Posting to Facebook and Instagram

What this is for

Connect your Facebook Page once, and Whelpify can announce a puppy on Facebook and Instagram the moment that puppy becomes available on your website. You do not have to remember to post, and the announcement always links back to your own site.

Where to find it

In the left sidebar, open Account, then Social.

Connect your Facebook Page

1. Click Connect Facebook.
2. Sign in to Facebook as the person who manages the Page.
3. Approve the permissions Facebook asks for, including posting to the Page.
4. Choose the Page you want Whelpify to post to.
5. You come back to the Social page and the Facebook card shows Connected.

Whelpify posts to a Facebook Page, not to a personal profile. If the account you sign in with does not manage any Page, the connection cannot finish.

The Facebook card shows when the connection expires. Click Reconnect before that date and auto-posting keeps working without a gap. Reconnecting uses the same steps and does not lose anything.

Add Instagram

Instagram publishing rides on the Facebook connection, so there is nothing separate to sign in to. You need an Instagram Business account linked to the Facebook Page you just connected. When that is in place, the Instagram card shows Linked via Facebook.

If the card says no Instagram Business account is linked, link one to your Page in Facebook, then come back and click Reconnect on the Facebook card.

Turn on automatic puppy posts

Switch on Auto-post new available puppies. The switch stays disabled until Facebook is connected.

Once it is on, a puppy posts when two things are true at the same time: its status becomes Available, and it is set to show on your website. Puppies that were already available do not get posted again, and nothing is posted while the switch is off.

What actually gets posted

The post is written from the puppy record, so what you enter there is what families read:

• The puppy name, with a line saying the puppy is now available
• Gender, color, and weight, when you have filled them in
• The litter name
• The puppy description
• A link to that puppy's page on your website
• The puppy's first photo

Instagram needs a photo. A puppy with no usable photo posts to Facebook only, and the Instagram attempt is recorded with a note explaining why.

Check that a post went through

Recent Social Posts lists the last posts with the platform, the date, and a badge: Success, Error, or Pending. If you see Error, the usual causes are an expired connection or a Page permission that was removed. Click Reconnect on the Facebook card and publish the next puppy to test it.

Common questions

Can I write my own caption?

Not from this page. The caption is built from the puppy record, so edit the puppy's name, description, and photos in puppies before you mark it available.

Can I post to a personal Facebook profile?

No. Whelpify posts to a Facebook Page. If you do not have one yet, create the Page in Facebook first, then connect.

Nothing posted when I marked a puppy available. Why?

Check three things: Auto-post new available puppies is on, the Facebook card says Connected, and the puppy is set to show on your website. A puppy hidden from your site is never announced.

Does this replace emailing my waitlist?

No. Social posts are public. Emails to your families are separate and are controlled in the customer emails control center.