Resources
PocketSuite's Resources feature lets you track and manage rooms, kennels, equipment, and other physical assets used in your bookings. Resources are automatically assigned during scheduling based on availability, and you can view and manage all assignments from the Resource Calendar.
Note: Resources are available on the Facility plan.
How to enable Resources
Go to Settings > Features > Resources and toggle on.
Creating resources
- Go to Settings > Resources.
- Tap the plus icon to add a new resource.
- Give your resource a name and optionally add a photo.
- Set the Capacity — this is how many bookings can use this resource at the same time. For most resources (like a kennel or a treatment room), the capacity is 1. Do not use the capacity setting for the total number of resources you have — instead, create a separate resource for each physical item. This is necessary if you need to take a resource offline for maintenance.
Important: For most resources, the Capacity will always be 1. Do not use the capacity setting for the number of resources you have in total, only for the number of clients who can book the same resource at the same time. For example, if you have 10 rooms and each room can fit two clients, you should create 10 separate resources (one for each room) and the capacity for each should be 2.
Each resource can also have its own availability schedule if it differs from your general business hours.
Be sure to select a photo to make it easier to distinguish your resources.
Pro tip: Have resources you want imported? Reach out to us at support@pocketsuite.io with your list of resources and we can import them for you!
Resource Groups
Resource Groups are used for scheduling. When you group similar resources together, PocketSuite can automatically assign any available resource from the group to a booking.
For example, if you have 20 identical kennels, you'd create one Resource Group called "Kennels" containing all 20. When a booking requires a kennel, any available one from the group is assigned.
To create a Resource Group:
- Go to Settings > Resources > Resource Groups.
- Tap the plus icon to create a new group.
- Name the group and assign a color.
- Add the relevant resources to the group.
You can also color-coordinate resource groups to make them easier to identify on your calendar and during scheduling. Colors are assigned automatically so each one is unique, but you're able to change them as you see fit.
You can attach up to three Resource Groups as requirements on a service, class, or reservation. All requirements must be available for the booking to go through.
Resource group colors appear on the Resource Calendar and during scheduling to indicate which requirement a resource fulfills. They do not change the color of appointments on your main calendar.
Locations
Locations are a way to organize your resources by physical space on the Resource Calendar. Unlike Resource Groups (which control scheduling), Locations are purely for visual organization.
For example, a boarding facility with three rooms of 20 kennels and two play areas could create five Locations — "Room A," "Room B," "Room C," "Play Area 1," and "Play Area 2" — and assign resources accordingly. All 60 kennels might be in the same Resource Group for scheduling (since any kennel works), but they're spread across three rooms that need to be visualized separately.
Setting up Locations
- Go to Settings > Resources > Locations.
- Tap the plus icon to create a new Location.
- Name the Location and assign resources to it.
When you first enable Resources, a default Location called "Facility" is created and all resources are added to it.
Managing Locations
- Sorting: You can sort the order Locations appear on the Resource Calendar, as well as the order of resources within each Location.
- One Location per resource: Each resource can only belong to one Location at a time. When you add a resource to a new Location, it's moved from its current one.
- Deleting a Location: When you delete a Location, you'll be asked to choose which Location each resource should move to. The default "Facility" Location is selected by default. You must always have at least one Location — you cannot delete your last one.
- Filtering: Across all calendar views, you can filter by Location.
Resource settings
Buffer time
Set a buffer between appointments assigned to a resource. This is separate from your general buffer time setting — a team member might need 15 minutes between appointments for paperwork, but the room they used could be available immediately or need only 5 minutes for cleaning.
Go to the resource's settings and set "Buffer time" — described as "Time between appointments assigned to this resource." If not explicitly set, the resource uses your global buffer time setting.
Restrict bookings within the same family
When enabled, a resource can only be booked by members of the same client's family at the same time. For example, if a kennel is booked for one client's dog, only that same client's other dogs can be assigned to the same kennel during that stay.
Go to the resource's settings and toggle on "Restrict bookings within the same family" — described as "Only bookings tied to the same client can be assigned to this resource at the same time."
This setting is off by default.
Weight capacity (Pet industries only)
For pet businesses (Dog training, Pet Resort, Pet grooming salon, Dog walking, Pet sitting), you can set a weight limit on resources. This uses the built-in weight field on pet sub-accounts to determine whether a resource can accommodate a booking based on the combined weight of pets assigned to it.
Go to the resource's settings and set "Weight capacity" — described as "Combined pet weight limit for this resource." When you enter a weight, "lbs" is appended automatically.
- Weight is only considered in availability when a sub-account is selected and has a weight on file. For online bookings, the client must be logged in.
- Weight capacity appears on the Resource Calendar — each resource shows its max weight, and each booking shows its weight in the tooltip. Weight also appears in assignment mode.
- This setting only appears when the Sub-account feature is enabled.
The weight field on pet sub-accounts is a built-in field that cannot be deleted.
Show in overnight occupancy report
Toggle this on to include a resource in the Overnight Occupancy report, which tracks your facility's occupancy rate based on overnight reservations. See the Resource Calendar article for details on the Occupancy report.
