Compare
PupManager vs Acuity for dog trainers
Acuity is solid general-purpose scheduling. The problem isn’t that it books appointments badly — it’s that a dog trainer’s work isn’t just appointments. There’s no concept of a dog, a training plan, homework, or a client who needs to see their progress between sessions. So trainers bend Acuity to fit and bolt three more tools around it.
PupManager is built for how trainers actually work — not borrowed from generic booking software.
| Acuity | PupManager | |
|---|---|---|
| Appointment scheduling | Yes — general-purpose, any industry | Yes — built around training sessions and packages |
| A data model that knows what a dog is | No — a booking is a booking | Yes — dogs, owners, sessions, plans and history are first-class |
| Structured session progress (tasks, scores, video) | No | Yes — the core of the product |
| Client app with homework between sessions | No | Yes — trainer-branded, web + iOS |
| Group-class rosters, attendance, make-ups | Worked around with class types | Yes — purpose-built for multi-week series |
| Messaging with the dog’s full history alongside | No | Yes |
| Tools it takes to cover the rest | Acuity + email tool + course tool + a spreadsheet | One login |
If scheduling is genuinely all you need, Acuity is fine. If your week is sessions, homework, group classes and clients who ask “what was that cue again?” — that’s the part Acuity was never built for.