Business phone system for veterinary clinics

Veterinary clinics in the United States

County Business Patterns counted 34,296 veterinary clinics in the U.S. in 2023 (NAICS 541940, Veterinary Services). They employed 475,106 people in mid-March and paid $25.2 billion in annual payroll. The average establishment has 13.9 employees. That is 10.1 establishments for every 100,000 residents.

California has the most (3,467), followed by Texas (2,816), Florida (2,585), and New York (1,484). Relative to population, Montana leads with 20.2 per 100,000 residents, and District of Columbia has the fewest at 3.4.

Why the phone matters for veterinary clinics

Veterinary front desks handle appointments, prescription refills, boarding questions and worried owners with sick animals, often all at once. Missing a call can mean missing an urgent case or a new client.

Calls veterinary clinics commonly handle:

• An owner calls because their dog ate something it should not have.
• A client calls to request a prescription refill for a cat.
• A new pet owner calls to ask about vaccines.
• The clinic calls an owner with lab results.
• An owner calls to book boarding over a holiday.

Texting and after-hours calls

Clinics text vaccine reminders, pickup notices after procedures and refill-ready messages.

After-hours greetings typically direct emergencies to an emergency animal hospital and capture routine requests for the morning.

How big veterinary clinics are

27.7% of U.S. veterinary clinics with employees had fewer than five people in March 2023. 50.4% had fewer than ten. Most phone decisions in this industry are made for small teams, where one shared number and sensible routing matter more than a desk phone per person.

Veterinary clinics by state

Establishment counts for the 51 states (and DC) where Census published a figure, with the rate per 100,000 residents.

Largest metro areas for veterinary clinics

Census published veterinary clinic counts for 851 metro and micropolitan areas. The 25 largest:

Phone system pricing for a 14-person veterinary clinic

The average U.S. veterinary clinic has 13.9 employees, so the comparison uses a 14-person team. On a per-user plan that headcount sets the bill: $349.30 a month on Ooma Office Pro or $420.00 on RingCentral RingEX Core at list price (checked September 28, 2026). Callata comes to $279.00 a month for 14 users ($99 a month with 5 users included, then $20 per additional user), below both.

Over a year, that is $1,692 less than RingCentral for a veterinary clinic in the U.S. of that size. Annual contracts lower some competitors' prices, so compare the plan you would actually sign.

How Callata works for veterinary clinics

Callata Office costs $99 per month for up to 5 people, and each additional user is $20 a month. That covers up to 3 local numbers, calling from a browser or your cell, transcribed voicemail, recorded calls with AI summaries, after-hours routing and E911 on each number.

Texting from a local number requires carrier registration (10DLC), a one-time $49 fee. Porting an existing number is free.

AI agents are optional: an AI receptionist or scheduler can pick up when the team is busy or closed, take a message, send a text or email, or transfer the call. They draw on prepaid AI minutes ($0.25/minute), disclose that they are AI, and outbound AI calls require prior consent and are limited to 8am–9pm.