What Is Spoodle? How the Verum Veterinary Answer Engine Works Alongside the Best Veterinary AI Scribe
Summary: Spoodle is a veterinary AI startup founded at the University of Pennsylvania. Its product, Verum, is a free clinical answer engine that gives veterinarians cited answers drawn from peer-reviewed journals, drug labels, and clinical guidelines, including AAHA guidelines as of August 2026. Verum answers the question "what does the evidence say?" It does not listen to appointments or write medical records. HappyDoc is an AI scribe that listens to the exam and drafts your SOAP notes, client communications, and call records, then writes them back into your practice management system. There is no native integration between Spoodle and HappyDoc. They cover two different moments in the same visit: looking something up, and writing it down.
What Is Spoodle?
Spoodle is a veterinary software company that builds what it calls a "clinical intelligence platform." Its flagship product is Verum, a veterinary answer engine available on the web and as a mobile app. (If you type spoodle.ai into your browser, you land on Verum's site.)
The company was founded by Seher Taneja, a 2026 graduate of Penn's Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology, and co-founder JJ von Oiste. According to The Daily Pennsylvanian, the team originally built a workflow and front-desk tool for veterinary clinics. In January 2026, after time spent observing clinics, they concluded the bigger problem was how veterinarians find trustworthy information during the day, and they pivoted.
That pivot paid off quickly. Spoodle won the 2026 Dave A. Liu and Lauren Wu Prize at Penn's M&T Summit, and Taneja has said the team's goal is to reach more than 1,000 active veterinarians within a year. In one of the more notable pieces of veterinary ai news this summer, Today's Veterinary Business reported on August 10, 2026, that AAHA had integrated its standards of care into Verum, so AAHA guidelines now appear alongside cited, peer-reviewed literature.
What Verum Does: Core Features
Verum's pitch is simple: ask a clinical question, get an answer, and see exactly where every claim came from. The Verum website says answers draw on "peer reviewed journals, drug labels, and clinical guidelines," and that the product is built by machine learning researchers and veterinary specialists.
According to its App Store listing, Verum includes:
- Cited answers. Each claim is numbered and linked to its source so you can check the evidence yourself.
- Answer modes. Choose Fast, Balanced, or Deep depending on how much time you have.
- Task tabs. Start from Clinical Decision Support, Guidelines, Drug Safety, Calculators, or Paperwork.
- Signalment. Add species and patient details so the answer fits the case in front of you.
- Photo attachments and voice dictation. Ask a question by talking or attach an image.
- Client summaries. A Summarize button turns an answer into client-friendly language.
- PDF export and sharing. Save an answer with its references or share a conversation by link.
Verum also publishes worked "case files." In one, a differential list for a young Ragdoll with isolated nystagmus cites 16 sources and shows it was answered in 11 seconds. In another, a gabapentin plan for an anxious cat with CKD links each recommendation to the underlying journal studies.
On pricing, the site states there is "no subscription or usage fees," and the case pages offer free access to practicing veterinarians and veterinary students.
Why Cited Answers Matter Right Now
AI adoption in veterinary medicine has moved fast. The 2026 Digitail and AAHA survey of 1,730 veterinary professionals found that 83.7% now use AI, up from 39.2% in 2024. Clinical documentation, including AI scribes and SOAP notes, was the most common use (62.8% of users). The top concern? Reliability and accuracy, cited by 67.4%.
That concern is fair. General-purpose chatbots were not built for veterinary pharmacology, and Plumb's has documented the ways they can get drug details wrong. Tools like Verum respond by grounding every answer in sources you can open. AI scribes respond with accuracy on real veterinary terminology and a doctor review before anything is final. Different problems, same principle: the veterinarian stays in charge. (We go deeper on this in The Devil Is in the Details: What Separates the Best Veterinary AI Scribe from a ChatGPT Wrapper.)
What Spoodle Is Not
Verum is very good at answering "what does the literature say about this patient's problem?" It is not built to answer "what happened in this exam, and what goes in the record?"
Specifically, Verum does not:
- Listen to appointments. You ask it questions. It does not capture the conversation between the doctor and the client.
- Write SOAP notes or vet notes. The history, exam findings, assessment, and plan still have to be documented.
- Integrate with your veterinary PIMS. Its site describes web and mobile apps, with no practice management or veterinary emr software integrations.
- Diagnose or make decisions. Verum's own disclaimer says it "does not diagnose conditions, recommend treatments, or replace clinical judgment."
- Document phone calls or draft discharge instructions from what was said in the room.
That last gap is exactly where an AI scribe fits.
Where HappyDoc Fits: Looking It Up vs. Writing It Down
HappyDoc is an AI assistant for veterinary medicine that listens to the appointment and drafts a complete medical record. If you are new to the format, here is the quick answer to what does SOAP stand for: Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan. The soap notes meaning in practice is a shared structure any doctor on your team can read. For a full soap note example, see What Makes a Good Veterinary SOAP Note (With Examples).
HappyDoc handles the documentation work Verum does not touch:
- Veterinary SOAP notes drafted from the actual exam conversation, in your own veterinary SOAP template.
- Client communications such as discharge instructions and visit recaps.
- Call Capture, which documents client phone calls automatically.
- HappyChart, which fills in dental charts from verbalized findings.
- Scout, HappyDoc's interactive assistant.
HappyDoc is trained on more than 2 million real veterinary appointments, is SOC 2 Type II certified, and integrates with AVImark, Cornerstone, ImproMed, ezyVet, Vetspire, Shepherd, DaySmart, and Covetrus Pulse, with a browser extension for other systems.
