Why an invite code and not a shared password
The most common way an app gets “shared” on ranches is one account and a password written on a slip of paper in the tack room. It works until someone leaves on bad terms, until a seasonal helper deletes a horse by mistake, or until you want to know who actually recorded that the mare got her medicine.
An invite code solves the same thing without these risks. Every person has their own account and their own phone. You don’t send them a password but a single-use code that connects them to one specific stable in one specific role. When the cooperation ends, you cancel their access — and nothing changes for anyone else.
On top of that there is a safeguard a shared password will never have: nobody you invite can delete animals or change the stable itself. That remains with the owner alone.
How to create an invite code for an employee or professional
- Open stable sharingIn the settings, at your stable, tap to invite people with a code.
- Choose the roleProfessional for a vet, farrier or trainer. Ranch worker for an employee. Horse owner for a client with a boarded horse.
- For a horse owner, mark the horsesYou select one or more horses that belong to them. They won’t see any others.
- Create the codeThe app generates an eight-character invite code with a validity date.
- Send itTapping share prepares a message with the code and instructions on where to enter it. You send it via WhatsApp, text or email.
You can have at most five active codes for one stable at a time. That is enough to invite a whole team, and it also prevents forgotten invitations from wandering around the world.
How an employee or professional joins the farm
The person you are inviting needs no training. A phone and a message from you are enough:
- They install iPalominoAnd sign in with their own account.
- They choose “I have an invite code”The option is offered right at first launch. Anyone already using the app finds the button “I have an invite code and want to use it to join a farm/ranch” in their profile.
- They enter the codeEight characters from the message you sent them.
- They are connectedThe stable appears in their app and the data that belongs to their role is downloaded.
The connected stable is shown next to their own, if they have any. A farrier can thus have their own horses and five clients’ stables in one app — more in the article managing multiple farms and ranches.
What the invited person sees and can do
The role you choose when creating the code determines everything else. Switch between the roles and compare what each one sees and edits:
You can change the role later: just send the person a new code with a different role, and once they enter it the access is adjusted.
A detailed explanation of each role and of the rules on who may delete what can be found in the article roles and access for the team.
Who the invite code helps
Horse owners
Invite your vet and farrier as professionals. After a visit they record what they did, and you have it in the horse’s record without copying from a slip of paper. Give your trainer access too — they see what the horse is fed and when it was last shod.
Farms and breeders
Family members and seasonal helpers join as workers. They see the tasks for today, can enter feed that has come into stock, and you know who did what. When the season ends, you cancel the access.
Ranches and stables with a team
You connect grooms as ranch workers and clients as horse owners. Each client has their horse on their phone, and you don’t have to send photos and messages to everyone separately.
Professionals: farrier, vet, trainer
As a farrier, vet or trainer you get a code from a client and a minute later you see their horses, their history and their appointments. You write things down exactly where the client looks for them, and you plan your next visit.
The most common mistakes when inviting people to a stable
An invite code is simple, yet a few things about it are worth getting right from the start:
- One code for the whole team. A code works once. Create a separate one for each person — also because each may have a different role.
- The wrong role. A farrier as a ranch worker will see stock and contacts he doesn’t need. The professional role is meant for specialists.
- A code sent and forgotten. After seven days it expires. If the person hasn’t joined, create a new one and cancel the old one.
- A horse owner without a horse. When creating the code for a client you have to assign their horses, otherwise they would have nothing to see. The app points this out to you.
- A list of people nobody checks. From time to time look at who has access to the stable and remove it from those who no longer need it.
Once your ranch team is connected properly, you never have to deal with the invite code again. What remains is the reason you sent it — working together on one set of data.
Validity of the code, cancelling it and removing access
An invite code is the key to your stable, and the app treats it that way:
- It works once. Once entered, it is used up. If someone forwards it, it won’t help a second person.
- It is valid for seven days. A forgotten code expires by itself after a week.
- It can be cancelled. Did you send it to the wrong number? As long as it hasn’t been used, you cancel it in the list of codes.
- It is protected against guessing. After several wrong attempts the person has to wait a while.
- Access is revocable. In the list of connected people you see the name, the role and the date of joining, and you remove access with a single tap.
After access is removed, the stable disappears from the person’s app. The records they added during the cooperation — treatments, appointments, completed tasks — stay with you, together with their name. The stable’s history is not lost when a person leaves.
Creating a code and joining both require the internet and a signed-in account. The work in the connected stable itself then also functions with no signal. And notifications and reminders keep you informed about changes from the others.
On Friday evening a new seasonal helper starts at the ranch. The owner creates a code for her with the ranch worker role and sends it via WhatsApp. On the train the helper installs the app, chooses “I have an invite code” and enters the eight characters.
On Saturday morning at six she already has the list of horses, the feed rations, three tasks for today and the vet’s number on her phone. Nobody had to dictate anything to her. When she leaves after the summer, the owner cancels her access — and everything she recorded during those two months stays in the stable.
Frequently asked questions
How do I create an invite code?
In the settings, at your stable, you open sharing, choose the role, and the app creates a code that you send by message.
How long is an invite code valid?
Seven days, and it can be used only once. You can cancel an unused code at any time.
Where is the invite code entered?
At the app’s first launch via “I have an invite code”, or later in the profile with the button “I have an invite code and want to use it to join a farm/ranch”.
Can an invited person delete my animals?
No. Nobody you invite can delete animals or change the stable. Only the owner can do that.
What happens when I remove someone’s access?
The stable disappears from their app. The records they added stay in your stable.
Related features of the iPalomino app
These features are related to the invite code:
Your whole ranch in one pocket.
iPalomino is now on the App Store. Download the app and try it in your own stable. An Android version is in development.