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PRIVACY NOTICE

Owner and Study Privacy Notice

Last updated November 5, 2026

We use your information to answer study inquiries, assess your pet’s eligibility, conduct research, and follow up on safety. Privacy questions go directly to Dr. Joel Ehrenzweig.

Who is responsible

Veterinary Health Research Centers LLC (VHRC) is responsible for the information it collects and uses for study inquiries, screening, and participation. This notice covers those activities, including linked study forms. Each study’s consent form explains its specific procedures and use of information. Submitting an interest form does not enroll your pet or replace informed consent.

What we collect

Depending on the study and your stage of participation, we may collect:

  • Your name, email, phone number, and address when needed for visits or shipments; your relationship to the pet and authority to consent.

  • Your pet’s identifying details, health history, treatments, veterinary records, laboratory results, and study assessments.

  • Questionnaire answers, photographs, videos, voice recordings, and activity-monitor data requested for the study.

  • Consent records, communication preferences, study messages, submission dates, and records of changes to study information.

Information comes from you, authorized caregivers, participating veterinary practices and laboratories, and study technology providers. We obtain veterinary records and device data under the permissions required for your study. Please do not include Social Security numbers, financial account details, or human medical information in study forms.

How we use it

We use information to assess eligibility, contact you, arrange visits and shipments, collect observations, evaluate results, investigate safety concerns, and maintain accurate research records. We also use it for study monitoring, audits, and applicable reporting requirements.

Contact about future studies or promotional use of identifiable photos, videos, or your name requires separate permission. Any further research use must follow the study consent and applicable requirements.

Who may receive it

Information may be shared, as needed, with authorized VHRC staff, study veterinarians and practices, laboratories, research analysts, study sponsors and monitors, and providers of study software, activity monitors, messaging, hosting, or archiving services. Disclosure may also be necessary for safety reporting, authorized audits or inspections, or a legal requirement.

Routine sponsor datasets and research reports use study codes instead of owner names and contact details. Authorized staff may still link coded records to you or your pet; coded records are not necessarily anonymous. Access to identifiable source records is limited by study permissions and applicable requirements.

We do not sell owners’ personal information or provide it to third parties for advertising. We do not publish identifiable owner information or identifiable photos or videos without separate permission.

Phone calls, email, and text messages

We may contact you about your inquiry or study participation. Providing a cell phone number does not by itself authorize automated texts. Where offered, text reminders require a separate opt-in. You can reply STOP to end automated texts or contact Dr. Ehrenzweig to change your preferences. Message and data rates may apply. Stopping texts does not itself withdraw your pet from the study; we will discuss another way to communicate.

How information is protected and stored

We limit access to people who need information for their study responsibilities. Our policy requires access controls, appropriate safeguards from service providers, protected storage of identifiable records, and study codes in research datasets. Please use the upload method provided by study staff for records, photographs, and videos.

For studies using Signalment, its published notice describes United States hosting, encryption, and access controls. Other services, including Maven accounts, have their own privacy notices for information they handle. Those notices also explain their separate account features and uses. You may ask us which systems and storage arrangements apply to your study.

How long we retain information

VHRC retains essential study records for at least seven years after formal study closure or issuance of the final study report, whichever is later. These records include consent forms, relevant veterinary records, study data, assessment photos and videos, safety reports, and audit trails.

We retain records longer when required by law, a regulatory submission, a sponsor agreement, or an unresolved audit, safety investigation, or legal matter. Contact details and unsuccessful inquiries that are not needed as part of the study record are removed when follow-up and other legitimate retention needs end, unless you separately agree to future contact.

VHRC’s archive must preserve required records independently of a software provider’s account-closure or deletion schedule. When identifiable information is no longer needed, we securely delete it or remove the information that identifies you. Data that no longer identify you may be retained for research.

Your choices and requests

Contact Dr. Ehrenzweig to ask what information we hold, request a copy or correction, request deletion, change contact preferences, or withdraw your pet. We may verify your identity before releasing or changing records. We respond under applicable requirements and explain any limits.

Withdrawal stops new study collection as described in the consent and withdrawal arrangements. Information already collected may need to remain in the study record to preserve research accuracy, safety reporting, or legal obligations. Corrections may be recorded without erasing the original entry or audit history.

Changes to this notice

We will date revised notices and explain material changes to affected owners. We will obtain additional permission when required before making a new use of identifiable information.

Privacy questions

Dr. Joel Ehrenzweig, DVM, MRCVS
Founder & CEO
Veterinary Health Research Centers LLC

Email: j.ehrenzweig@vhrcenters.com

Phone: 804-432-5664

Please identify the study and describe your question. Do not send sensitive records until we provide an appropriate way to share them.

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