Kernow Vets Messaging - is a UK vets answering service market leader Skip to content

KERNOW VETS MESSAGING, your dedicated veterinary answering service.

Taking veterinary calls 24 hours a day 365 days a year. 

Imagine a veterinary practice where every call, from urgent out-of-hours emergencies to busy daytime overflow, is expertly managed. Kernow Vets Messaging provides a full suite of services to meet these needs, including out-of-hours emergency answering, overflow daytime answering, and lone worker monitoring.

Since 1993, we’ve been supporting veterinary practices with our reliable and compassionate service. By handling your communication needs, we help enhance customer care, improve work-life balance, and boost recruitment and retention.

Our dedicated team ensures that every message is delivered promptly and every call is managed with the same attentiveness you provide in your practice. This means you can offer better care to your clients, enjoy a more balanced work schedule, and attract and retain top talent.

Experience the difference that a dedicated veterinary answering service can make. Contact us today to find out how Kernow Vets Messaging can support your practice’s success and wellbeing.

 

Our Three Key Services

Out of Hours Emergency Answering

Overflow Answering

Lone Worker Monitoring

KERNOW VETS MESSAGING, providing a better work-life balance for your veterinarians.

30 years of industry experience and knowledge

6 second average answering time

(Based on call statistics from July-Aug 2020)

