Terms of use and privacy policy

Last Updated: This page and policies herein was last updated on July 5, 2024.

This Terms of Use and Privacy Policy (the “Privacy Policy”) describes how Stitches Veterinary Surgery Corp. (“Stitches” or “us” or “our” or “we” or similar) uses our website and app (collectively, the “Site”) to collect, use, communicate and make use of personal information.

By using the Site, you are accepting and actively consenting to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

I. Intellectual Property Rights

II. Disclaimer and Legal Notices

The information on the Site is for general information purposes only. Nothing on the Site should be taken as medical advice for any individual case or situation and is not intended to be used for diagnostic or treatment purposes and is not intended to replace consultation with a qualified veterinary professional. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, a veterinarian-client-patient relationship (“VCPR”). A VCPR is only established by you visiting our offices and completing and signing the required paperwork (the “VCPR Paperwork”). Accordingly, you should not send Stitches Veterinary Surgery any confidential information. Stitches assumes no responsibility for the accuracy or timeliness of any information provided herein. All users should consult a qualified health provider for veterinary medical advice and answers to health questions. We do not answer specific medical questions on the Site or via e-mail. Contacting us via e-mail or any other means is not a substitute for medical care. If you have any questions or concerns about your pet’s health and before starting or stopping any treatment or acting upon information contained on or accessible via the Site, you should, and are explicitly advised to, contact your own veterinary health care provider.

In the event of any inconsistency between any VCPR Paperwork and this Privacy Policy, the VCPR Paperwork shall control.

The information on the Site is advertising. Any testimonial or endorsement contained in the Site does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your matter.

III. Information We Collect and How We Use It

Your privacy is very important to us. We do not collect any personal information other than the following:

Information which you voluntarily disclose to us; and
Certain technical information, such as a domain name, device ID, and IP address. We may also collect information about the type of internet browser you are using, operating system, what brought you to our Site, as well as which of our Site pages you have accessed.

We will not collect personally identifiable information about you such as your name, address, telephone number, email address, or credit card number, unless you voluntarily disclose that to us.

We use the collected information primarily for our own internal purposes, such as providing, maintaining, evaluating, and improving our services and Site, fulfilling requests for information, and providing customer support.

Stitches uses analytical software such as Google Analytics to assess Site health and functionality. Such software utilizes standard technology called “cookies,” and/or other technology to collect information and report on how our Site is being used. When you access our Site, we will be collecting information that may include the date and time of your Site visit, the number of pages visited during your session, and/or your session duration. We will also collect information pertaining to the browser or device used, the operating system used, the domain name of your internet service provider, your IP address, geographic information and certain other information. The provider of said analytic software may transfer the information it collects on to third parties when required to do so by law or where such third parties process the information on such provider’s behalf. By using our Site, you have granted your consent to the processing of data about you by such provider in the manners outlined above.

We currently do not use technology that responds to do-not-track signals from your browser.

IV. Email and Text Information

In the event that you provide us with your email address and/or mobile phone number, we may contact you via email and/or text to tell you about updates that we think you may be interested in, specials, marketing materials, new products or services, or changes to this Privacy Policy. You have the right to remove your email address and mobile phone number from any of our mailing lists at any time by sending us an email requesting us to do so or by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of each email newsletter.

V. LifeLearn Inc.

Our Site is hosted by LifeLearn Inc. (“LifeLearn”). Your information, including personal information, may be stored through LifeLearn’s servers. By visiting our Site, you consent to LifeLearn’s collection, disclosure, storage, and use of your Personal Information in accordance with LifeLearn’s privacy policy available at https://www.lifelearn.com/privacy-policy/.

VI. Collection of Information by Third-Party Sites and Sponsors

The Site may contain links to web sites and/or apps operated and maintained by third parties. In addition, such third-party sites may reference, advertise, or link to the Site. Stitches has no control over these third-party web sites. Privacy policies on such linked sites may be different from our Privacy Policy. Stitches does not endorse or sponsor other websites, is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such websites or apps, expressly disclaims any statements or assertions made on such web sites, and denies all liability associated with your use of, and the content on, such other sites and advertisements. You access such linked sites at your own risk. You should always read the privacy policy of a linked site before disclosing any Personal Information on such site since the third party site’s privacy policy will control the usage, etc. of all information which you provide to that site – our Site’s Privacy Policy will not apply.

VII. Disclosure of Your Personal Information

We will not sell or otherwise provide the information we collect to outside third parties for the purpose of direct or indirect mass email marketing. We will disclose personal information including, without limitation, IP address and/or device ID, when required by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to:

Cooperate with the investigations of purported unlawful activities and conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on our company.
Protect and defend the rights or property of our Site and related properties.
Identify persons who may be violating the law, the rights of third parties, or otherwise misusing our Site or its related properties.

We may also provide the information that we collect to outside third parties for the purpose of such parties providing us with services that we require in connection with the Site and as otherwise set forth in this Privacy Policy.

VIII. Social Media and Photographs

In the event that you contact us via social media, we may respond to you via such social media site. Your use of such social media sites will be governed by the terms of use and privacy policies of such social media sites.

If we have treated your pet and/or you have provided us with images (photos, videos, and/or otherwise) of your pet, we may include such images, or parts thereof, or photographs or videos that we have taken of your pet, with or without identifying you or your pet’s name, as we shall determine, on our Site and/or our social media accounts.

IX. Age of Consent

By using our Site, you represent that you are at least 18 years of age.

X. Merger or Acquisition

In the event that we undergo a business transaction such as a merger, acquisition by another company, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, your personal information may be among the assets transferred. You acknowledge and consent that such transfers may occur and are permitted by this Privacy Policy, and that any acquirer of our assets may continue to process your personal information as set forth in this Privacy Policy.

XI. Policy Changes

By using our Site, you consent to the collection and use of information as specified above. We reserve the right to change or update this Privacy Policy at any time without prior notice. If we make changes to our Privacy Policy, we will post those changes on this page. Please review this page frequently to remain up-to-date with the information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances we disclose it. You must review the new Privacy Policy carefully to make sure you understand our practices and procedures.

XII. Governing Law; Resolution of Disputes by Binding Arbitration

This Privacy Policy and all disputes arising hereunder or relating hereto or with respect to our Site shall be governed by the laws of the State of California without regard to conflicts of laws principles. You and we agree that all questions, disputes, controversies or claims between us shall be submitted to binding arbitration in accordance with the terms of the Federal Arbitration Act in Los Angeles County, California. YOU HEREBY WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO A COURT OR JURY TRIAL. This agreement to arbitrate applies to, but is not limited to, all disputes regarding the construction or application of this Privacy Policy, all claims arising under federal, state, or local statutory or common law, including, without limitation, claims of breach of promise[s], breach of contract or breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, tort claims, sexual harassment claims and any and all other claims of illegality or breach of any right which you might hold against us, under this Privacy Policy or otherwise.

XII. Contact

If you have any questions regarding our policies or your interactions with our Site, please contact us via this by mail or email as follows:

Privacy Officer
Stitches Veterinary Surgery Corp.
2211 North Bellflower Blvd.

Long Beach, CA, 90815