How resource availability works
Back-to-back assignment
PocketSuite assigns resources back to back whenever possible to maximize your availability. If you have a reservation ending and another starting the same day — and check-in/check-out times don't overlap — they'll be assigned to the same resource (assuming it meets the requirement). Similarly, if you have 10 non-overlapping services in a day with the same requirement, PocketSuite will assign as many as possible to the same resource, keeping other resources wide open.
Automatic reassignment
PocketSuite automatically reassigns resources for future bookings to optimize your schedule. For example, following a cancellation, resources may be reassigned so that bookings are packed tightly, leaving other resources as open as possible.
- Reservations starting further in the future are prioritized for reassignment.
- Active reservations (starting from the day of check-in, regardless of actual check-in status) are never automatically reassigned.
Cross-item-type capacity
Resource capacity is absolute across all booking types. If a resource spot is assigned to a service, it's not available for a reservation that overlaps that booking, and vice versa. The same applies to calendar blocks.
Check-in and check-out times
Resources respect the specific check-in and check-out times of reservations:
- If the check-in or check-out time is set to a specific time (flexible or default), the resource becomes available or occupied at that time. A resource with a checkout at 10am is available for a new check-in at 11am — but not the reverse.
- If the check-in time is set to "any time," it blocks the resource for the entire day.
- If the check-out time is set to "any time," the resource is fully available that day.
Per-day resource allocation
For reservations, resource assignments are tracked by day. This means a single reservation can be assigned to different resources on different days — for example, the first three nights in Kennel A and the last two nights in Kennel B. You manage per-day assignments from the Resource Calendar using assignment mode. See the Resource Calendar article for details.
Team member availability
Resource availability alone doesn't make a time slot bookable — at least one eligible team member must also be available to staff the appointment. Even if resources are open, the time won't be available for scheduling if no team member can take it.
Maximize reservation availability
Under Settings > Scheduling, the "Maximize reservation availability" setting controls two behaviors: whether reservations can be split across multiple resources mid-stay when no single resource is available for the full duration, and whether future reservations can be automatically moved between resources to make room for new bookings.
This setting has five options: Never, One move per week, Two moves per week, Three moves per week, and Completely maximize (as many moves as needed).
Note: When a reservation is split across resources, PocketSuite automatically creates a smart task to remind your team about the move. See "Resource reassignment smart task" below. You must have the Tasks feature turned on.
Resource reassignment smart task
Whenever a reservation's resource assignment changes from one day to the next — whether from a manual reassignment or the Maximize reservation availability setting — PocketSuite automatically creates a smart task on the day the change takes effect.
- Task title: "Change resource"
- Task description: "Move {pet/sub-account or client} from {resource name} to {resource name}."
- Due date: The day of the change, at 8am by default.
- One task is created per resource change. If multiple resources change on the same day, you'll see multiple tasks.
This is a built-in smart task that appears under Settings > Smart Tasks when Resources is enabled. Like built-in client fields, it cannot be deleted. You can change the task name and assign a task field if desired. If you set a custom description, the automatic move description is appended to it.
This task can be assigned to team members as an eligible smart task. It cannot be added to a smart project.
Attaching resources to bookings
When creating or editing a service, class, or reservation, you can add resource requirements by selecting up to three Resource Groups. All requirements must be available for the booking to be scheduled.
For classes, a resource is assigned to each individual client booked into the class. For example, if you offer fitness classes that require special equipment like reformers or rowing machines, each client will be assigned their own equipment resource. This helps you manage limited equipment across multiple overlapping classes and private sessions.
Resources can only be attached to services, classes, and reservations. They cannot be added to packages, subscriptions, tasks, or gift certificates.
Resource assignments happen automatically during scheduling. Clients never see resource details — assignments are managed entirely on your end. To view and manage assignments, use the Resource Calendar.
Pro tip: The vast majority of services will only require one resource. Resources do affect your availability to be booked, so think carefully about what resources are required.
Scheduling with resources
To schedule a client with a resource requirement, go to the Home screen and tap Schedule. Select the client and a service with a required resource, then tap Availability to choose a time and date.
One resource from each resource group will be selected automatically when you choose a team member or time slot, but you can also choose resources manually.
Your chosen resources will appear on the scheduling summary and invoice.
Note: If a client books you online, one resource from each required resource group will be chosen automatically. If all of your resources in that resource group are at capacity, the appointment cannot be booked.
You can also filter your calendar to see what bookings are assigned to a specific resource. On the calendar, tap the Filter icon in the upper right and select the resources you want to view.
Taking resources offline
To temporarily take a resource offline, create a calendar block and specify the resource. The resource will be unavailable for the duration of the block. For the duration of the block, clients will not be able to book that resource, but they'll be able to schedule it for any time beyond the block.
Note: To make a resource unavailable for a reservation, you must use an all day block, just like for team members.
Pro tip: As a Super Admin, you can also use this to block off the calendars of other team members.