Personalised call answering

All calls recorded

Daily Reporting for easy customer billing

UK Based

How it works

What we do

Overflow Day Answering

Out of Hours Telephone Answering

Lone Worker Monitoring

Pager Services

Disaster Recovery

Panic Alarm

Our Story

We take calls for all types of surgeries

Small Animal

Farm

Equine

Meet the team

ANTHONY

CADDY

MANAGING DIRECTOR

STEVE

CADDY

OPERATIONS MANAGER

TOBY

WHITEFORD

OPERATIONS MANAGER

RUDI

GRENFELL

BUSINESS MANAGER

KARIS

MATIK

MARKETING MANAGER

Rhiannon

Curtis

Operations Manager

Nina

Thompson Cook

Operations Manager

Having used you for more than 15 years we have recommended you to vets who still currently use you. You do a very good job of coping with owners in a distressed state, and in our geographically isolated area. You're always persistent in trying different ways to ensure the message is received. You really impressed me really early on when we started using you. My daughter was in the practice late one night, as she was leaving the practice a drunk man fell into the doorway and she couldn't get him moved! She phoned the police, and the police phoned back the surgery to find out was going on and it came through to you. Immediately you phoned my daughter, Catriona, , to ask if she was okay, is every alright, can you speak etc and I was really taken by that. You went above and beyond the call of duty which was really reassuring to know.
Bute & Cowal
I would highly recommend phoneta for your overflow calls service. They have been an enormous help taking calls on my behalf. Working in veterinary practice you want to make sure that every client calling in is able to speak to someone, and in these past trying months with fewer staff able to help me answer our incoming calls, our clients can be confident that though our doors are locked, we are still here to provide a service. I'm sure if the phone went unanswered, the client would possibly take business elsewhere. 5 *****
Simply Cats
Kernow are very efficient, they always remind us to submit our rotas if we have forgotten.
Equus Vets
We've been with Kernow for such a long time and the service has always been excellent, easy, and they are ever so helpful.
Forest lodge Vets
Kernow answer the calls promptly, and they will chase the vets with a call if they haven't received confirmation the message has been received.
Struthers & Scott
We have used Kernow for many years, and always been great and efficient. We've never had any problems.
Westmorland Vets
Service is really good, mainly because of flexibility, any slight changes to protocol, literally anything we ask you to do, you will it. Quite simply. It works.
Priors Farm
Their service just works so well you don't notice it. It works in the background exactly as should.
Paul Buckingham
Arrowfield Vets
StreetVet have used Kernow Vets Messaging for over 18 months. We can be a complicated customer at times but the team at Kernow take our requests in their stride and quickly put them in to action. If any process issues arise they are quickly resolved and suggestions made to make our out of hours procedure more efficient. The Kernow team are always friendly, professional and helpful.
Street Vets
Kernow are on the ball with passing over messages, very prompt at sending them. Great service.
Abbey Veterinary Clinics
I wouldn't recommend anyone else. During covid there was no perceptible change with the level of service. A much better service than any other provider we are working with.
Ballinger Equine LTD
Myself and a colleague put the phone lines over each day, whoever we speak to is always really nice and there are never any complications. If we get a power cut, and lines click over to Kernow, they always call to say 'are we meant to be taking the calls?' All in all a great service and we are very happy.
Bellevue Veterinary Clinic
Punctual, great at overflow protocols, staff are well trained to filter out calls that aren't an emergency. On the ball getting across any information we've missed. Always quick to respond to problems if they arise and find a solution.
Calweton Veterinary Centre
Always lovely and helpful, and there when we need them.
Capontree Vets
10/10, Efficient, quick to answer the calls, messages always come through clear and concise. Couldn't ask for more.
Chapelfield
We have used Kernow answering service for many years at Brownlow Vets, with a brief interlude with a different service answering our large animal calls in addition to fielding our out-of-hours small animal care, which did not go terribly well, prompting an immediate return! As one of the vets at the end of the line receiving calls from the Kernow team, I can say that we are very happy with the service provided. Calls are answered promptly and efficiently, with all the necessary information collected at the time to be passed to our vets. Correspondence with the Kernow team is easy, and we are able to make any last-minute changes to our scheduled vet without any worries that the wrong person is contacted. We are confident that the Kernow service offers what we and our clients need to ensure we can attend to emergencies quickly.
Brownlow Vet Group
We used Kernow at a previous practice and when we moved we called to use them straight away, because they have always been so helpful. There are times our phone system has gone down and we just call and Kernow get us set up straight away with no fuss.
Phoenix Equine
I have been delighted with the service, and it works really well for us. All the call handlers are friendly and professional, so thank you Kernow!
Gil Riley Equine Vets
We have used Kernow’s out of hours call handling service since April 2022 and in this time, we have always received a 1st class service. Our in-house clinical teams have reported a marked improvement in the call information communicated to us and we have had no reported issues with the accuracy of client or referring vets contact details or clinical information provided. The call handling team are always efficient, professional, and empathetic towards our callers and the Kernow management team have supported us however necessary at all times. I can say in all honesty that we have received only positive feedback from our service users with zero negative comments or complaints since switching to Kernow. They have made a significant difference to the lives of our clinical teams working out of hours, allowing them to focus on patient care in the knowledge that any urgent calls will be managed professionally and efficiently by the Kernow team. Switching to Kernow’s call handling service has proven to be excellent decision and we are thankful for their continued support.
University of Liverpool Small Animal Teaching Hospital
Always helpful and polite, good service.
Ddole Road Veterinary Clinic
Kernow Vets Messaging provides us with a very reliable and friendly service to both Clients and the veterinary team, giving reassurance when pets and animal need urgent treatment.
The George Veterinary Group
we are very happy with the service we receive from Kernow
Station House Vets
Kernow Vets Messaging provides our practice with a reliable, professional, friendly and caring answering service and makes on call less stressful for the duty vet. The voice at the end of the phone is unfailingly kind.
Dalriada Veterinary Surgery
To ensure that our duty of care is robustly protected. I am confident that our client will be able to provide the very basic details to a member of your team, who will ensure that the details are passed on to the on-call vet and, if they are not available they will pass the details on to another member of our team, so that no calls are missed. We could do this ourselves with current technology but if it fails then the risk of missing calls is too high and would be unacceptable, both in terms of our duty of care and commercially.
The Oak Veterinary Group, Pembrokeshire (IVC)
We use Kernow everyday of the year, they provide a great service and have a friendly team.
FarmVets SouthWest
We use Kernow answering service for all our 24 hours care for our clients. This provides them with a triage service and allows us to filter through any kind of urgent treatment that's required to our out of hours providers. Kernow have just been incredible resource for us from the start. We met them at London Vet Show and they have been with us through this entire journey, and we wouldn't of been able to do without them. Kernow are the best, thanks for all you help.
StreetVet
All our on duty vets greatly appreciate the kind, caring and efficient voice at the end of the phone when we are called out of hours by Kernow answering service. It has lessened the burden of being on call.
Dalriada Veterinary Surgery
Excellent efficient service.
Hook Nortone Veterinary Group
Great service, very pleased!
Gil Riley Equine Vets
Honestly you are great, the people on the end of the phone are always lovely and I wouldn't want to do on call without the call handling service.
Abbey Green Vets
I have used Kernow for more years than I care to remember and they have always given a good professional service which is appreciated by the team and, just as importantly, my clients . Thank you
Fernhill Vets
It's nice to be able to speak to real people when on call out of hours - they are always helpful and sympathetic when needed, as well as providing an efficient, practical service
Kate Parrish
Hook Norton Veterinary Group
Kernow provide a professional and efficient service, that takes the pressure off both vets and office staff.
Caroline Pluck
CM Equine Vets
Our practice has been using the Kernow answering service for over 20 years, and we have been very happy with the service. It just works. When it comes to communications, you only notice when it is clunky and wrong; this works and fits into how we do things so well. It is unobtrusive, and that speaks volumes.
Shaun Sinclair
Fenton Vets
Since we moved to Kernow Answering, we have not looked back. It has made it significantly easier to provide our out of hours services to our clients and improved our customer service.
Sacha Stevens
Mounts Bay Veterinary Centre
The Kernow Vets Messaging team provide such an important service to StreetVet and our clients. Knowing that help is just a phone call away gives us all peace of mind.
Zoe Abbotts
StreetVet
Very friendly and helpful team.
Amber Russell
Ddole Road Vets
Very good service. Very polite and knowledgeable staff and quick response to get it to us so the relevant team member can act and be on site as soon as possible
Ange Dennis
North Park Veterinary Group
We have used Kernow for decades and they have always listened to feedback and strived to deliver a service that we trust our clients with.
Alex Cumiskey
Larkmead Vets
We have used Kernow for many years & they have helped us a lot with our OOH call handling. The call handlers are always helpful, courteous and friendly to both us and our clients.
Matthew Stables
Oakhill Vet Group
We have used Kernow since the practice started in 2019. We have found it to be invaluable as we know that our clients can always reach us in an emergency when the office is unattended.
Carsten Skov
Carsten Skov Vets
We require a dedicated team to look after both our clients and staff out of hours and knowing that the Kernow staff are professional and trustworthy gives us the confidence to outsource this answering service.
Jo Masters
Synergy Farm Health

Blogs