Get Started
Your path to earning the VOHC Seal of Acceptance begins here.
Program Overview
Products with the VOHC seal not only benefit your pet’s health, they have a proven record for better oral care. Studies prove a statistically significant benefit for pets that are given VOHC approved products when compared to pets that did not receive the product. Research supported claims on labels and packaging are important to help pet owners make well-informed decisions.
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Contact VOHC
Fill out the VOHC Pre-Trial Protocol Form found here. VOHC provides a Pre-trial Protocol Form to be used when submitting a draft Protocol for pre-trial review. The form contains all of the information needed to allow VOHC to ensure that the trial will meet VOHC Protocol requirements. Email the VOHC Pre-Trial Protocol Form to VOHC@avdc.org.
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Discuss Your Protocol with our VOHC Council
The VOHC Council will review your Pre-Trial Protocol Form to make sure you are on the right track to complete your trial and answer any questions you may have regarding your products and the types of seals the VOHC awards.
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Conduct your Clinical Trials with the Approved VOHC Protocol.
Two trials are required, to ensure repeatability of results. The dogs or cats included in one trial cannot be included in the second trial. Parallel group or cross-over trial designs are permitted. For cross-over trials, minimum duration is 28 days per leg of the trial, with a minimum between-leg rest period of 7 days in trials of a chemically-active product.
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Submit your Official Submission Documents and Fee
Get more details about Official Submissions
Quick Reference
Find detailed information about everything you’ll need to complete successful trials and get your product submitted for review.
VOHC Process Following Receipt of a Submission
1. A preliminary review is performed by the VOHC Director to determine whether the submission is complete and in the required format. Incomplete submissions are returned un-reviewed, with comments by the Director.
2. If the preliminary review by the Director indicates that the submission is complete, a detailed review is conducted by the VOHC Director, who prepares a report for review by Council members. The report may be sent to the sponsor if there are issues that need to be clarified prior to a formal review and vote by Council members.
3. If the statistical analysis is outside the standard analyses normally included in VOHC submissions, a statistical review is conducted by the VOHC Consultant Statistician, who prepares a report.
4. The submission, with the Director’s and, when necessary, Consultant Statisticians’ reports, is reviewed by all Council Members. Comments from individual Council Members are circulated to all Council members by the Director prior to completion of the vote.
5. Council Members vote whether to award the Seal, to request clarification of specific items, to reject the submission, or to hold the decision for discussion at a meeting of the Council members, which will be held electronically when necessary.
6. Council decisions to award the Seal are in the form of recommendations forwarded to the Board of Directors of the American Veterinary Dental College for ratification.
7. If the AVDC Board of Directors votes affirmatively on the recommendation from Council, the sponsor is sent a decision letter, accompanied by a copy of the VOHC-Sponsor Agreement for signature.
8. Two copies of the Agreement are signed by the sponsor’s responsible official, and both are returned to and signed by the VOHC Director. One copy of the fully executed Agreement is returned to the sponsor. At that time, the sponsor can start to use the VOHC Accepted Seal in association with the product.