The Dog Physio Ltd, trading as The Dog Physio, is the controller responsible for the personal information described in this policy.

In this policy, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to The Dog Physio Ltd.

This policy applies to information used in connection with the website, enquiries, owner and veterinary referral forms, appointments, canine physiotherapy and rehabilitation services, clinical communications, payments and insurance administration.

Information may be received:

• directly from you, including through a website form, email, telephone call, appointment or signed document;
• from a person authorised to act for you or care for your dog;
• from your dog’s veterinary practice, referring veterinary professional or another professional involved in their care;
• from a pet insurer or claims administrator where you ask us to assist with a claim; and
• automatically from your device when you use the website, as described in the website and cookies section.

• Contact and identity details: your name, address, email address, telephone number and relationship to the dog.
• Dog and clinical information: your dog’s identity, veterinary practice, diagnosis, medical and surgical history, medication, behaviour, mobility, lifestyle, referral information, clinical records, treatment plans, progress notes and relevant documents.
• Appointment and communication records: bookings, attendance, emails, telephone notes, form submissions, preferences and instructions.
• Insurance and payment information: insurer, policy or claim details, invoices, payment status and related correspondence. Full payment-card details are not intentionally retained by The Dog Physio.
• Images and recordings: clinical photographs or video used to assess or monitor your dog, and separately authorised material for education or marketing.
• Website information: IP address, browser/device details, pages visited, form security information and cookie or analytics data where enabled.

Personal information is only used where there is a lawful basis. Depending on the activity, this may be performance of a contract, steps taken at your request before a contract, compliance with a legal obligation, our legitimate interests, or your consent.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we consider the purpose, necessity and possible effect on your rights before proceeding. We do not use personal information for automated decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects.

Relevant information may be requested from or shared with your dog’s registered or referring veterinary practice so that treatment is appropriately authorised, informed and coordinated. This may include referral details, medical history, assessment findings, treatment updates and recommendations for veterinary review.

Where appropriate and authorised, information may also be shared with another professional involved in your dog’s care. Only information reasonably relevant to that purpose will be shared.

Clinical records are professional records. A request to delete information does not always mean that an accurate treatment record can be removed if it remains necessary for clinical safety, professional accountability, insurance or legal reasons.

If you ask us to help with a pet-insurance claim, relevant information may be used and shared with your insurer, claims administrator and veterinary practice. This may include invoices, treatment dates, referral information, clinical notes or reports, policy details and claim correspondence.

Only information needed for the claim will be provided. Insurers make their own decisions and act as separate controllers for the information they receive.

Payment and accounting records are used to administer fees, reconcile payments and meet tax and company-record obligations. Where a separate bank, payment service or accounting provider is used, it processes information under its own terms and privacy arrangements.

Information may be shared, only where appropriate, with:

• your dog’s veterinary practice, referring veterinary professional and authorised members of the wider care team;
• your pet insurer or its claims administrator when you ask us to support a claim;
• trusted providers supporting website hosting, forms, email, secure storage, IT, accounting and business administration;
• professional advisers, insurers or legal representatives where needed for a complaint, claim or legal matter; and
• courts, law-enforcement bodies, regulators or public authorities where disclosure is required or permitted by law.

Service providers are only given the information needed for their role. Personal information is not sold, rented or shared for unrelated third-party marketing.

Some website, email, form, analytics or software suppliers may store or process information outside the United Kingdom. Where a restricted international transfer takes place, we will use a recognised protection where required, such as a UK adequacy regulation or approved contractual safeguards.

You can contact us if you would like more information about the categories of suppliers used or the safeguards relevant to your information.

The website currently uses storage technologies needed for security, forms, accessibility and basic operation. Visitor analytics, advertising cookies and behavioural tracking are not currently enabled.

If this changes, the Cookie Policy will be updated and any consent required by law will be requested before optional technologies are used. Continuing to browse will not be treated as consent.

Website logs and form-security tools may collect technical information to prevent spam, detect misuse and protect the site. The lawful basis for essential security processing is usually our legitimate interest in operating a safe and reliable website.

Clinical photographs or video may be taken where useful for assessment, treatment planning, movement review or monitoring progress. When identifiable information is retained as part of the clinical record, it is handled in the same way as other clinical information.

Identifiable photographs, video, testimonials or case material will not be used on the website, social media, printed materials or other public marketing without a separate and specific permission. Saying no will not affect your dog’s treatment.

You may withdraw a marketing permission by contacting us. This will stop new use where reasonably possible, although material already printed, supplied to others or lawfully published may not always be fully retrievable.

Information is kept only for as long as reasonably needed for the purpose for which it was collected, including continuity of care and applicable clinical, professional, insurance, accounting, tax and legal requirements. Different records may therefore be kept for different periods.

Enquiries that do not lead to an appointment are reviewed and removed when no longer needed. Financial records are normally kept for the period required by tax and company law. Records may be kept longer where a complaint, insurance matter, legal claim or continuing care need is ongoing or reasonably anticipated.

At the end of the relevant period, personal information will be securely deleted, destroyed or anonymised unless there is a lawful reason to retain it.

Reasonable technical and organisational measures are used to protect personal information. These include access controls, password-protected systems, secure service providers, appropriate device and account security, careful information sharing and secure storage or disposal of any paper records.

Access is limited to people and providers who need the information for an authorised purpose. No system can be guaranteed completely secure, but suspected data incidents will be assessed and handled in line with applicable requirements.

Depending on the circumstances and lawful basis, you may have the right to:

• be informed about how your personal information is used;
• request access to the personal information held about you;
• ask for inaccurate or incomplete information to be corrected;
• ask for information to be erased in certain circumstances;
• ask for processing to be restricted;
• object to processing based on legitimate interests or to direct marketing;
• receive or transfer certain information in a portable format; and
• withdraw consent at any time where consent is the basis used.

These rights are not absolute. For example, some clinical or financial records may need to be retained. We may ask for information to confirm your identity before responding to a request.

Please contact The Dog Physio first if you have a question, want to exercise a right or are concerned about how your information has been handled. We will acknowledge a data-protection complaint within 30 days, take appropriate steps without undue delay, keep you informed where necessary and tell you the outcome.

You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office. Information about making a data-protection complaint is available at ico.org.uk.

This policy may be updated as services, suppliers or legal requirements change. The latest version will be published on this page, with the date shown below.