Windows control when pet owners can arrive and leave on a Stay. Without a window, a pet owner can book a 3:47am check-in; set a band so drop-off and pick-up sit in the hours you staff. Staff can still pick any time on New Stay.
Set check-in and check-out windows
Each side, check-in and check-out, has an optional From and Until time. An empty field means no restriction on that edge.
- Open Services, select Manage on the stay service, then Manage Service.
- Choose Duration & Timing.
- Under Check-in & Check-out Windows, set From, Until or both for Check-in. Leave a field empty for any time.
- Set From, Until or both for Check-out.
- Select Publish Changes, tick the box in Before You Publish, then select Publish Changes.
The two fields make five rules. The check-out side works the same way.
| Rule | From | Until | Example use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exact time | 14:00 | 14:00 | Check in at 2pm |
| Window | 14:00 | 16:00 | Check in between 2pm and 4pm |
| Any time from | 14:00 | empty | Check in any time from 2pm |
| Any time until | empty | 16:00 | Check in any time up to 4pm |
| No restriction | empty | empty | No time limit |
Beside each side's name, the card reads back its rule, such as "2:00 PM - 4:00 PM" or "Any time from 2:00 PM". Once a window is set, the card shows a day timeline and Check-in and check-out as customers see it, with "Any time (no restriction)" for a side with no window.
How it behaves for customers
On the pet owner booking form:
- With a check-in window (14:00 to 16:00), the time picker disables everything outside that range.
- With an exact time (the same From and Until), the time picker is pre-filled and locked.
- With only a From time, times before it are disabled.
- With only an Until time, times after it are disabled.
- With no window, the picker has no time-of-day limit.
The customer also sees a badge next to the field describing the rule, such as "Check-in between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM".
Book a stay inside the windows
When your team books a stay, the times start inside the windows and stay editable. Only the pet owner booking form enforces the window.
- Open Appointments, select New, then Stay.
- On Pets & Services, choose the pet and the stay service, then select Continue.
- On Timing, check the Check-in Time and Check-out Time. Petboost fills them from the windows; change them if you need to.
If you choose a time outside a window, Times outside permitted windows warns you and still lets you book.
Availability and notice periods
Availability search honours the windows automatically. If a customer's check-in date falls on a day where the window sits outside a team member's or resource's session, that day is reported as unavailable with a clear reason.
Notice-period rules still apply. They constrain the date; the window constrains the time of day. If both conflict, for example the notice period pushes past the check-in window, that day is unavailable.
Change windows on many services
Bulk Update applies windows to several stay services at once.
- Open Services and tick the checkbox on each stay service.
- Select Bulk Update.
- On Fields, under Duration & Timing, tick Check-in Window From, Check-in Window Until, Check-out Window From or Check-out Window Until, and enter the times.
- Select Review Changes.
- On Confirm, select Apply to plus the service count.
If the services you ticked are not all one type, choose Stay / Boarding on Type and the services on Services first. Existing appointments are not checked again against the new window; only new bookings and changes to their times are.
Frequently asked questions
Can a window straddle midnight?
No. From must be on or before Until. For late-night pick-ups, set a check-out window such as until 23:59 and tell customers directly.
What about multi-day stays?
The check-in window applies only to the first day and the check-out window only to the last day. Days in between have no arrival or departure restriction.
What if my team member works 9am-1pm but I set a check-in window of 2pm-4pm?
That day becomes unavailable for that team member, with a clear message explaining the mismatch. Either extend the team member's session hours or adjust the window.
Does this affect mobile Stay services?
Yes. Windows still limit the check-in and check-out times a pet owner can pick, including on a mobile Stay (housesitting). The pick-up and drop-off settings are separate and do not turn the windows off.
Can I charge late check-in or early check-out fees?
Windows do not add a fee. Charge more through Duration-based spillover (more hours), a line on the invoice, or an add-on.
Can I have different windows by day of the week?
No. Each Stay service has one check-in pair and one check-out pair.
A leftover 4pm time will not clear on a Stay
Fixed Start Time is a Regular field, and a Stay's Duration & Timing hides it. An old Regular value can still sit on a Stay after a conversion, and you cannot clear it on the Stay screens. Use Speak with the team.
Can I book a same-day Stay with 16:00 check-in and 09:00 check-out?
No. On one calendar day, check-out would be before check-in. Use a Regular daytime service, or Number of nights with a Daycare rate (same-day stays) and windows that fit on that day.
Try it on a test stay
- Open Services, select Manage on a test stay service, then Manage Service.
- Choose Duration & Timing.
- Set Check-in From 14:00 and Until 16:00.
- Set Check-out Until 10:00.
- Select Publish Changes, tick the box in Before You Publish, then select Publish Changes.
- Open the pet owner booking form for the stay service and watch the picker limit itself.