Guides & Resources

Step-by-step setup guides to get your clinic up and running with Puppilot.

Getting Started

Set Up After-Hours Call Forwarding

When you start with Puppilot's After-Hours Voicemail plan, your phone system needs to forward calls to your Puppilot number during closed hours. This is a one-time setup that takes 5–10 minutes. Select your phone system below for step-by-step instructions.

Before You Begin

  • Have your Puppilot number ready — you'll receive this during onboarding
  • Know your clinic's business hours — you'll need to enter open/close times
  • Have admin access to your phone system — most changes require administrator credentials

RingCentral

~10 minutes
  1. Log in to the RingCentral Admin Portal at service.ringcentral.com
  2. Go to Phone System → Auto-Receptionist → General Settings
  3. Under Company Hours, set your clinic's business hours (e.g., Mon–Fri 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM). You must set custom hours — the default "24/7" setting hides the after-hours options.
  4. Go to Phone System → Groups → Call Queues
  5. Create a new call queue — name it something like "After Hours Forwarding"
  6. In the call queue settings, set it to forward calls to an external number and enter your Puppilot phone number
  7. Go back to Phone System → Auto-Receptionist → Company Call Handling
  8. Select the After Hours tab
  9. Set "Incoming callers will be routed to" → select the "After Hours Forwarding" call queue you just created
  10. Click Save and test by calling your clinic number after business hours

Important Notes

  • The Auto-Receptionist cannot forward directly to an external number — you must use a call queue as a bridge. This is a RingCentral limitation.
  • You must set custom business hours before the "After Hours" tab becomes visible.
  • Consider recording a brief after-hours greeting (e.g., "Our office is currently closed. Your call is being transferred to our after-hours care line.").
  • For holidays, use Custom Rules in the call handling settings to forward calls even during normally-open hours.

Google Voice

~10 minutes

Requires Google Workspace Standard or Premier plan. The free personal Google Voice does not have auto attendant features.

  1. Log in to the Google Admin Console at admin.google.com
  2. Navigate to Apps → Google Workspace → Google Voice
  3. Click Auto attendants, then click Create
  4. Name it (e.g., "Main Clinic Line") and click Create
  5. Set up your business-hours greeting and call routing as desired
  6. Click Edit Business Hours and select Customized hours
  7. Set your clinic's open hours for each day of the week
  8. Under the After hours action section, record your after-hours greeting
  9. Set the after-hours call routing to Forward to external number and enter your Puppilot phone number
  10. Assign a phone number to the auto attendant and click Save

Important Notes

  • The free personal Google Voice does NOT have auto attendant — you need Google Workspace Standard or Premier.
  • You can only set one block of business hours per day (no split schedules like 8–12 and 1–5).
  • Use the Holiday closures option for dates like Christmas and Thanksgiving.
  • Forwarding to external numbers may incur carrier charges depending on the destination.

Vonage

~10 minutes
  1. Sign in to the Vonage Admin Portal (you need Super User or Account Administrator access)
  2. Go to Phone System → Virtual Receptionist
  3. Click Add New and choose Advanced VR (the Basic VR does not support time-based scheduling)
  4. Name it (e.g., "Main Clinic Line") and assign your clinic's phone number
  5. Set up your business-hours greeting
  6. Go to the Schedules & Call Flows section
  7. Click Add New and create a schedule for your after-hours window
  8. For the after-hours call flow, select Forward calls to External Number
  9. Enter your Puppilot phone number and select Originating Caller ID (so you can see who's calling)
  10. Click Save

Important Notes

  • Calls forwarded to external numbers may cost approximately $0.03 per minute for domestic calls.
  • If you use the Vonage Mobile App, do NOT forward calls to the same mobile number — you will receive two calls at the same time.
  • Only Account Administrators or Super Users can create or modify Virtual Receptionists — front desk staff cannot make these changes.
  • Use the Manual Override feature for unexpected closures like snow days.

Weave

~5 minutes
  1. Open the Weave desktop app and log in with Super Admin credentials
  2. Click the Settings icon (gear icon, top-right corner)
  3. Select Phone from the left-side menu
  4. Under your Main Line, find Phone Hours & Call Routing
  5. Set your clinic's business hours if not already configured
  6. Select the Closed Hours routing rules
  7. In the Fallback Options, enter your Puppilot phone number (full 10-digit number with area code)
  8. Click Save
  9. Test by calling your clinic number after closing time

Important Notes

  • Call forwarding does NOT forward text messages — texts stay in your Weave system. Someone still needs to check Weave for client texts.
  • For holidays or unexpected closures, use Overrides (Calls → Settings → Overrides → Create Override). You can set start/end times so they activate and deactivate automatically.
  • When an override is active, a management banner appears in the Weave app so staff knows calls are being forwarded.
  • You can also manage forwarding from the Weave mobile app — toggle forwarding on/off, change hours, and record override greetings.

Mango Voice

~10 minutes

Mango Voice uses a visual "Switchboard" drag-and-drop call flow builder. The setup involves creating a schedule and then connecting it in the switchboard.

  1. Log in to admin.mangovoice.com as an Administrator
  2. Click Schedules in the left navigation
  3. Click New Schedule and name it (e.g., "Clinic Business Hours")
  4. On the calendar view, click and drag to mark your business hours for each day of the week
  5. Go to the Switchboard for your main line
  6. Your call flow starts at the Start icon — add a Schedule object and select your business hours schedule
  7. On the Closed path from the schedule, add an External Transfer object
  8. Enter your Puppilot phone number and set the timeout to 120 seconds
  9. Check Pass Through Caller ID so you can see who's calling
  10. Check Require 1 to Connect if forwarding to a cell phone (this prevents calls from going to the recipient's personal voicemail)
  11. Connect the objects with lines and click the green Save button

Important Notes

  • "Require 1 to Connect" is critical — without it, unanswered forwarded calls go to the recipient's personal voicemail instead of your clinic voicemail.
  • Every path on the switchboard must end at a Leave Voicemail, External Transfer, or Hang Up object. If a path leads nowhere, the call drops.
  • Use the Holidays section in your schedule for holiday closures and the Override feature for one-time changes.
  • You can minimize objects on the switchboard by clicking the arrow in the upper-right corner of each object to keep the layout clean.

Don't see your phone system?

Most phone systems support after-hours call forwarding to an external number. If you need help setting up forwarding on a system not listed here, our team can walk you through it.

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