How to Migrate From Gingr to Animal Friends OS

Switching pet care software feels intimidating. You have years of client records, pet profiles, appointment history, and vaccination data sitting inside Gingr — and the thought of losing any of it is enough to keep most business owners stuck on a platform they have outgrown.

This guide exists to remove that fear. We have helped dozens of facilities migrate from Gingr to Animal Friends OS, and the process is more straightforward than you might expect. Most facilities complete the entire migration over a single weekend and open Monday morning on the new system without their clients noticing any disruption.

We will walk through every step, tell you exactly what transfers and what does not, and give you a realistic timeline so you can plan with confidence.

Why Facilities Switch From Gingr

Gingr is a solid platform with a long track record. It handles grooming, boarding, daycare, and training with deep feature sets, and their multi-location management tools are genuinely useful for large operations. We respect what they have built.

That said, here are the reasons we most commonly hear from Gingr customers who reach out to us:

• Cost: Gingr's pricing starts at $175/month and can exceed $300/month with add-on modules. For a single-location facility, that is a significant overhead when alternatives offer comparable features at a fraction of the price.
• Annual contracts: Gingr typically requires 12-month commitments with cancellation fees. If your needs change mid-year, you are locked in.
• Setup fees: Onboarding costs $500-1,000+ depending on the tier, and data migration is often billed separately on top of that.
• Complexity: The breadth of features creates a steep learning curve. Multiple facility owners have told us their staff never fully adopted the system because it was too complicated for day-to-day use.
• No free trial: You get a guided demo, not a hands-on trial with your own data. You are committing significant money before you know if the software fits your workflow.

Animal Friends OS costs $45-49/month with no contracts, no setup fees, and a 14-day free trial where you can import your actual data and test everything before committing. That is not just a pricing difference — it reflects a fundamentally different philosophy about how software should be sold.

What Transfers (and What Does Not)

Transfers cleanly

• Client records: Names, contact info, addresses, email, phone numbers, emergency contacts, notes
• Pet profiles: Pet names, species, breed, weight, date of birth, color, gender, spay/neuter status
• Vaccination records: Vaccine names, dates administered, expiration dates
• Grooming notes: Blade preferences, style notes, behavioral flags, special instructions
• Service history: Past appointments (dates, services performed, notes)
• Pricing: Your service menu and pricing structure

Requires manual setup

• Staff schedules: Staff availability and scheduling rules need to be configured fresh (usually takes 15-20 minutes)
• Automated reminders: Your SMS reminder templates and timing rules need to be recreated (we provide templates to start from)
• Payment processor: You will connect your Stripe or Square account directly in Animal Friends OS — your existing processor relationship and rates transfer, just the software connection changes
• Online booking widget: One line of code on your website — takes about 2 minutes to swap

Does not transfer

• Gingr-specific reports: Saved report configurations are platform-specific. Animal Friends OS has its own reporting suite that covers the same metrics
• Gingr portal logins: Your clients will need to create new portal accounts (Animal Friends OS sends them an automatic invitation)
• Retail inventory: If you use Gingr's retail POS module, product inventory needs to be re-entered

Before You Start: Pre-Migration Checklist

Before you export anything from Gingr, take care of these items:

1. Sign up for an Animal Friends OS trial — do this first so you have a destination ready. You get 14 days free, no credit card required.
2. Finish any open invoices in Gingr — settle outstanding balances so your financial records are clean at the cutover point.
3. Download any photos — pet photos stored in Gingr should be downloaded before you cancel. Animal Friends OS supports bulk photo upload after import.
4. Note your current reminder schedule — write down when your automated reminders fire (e.g., 24 hours before, 2 hours before) so you can replicate the same timing.
5. Pick your migration weekend — Friday evening through Sunday evening is ideal. You export Friday night, import Saturday morning, test Saturday afternoon, and train staff Sunday.

Step 1 — Export Your Data From Gingr

Gingr provides data export tools in the admin settings. Here is how to pull everything you need:

1. Log in to Gingr and go to Settings → Data → Export
2. Export your Client List — select all fields, choose CSV format
3. Export your Pet List — include breed, weight, DOB, vaccination records, grooming notes
4. Export your Appointment History — select the date range you want (we recommend at least 12 months for meaningful history)
5. Export your Service Menu — names, durations, and prices
6. Save all CSV files to a single folder on your computer

If Gingr's export does not include certain fields you need, contact their support team and request a full data export. Under data portability regulations, they are required to provide your data in a usable format.

Your data belongs to you. Any software vendor that makes exporting difficult is prioritizing lock-in over your business needs. If you encounter resistance, document the request in writing.

Step 2 — Prepare Your CSV Files

Animal Friends OS accepts standard CSV files with flexible column mapping. You do not need to reformat everything manually — the import wizard lets you match columns from your export to the correct fields.

That said, a few minutes of cleanup makes the import smoother:

• Remove duplicate clients: Gingr sometimes creates separate records for the same person (e.g., one from online booking, one from in-store). Merge duplicates before importing so you start clean.
• Standardize phone numbers: Make sure phone numbers are in a consistent format. The import wizard handles most formats, but consistency helps.
• Check pet-to-owner links: Verify that each pet record includes the owner's name or ID so the importer can link them correctly.
• Flag inactive clients: If you have clients who have not visited in 2+ years, consider marking them as inactive rather than importing them into your active client list. You can always import them later.