A simple way to think about it: Verum is the reference shelf. HappyDoc is the pen. One helps you decide; the other records what you decided.
How Spoodle and HappyDoc Work Together: A Side-by-Side Workflow
To be clear: HappyDoc does not have a native integration with Spoodle or Verum. The two tools do not exchange data. HappyDoc writes to your PIMS. Verum stays on the doctor's phone or browser.
Here is how a sick visit for a senior cat with kidney disease and new anxiety might look with both in place:
In this virtual scribe workflow, the doctor gets an evidence check in seconds and the record is written as the visit happens, not at 8 p.m.
Practical Tips for Running Both Tools
Say the conclusion out loud. HappyDoc documents what is said in the room. If you check Verum mid-visit, tell the client (and the scribe) what you decided and why: "Based on her kidney values, I'm starting a lower dose." That keeps the plan section of the SOAP note complete without anyone re-typing.
Keep the reasoning in the record and the reference in Verum. The medical record should hold your assessment and plan. If you want to retain the literature behind a decision, export the Verum answer as a PDF and attach it per your practice's policy. Clean soap charting is easier to audit.
Pick one owner for client handouts. Verum can summarize an answer for clients, and HappyDoc drafts discharge instructions from the visit itself. Decide which your team sends so clients do not get two versions.
Protect client data. Use signalment, not client names or contact details, when you ask any outside tool a clinical question. Treat it with the same care as the information on your veterinary intake form. Review each vendor's privacy terms with your practice manager. Our post on human-in-the-loop veterinary AI covers how to set guardrails.
Train by role. Doctors own note review in HappyDoc and decide whether Verum fits their workflow. See How Veterinary Teams Successfully Adopt New Technology.
Why This Combination Matters for Your Team
Two of the quiet time sinks in a busy day are hunting for an answer between rooms and finishing records after close. Neither shows up on the schedule, and both push the day longer for everyone. Doctors who chart late keep technicians late, and veterinary technician burnout often comes from that pile of small, unfinished tasks rather than one big one. Our post on what causes high turnover in veterinary clinics breaks down the root causes, and How to Reduce After-Hours Charting with AI shows what changes when records are done before the doctor leaves.
The best ai tools for vets do not add screens. They remove steps. An answer engine shortens the lookup. An AI scribe removes the rewrite.
If clinical decision support is on your radar, we also covered a related tool in What Is Sofie AI? How Veterinary Clinical Decision Support Works Alongside Your AI Scribe.
Choosing the Best Veterinary AI Scribe to Pair With Verum
Verum is free, so trying it is low risk. Your AI scribe is a bigger decision, because it touches every record your practice creates. When you compare the best veterinary AI scribe software, focus on five questions:
- Does it write back into your PIMS? Copy and paste erases most of the time savings. See the two integration questions practice managers forget to ask.
- Is it accurate on veterinary terminology? Drug names, doses, and breeds trip up general-purpose AI. Read Why AI Scribe Accuracy Is the Only Metric That Actually Matters.
- Is it secure? Look for SOC 2 Type II certification.
- Is it independent? A scribe owned by your PIMS or lab vendor may have different priorities. See why independence matters more than ever.
- Does it go beyond the SOAP note? Client recaps, call documentation, and dental charting all save time.
AAHA-member practices can also take advantage of HappyDoc's AAHA member offer. For a side-by-side look at the top-rated options, including how they stack up against top-rated veterinary EMR solutions with built-in scribes, read our 5 Best Veterinary AI Scribes 2026 Expert Guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Spoodle?Spoodle is a veterinary AI company founded at the University of Pennsylvania by Seher Taneja and JJ von Oiste. It makes Verum, a clinical answer engine that gives veterinarians cited answers from peer-reviewed literature, drug labels, and clinical guidelines.
What is the difference between Spoodle and Verum?Spoodle is the company. Verum is its product. The spoodle.ai web address takes you to Verum's site.
Is Verum free for veterinarians?Verum's site says there are no subscription or usage fees, and it offers free access to practicing veterinarians and veterinary students.
Does Verum include AAHA guidelines?Yes. Today's Veterinary Business reported in August 2026 that AAHA integrated its standards of care into Verum, so AAHA guidelines appear alongside cited literature.
Does Spoodle write SOAP notes?No. Verum answers clinical questions and can summarize answers for clients, but it does not listen to appointments or draft medical records. That is what an AI scribe like HappyDoc does.
Does HappyDoc integrate with Spoodle?No. There is no native integration between HappyDoc and Spoodle or Verum. HappyDoc writes SOAP notes into your PIMS, while Verum runs separately on the web or a mobile device.
Can I use Verum and HappyDoc in the same appointment?Yes. A common split is Verum for a quick evidence check during the visit and HappyDoc for documenting the history, exam, plan, and discharge instructions.
Does Verum replace clinical judgment?No. Verum's own disclaimer states that it does not diagnose conditions, recommend treatments, or replace clinical judgment. The treating veterinarian makes every decision.
Find the Answer With Verum. Finish the Record With HappyDoc.
If your doctors already use Verum to check the evidence, you have shortened the time between a question and a confident decision. HappyDoc shortens the time between that decision and a signed record, so your team can leave on time with every note done.
Book a demo with HappyDoc and we will show you exactly how HappyDoc fits into your exam room, your PIMS, and the tools your doctors already trust.
.png)
.png){kind=small}
