The problem
A cat boarding license can run for 1, 2 or 3 years depending on your star rating, so the renewal date is easy to lose. The licensing guidance says you must apply to renew at least 10 weeks before expiry. For a cattery booked solid for August, a renewal missed in June could put every summer stay at risk.
What the AI does
Put the expiry date first in your main diary or booking system, with a named person to check it, and keep the council's reminder letter (councils are told to write 3 months before expiry). Then, as a backup, add a row to a Google Sheet with the license, the expiry date and an apply-by date 70 days earlier, worked out by a formula. A two-step Zapier automation creates a Google Calendar event on the apply-by date, with notifications. The same sheet can hold insurance and other yearly renewal dates.
A worked example
A 12-pen cattery in Devon has a 2-year license after a 4-star rating, expiring in the first week of July. The owner keeps the date in the paper diary and adds a backup row.
Before
Renewal date only on the 2-year license certificate pinned up in the office
After
Date in the main diary, plus a backup calendar reminder 10 weeks before expiry
What it's worth
There's no monthly money value here: it's a backup reminder behind your own diary, so it's set at nil. Zapier's free plan allows two-step Zaps and 100 tasks a month, more than enough for a few dates a year, assuming free Google accounts for Sheets and Calendar.
How to set it up
- Write the license expiry and the apply-by date, 10 weeks earlier, in your main diary or booking system, and name who checks it.
- Make a Google Sheet with columns for item, expiry date, apply-by date (expiry minus 70 days) and a tick for 'in main diary'.
- In Zapier, create a Zap triggered by a new row that creates a Google Calendar event on the apply-by date, with notifications.
- Add a dummy row and check the event appears on the right day.
- Once a month, compare the sheet, the calendar and your main diary.
What goes wrong
- This is a second prompt, never the only one; the main diary and a human check come first.
- Zapier can fail silently, for example when a Google login expires; the monthly check is what catches it.
- A renewal means an inspection, so your records and procedures need to be ready; start before the apply-by date.
- This follows the England rules; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own.