Step 3 — Import Into Animal Friends OS

The Animal Friends OS import wizard walks you through the process:

1. Go to Settings → Import Data in your Animal Friends OS dashboard
2. Select "Migrating from another platform" and choose Gingr from the list
3. Upload your client CSV first — the wizard auto-detects most column mappings. Review and adjust any columns it did not match automatically.
4. Upload your pet CSV — the importer links pets to their owners using name or email matching
5. Upload vaccination records — these attach to the correct pet profiles automatically
6. Upload appointment history — this populates each client's visit history for continuity
7. Review the import summary — the wizard shows exactly how many records will be created, any duplicates detected, and any rows that need attention
8. Click Import — the process typically takes 30-90 seconds for most facility sizes

After import, spot-check 10-15 client profiles to verify that pet info, vaccination dates, and notes transferred correctly. If anything looks off, the import can be rolled back and re-run.

Step 4 — Configure Services and Pricing

With your client data imported, set up your service menu:

1. Go to Settings → Services
2. Add each service you offer (bath, full groom, nail trim, boarding, daycare, etc.)
3. Set the duration, price, and any size-based pricing tiers
4. Assign services to staff members who are qualified to perform them
5. Set up staff schedules and availability under Settings → Staff

If you used Gingr's size-based pricing (small/medium/large/extra-large), Animal Friends OS supports the same model. You can also set breed-specific pricing if you prefer that approach.

Step 5 — Set Up Your Booking Widget

If you have Gingr's booking widget embedded on your website, you will need to swap it with the Animal Friends OS widget. This is a one-line code change:

1. Go to Settings → Online Booking → Widget Code
2. Copy the embed snippet
3. On your website, find the Gingr embed code and replace it with the Animal Friends OS snippet
4. Save and publish your website changes

The widget is fully responsive and works on WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, and custom-built sites. It matches your brand colors and shows real-time availability.

Step 6 — Notify Your Clients

Your clients do not need to do anything for the switch to work — their appointments, pet records, and history all carry over. But a brief notification builds confidence and avoids confusion:

Animal Friends OS can send a bulk email or SMS to your client list announcing the update. Here is a template that works well:

Hi [First Name]! We have upgraded our booking system to serve you better. You can now book appointments, view your pet's records, and manage your account at [your booking link]. Same great service — even easier to use. Questions? Just reply to this text.

Send this notification the day before or the morning of your go-live date. Keep it short and emphasize that nothing changes about the service they receive — just a better experience for managing it.

Step 7 — Go Live

Your go-live checklist:

1. Verify all services and pricing — book a test appointment as a client to make sure everything flows correctly
2. Test SMS reminders — schedule a test appointment and confirm the reminder fires at the right time
3. Process a test payment — run a small charge through your connected payment processor to verify the integration
4. Brief your staff — walk them through the daily workflow: checking in clients, completing appointments, processing payments. Animal Friends OS is designed to be learned in under an hour.
5. Disable Gingr's booking widget — if you have not already swapped the embed code, do it now so new bookings come through Animal Friends OS
6. Turn off Gingr's reminders — avoid double-texting clients by disabling automated messages in Gingr before enabling them in Animal Friends OS

Keep Gingr active (but idle) for 30 days after migration as a reference. If you need to look up an old record or verify historical data, it is there. After 30 days, you can safely cancel your Gingr subscription.

Realistic Timeline

Phase	Time Required	When
Sign up for Animal Friends OS trial	5 minutes	1 week before migration
Export data from Gingr	15-30 minutes	Friday evening
Clean and prepare CSV files	30-60 minutes	Friday evening
Import data into Animal Friends OS	15-30 minutes	Saturday morning
Configure services, pricing, staff	30-45 minutes	Saturday morning
Set up booking widget	5-10 minutes	Saturday afternoon
Test everything (booking, payments, reminders)	30-60 minutes	Saturday afternoon
Staff training	30-60 minutes	Sunday
Client notification	10 minutes	Sunday evening or Monday morning
Total	3-5 hours over a weekend

That is not a typo. The most common reaction we get from facilities after migrating is: "That's it? I put this off for months and it took half a Saturday."

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my clients notice the switch?

In most cases, no. Their appointment history, pet records, and contact info all carry over. The booking experience looks slightly different visually, but the process is the same — pick a service, pick a time, confirm. Most clients do not even realize you changed software unless you tell them. The only visible change is the booking widget on your website, which is cleaner and faster than what they are used to.

What about my payment processor?

Animal Friends OS integrates with Stripe and Square. If you are already using one of these with Gingr, you connect the same account to Animal Friends OS — your processing rates, bank account, and transaction history stay with your processor account, not with the software. If Gingr had you on their in-house processing, this is a good opportunity to switch to Stripe or Square for lower rates and direct deposit control.

Can I keep my phone number?

If you are using Gingr's built-in texting, they may have provisioned a phone number for your business. That number belongs to the texting provider, not to you. Animal Friends OS provisions a dedicated business number for your SMS communications, and you can request a specific area code. If you have been advertising Gingr's number, update your marketing materials with your new Animal Friends OS number. Your personal business phone number (the one on your Google listing) does not change at all.

What if I have multiple locations?

Animal Friends OS supports multi-location management. Each location gets its own calendar, staff, and service menu, but client records are shared across locations. Import your data once, and clients who visit multiple locations will have unified profiles.

How much does migration cost?

Nothing. Migration assistance is included with every Animal Friends OS account at no extra charge. There is no setup fee, no onboarding fee, and no data import fee. Your only cost is the monthly subscription, which starts after your 14-day free trial ends.

What if something goes wrong during import?

The import wizard validates your data before committing. If there are issues — duplicate clients, malformed dates, missing fields — it flags them for review before anything is saved. Imports can also be rolled back entirely if needed. In practice, issues are rare and almost always minor formatting things that take a few minutes to fix.