and subs.
How much does bookkeeping cost for a vet clinic?
ZeraBooks starts from $150 a month in U.S. dollars, with the exact price agreed after a free call. It depends on locations, accounts and transaction volume. Behind on the books? Missed months are quoted once as catch-up bookkeeping.
Is this the same as bookkeeping for a human medical clinic?
Partly. Payroll and equipment loans work the same. The difference is who pays: human clinics wait on insurance payers, while vet clinics are mostly paid at checkout and run a pharmacy. Our page on bookkeeping for medical practices covers the insurance side.
Do you need access to our practice management software?
No. Export the monthly sales summary and upload it with your statements. ZeraBooks has no connection to practice management systems, labs or banks.
Can you track several locations?
Yes. Each location can have its own set of books so you can compare them month by month. The same approach for restaurant groups is shown in multi-location restaurant bookkeeping.
Can a practice owner keep the books themselves?
Yes, on ZeraBooks AI bookkeeping software, the same ledger our team uses, if you would rather do it in-house.
WE DO YOUR BOOKS
Spend the day on patients.
We’ll do the books.
Services, pharmacy, lab costs and equipment loans, kept straight every month from $150 (USD). Book the free call. Practices that are new to outsourcing can read how outsourced bookkeeping hands over.
Last updated November 4, 2026 · Written by Damin Mutti, founder of ZeraBooks