Methodology
How Petfair confirms vet ownership
Petfair publishes an ownership statement only when it is supported by positive, original-source evidence. Where the evidence is not strong enough, we show no ownership claim.
What confirmed means
Confirmed group ownership is backed by a practice or group website, an original published price source on the group's domain, or two agreeing original-source signals. A name resemblance or an unverified directory entry is not enough and is not displayed publicly.
Brand and operator
A clinic may keep its local consumer-facing name while being operated by a larger veterinary group. Petfair preserves the clinic name and describes the operator separately. Vets4Pets and Companion Care, for example, roll up to the Pets at Home Vet Group without replacing the brand shown in the clinic name.
Independent and unknown
“Independently owned” requires positive evidence from the practice's original website. A clinic is never labelled independent simply because no group has been identified. Unknown ownership remains unknown and produces no ownership line.
Checks and changes
Ownership can change. When a clinic page shows a checked month, that date is the actual evidence-verification date—not a page build or deployment date. No date is shown where the source record has no verification date.