Vet Clinic Management System

Vet Clinic Management System is a passion-driven side project built from over 18 years of professional software development experience. What started as a personal challenge is evolving into a robust, comprehensive management platform for veterinary clinics. Developing this as a side project allows me to prioritize quality and user experience. My goal is to create a powerful, self-hosted solution that will always be 100% free for anyone to deploy and manage themselves. While I may eventually offer a managed hosting service for those who prefer a turnkey experience, the core software will remain free and open to the community. Note: This project is currently a work in progress. It will take time to reach the full level of maturity I envision, but development is steady and ongoing.

This is a web-based application to manage a mobile veterinary clinic, built with Angular, NestJS, and Prisma.

Prerequisites

Docker (Recommended)

• Docker: Install Docker Desktop (includes Docker Compose)

That's it! Docker handles everything else — Node.js, PostgreSQL, dependencies, builds.

Without Docker

• Node.js: v24 or later
• PostgreSQL: v16 or later (running locally or remotely)
• NX: This project uses Nx for monorepo management

Getting Started

Option 1: Docker (Recommended) 🐳

The entire application is self-contained in Docker. One command to start everything:

# Build and start the full stack (PostgreSQL + App)
docker compose up -d --build

# First run — seed the database with sample data
SEED_DB=true docker compose up -d --build

# On Windows PowerShell:
$env:SEED_DB="true"; docker compose up -d --build

Once started:

• Application: http://localhost:3000
• API Docs (Swagger): http://localhost:3000/api-docs

Docker Commands

# Start the stack
docker compose up -d

# Stop the stack (data is preserved)
docker compose down

# Stop and wipe all data
docker compose down -v

# View logs
docker compose logs -f app

# Rebuild after code changes
docker compose up -d --build

Option 2: Local Development (Without Docker)

1. Install Dependencies

npm install

2. Database Setup

The project uses PostgreSQL. Ensure you have a PostgreSQL instance running.

# Copy the example environment file and configure your database connection
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your PostgreSQL connection string

# Generate Prisma Client
npm run db:generate

# Run migrations
npm run db:migrate

# (Optional) Seed the database with sample data
npm run db:seed

3. Running the Application

You can start both the backend and frontend simultaneously, or individually.

Simultaneous Start

npm start

Individual Start

# Start the Backend (API) - Default: http://localhost:3000
npm run start:api

# Start the Frontend (Web) - Default: http://localhost:4200
npm run start:web

Screenshots

View	Light Mode	Dark Mode
Dashboard
Patient Directory
Clinic Settings
Tasks & Reminders
Messages
Invoices
Appointments
Clients / Clients
User Settings

Patient Details

The patient details view features a route-based tab navigation system for comprehensive records.

Tab	Light Mode	Dark Mode
Medical History
Vaccinations
Prescriptions
Appointments
Boarding
Tasks
Estimates
Forms
Invoices
Labs
Reminders

Patient Management Dialogs (Add Record)

Standardized modals for adding records across all patient sub-sections.

Section	Light Mode	Dark Mode
Medical History
Vaccinations
Prescriptions
Appointments
Boarding
Tasks
Estimates
Forms
Invoices
Labs
Reminders

Patient Management Dialogs (Print / Report)

Standardized modals for generating reports and printing.

Section	Light Mode	Dark Mode
Medical History
Vaccinations
Prescriptions
Appointments
Boarding
Tasks
Estimates
Forms
Invoices
Labs
Reminders

Client Details

The client details view provides a comprehensive overview of client records with tabbed navigation.

Tab	Light Mode	Dark Mode
Client Info
Patients
Financial
Appointments
Boarding
Tasks
Reminders
Forms
Messaging

Client Management Dialogs (Add Record)

Section	Light Mode	Dark Mode
Patients
Financial
Appointments
Boarding
Tasks
Reminders
Forms
Messaging

Tools & Documentation

• Swagger UI (API Docs): http://localhost:3000/api-docs
• Prisma Studio (DB Manager): http://localhost:5555 (Run npm run db:studio)

Documentation Maintenance

Generating Screenshots

The screenshots in this README.md and the docs/screenshots directory are automatically generated to ensure consistency across Light and Dark modes.

To refresh all screenshots:

1. Ensure the application is running (npm start).
2. Run the generation script:

   node docs/maintenance/generate_screenshots.js

This script uses Playwright to:

• Navigate to all key application routes.
• Capture screenshots in both Light and Dark modes.
• Save the results directly to docs/screenshots/.

Project Structure

• vet-clinic: Angular Frontend with Material Design.
• api: NestJS Backend.
• shared-types: Shared TypeScript interfaces and DTOs.
• prisma: Database schema and migrations.
• docker: Docker entrypoint and related scripts.

Technical Details

• Frontend: Angular + Angular Material. Responsive design for mobile, tablet, and desktop.
• Backend: NestJS for a structured, scalable API.
• Database: Prisma ORM with PostgreSQL.
• Deployment: Fully containerized with Docker Compose (PostgreSQL + App in a single docker compose up).