This guide is a practical organization method. It does not require PETICO and does not establish access to another owner's records.
Start with a clear local pet label
Use a stable label that you understand. In a local template, a simple pet code can be enough; there is no need to include an owner's email or other contact details.
Keep the label beside every row, not only in a filename that may later be separated from the table. Use another distinguishing note if labels could be confused, without adding irrelevant private information.
Fictional example: a shared bowl becomes two false records
Fictional household: Cat A and Cat B share a bowl. A caregiver records “120 mL change in bowl amount” over a stated period, with individual attribution unknown.
If that full amount is copied as “Cat A drank 120 mL” and “Cat B drank 120 mL,” the record now contains two unsupported claims. Adding them creates a 240 mL total from a single 120 mL source.
The correction is to preserve one shared/unattributed observation with its original source and window. Neither individual cat's measured intake is established by it.
| Record | Supported? | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Shared-bowl amount changed by 120 mL | Only within the stated collection limitations | It describes the source observation |
| Cat A consumed 120 mL | No individual attribution established | Shared access |
| Cat B consumed 120 mL | No individual attribution established | Shared access |
| Combined individual intake was 240 mL | No | Duplicate attribution of one source |
These are fictional arithmetic and record-quality examples, not actual PETICO histories.
Preserve the source when more than one person records
An owner and caregiver may describe the same event. Keep both source notes if useful, but do not count the event twice simply because it appears twice.
Record the observation date and window separately from the date someone typed the note. If entries disagree, retain the disagreement and resolve it with the source where possible. Do not silently choose the more convenient value.
A household handover checklist
- One stable pet label per individually attributed row.
- Shared observations marked shared or attribution unknown.
- Observation dates and local windows retained.
- Caregiver/source references included.
- Complete, partial and unknown coverage visible.
- Documents checked against the intended pet.
- Duplicate descriptions identified before calculating totals.
- Corrections explained without erasing the original basis.
The observation template includes a pet label and source-note field. Separate files per pet can help, but do not remove labels from rows.
When comparing periods
First select one pet's comparable observations. Then check signal, unit, method and window. Do not combine two animals' series because each has too few entries.
If the individual basis is insufficient, say so. A household series may be useful for a different question, but label it as household-level and do not imply an individual result.
In a connected product
PETICO's structured story is pet-specific. An integration, where supported, must use the intended permitted pet and appropriate context. A public guide does not choose that pet or grant access.
Read about structured context, or prepare a clear history for a visit. The basic rule remains the same: identify the pet before interpreting the record.