Digital Archiving and Preservation Policy

In an increasingly digital scholarly environment, Open Veterinary Journal (OVJ) recognizes the essential role of reliable digital archiving and preservation in safeguarding the scholarly record. This policy outlines OVJ’s commitment to ensuring the long-term availability, integrity, and accessibility of all published content for researchers and the wider scientific community, both now and in the future.

1. Digital Archiving Infrastructure

1.1 Secure Hosting and Server Redundancy

OVJ hosts its digital content on secure, professionally managed servers supported by redundancy systems designed to minimize service interruptions and reduce the risk of data loss due to hardware failure, cyber threats, or unforeseen events.

1.2 Regular Data Backups

All journal content is backed up automatically at regular intervals. Backup copies are stored in geographically distributed locations to ensure rapid recovery and continuity of access in the event of system failure or data corruption.

2. Open Access and Accessibility

2.1 Open Access Availability

Consistent with its open-access publishing model, OVJ ensures that all published articles are freely and permanently accessible online without subscription or registration barriers. This policy supports the widest possible dissemination and reuse of scholarly content.

2.2 Accessibility and Usability

OVJ strives to comply with internationally recognized web accessibility standards to ensure that published content is usable by individuals with disabilities. The journal is committed to providing a user-friendly, inclusive digital platform for readers worldwide.

3. Metadata, Discoverability, and Interoperability

3.1 Metadata Standards

OVJ applies recognized metadata standards, including Dublin Core and Crossref metadata requirements, to enhance discoverability, indexing, and interoperability with academic databases, repositories, and search engines.

3.2 Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs)

Each article published in OVJ is assigned a unique and persistent Digital Object Identifier (DOI) through Crossref. DOIs ensure reliable citation, long-term linking, and continued access to scholarly content even if web locations change.

4. Licensing, Copyright, and Preservation Rights

4.1 Open Licensing

All OVJ content is published under Creative Commons licensing, allowing lawful reuse, sharing, and adaptation of published material in accordance with the applicable license terms. This facilitates long-term preservation and lawful archiving by libraries and repositories.

4.2 Author Rights and Self-Archiving

Authors retain copyright of their work and are encouraged to deposit the final published version of their articles in institutional and subject repositories, personal websites, and other scholarly platforms, provided appropriate attribution to OVJ is maintained.

5. Collaboration with Archiving and Preservation Services

5.1 SHERPA/RoMEO

OVJ maintains transparent copyright and self-archiving policies and seeks inclusion in SHERPA/RoMEO to clearly communicate author rights and repository permissions to the scholarly community.

5.2 Long-Term Preservation Services

OVJ is committed to long-term digital preservation and actively explores and supports participation in trusted archiving initiatives such as LOCKSS (Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe) and CLOCKSS (Controlled Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe). These services ensure that journal content remains accessible even in the event of journal discontinuation or publisher disruption.

6. Persistent Identifiers and Scholarly Linking

6.1 Scholarly Cross-Linking

OVJ participates in cross-linking initiatives with indexing services, repositories, and scholarly databases to enhance content visibility, citation accuracy, and long-term accessibility.

6.2 ORCID Integration

OVJ strongly encourages authors to register for and use Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) identifiers to ensure accurate attribution of scholarly work and seamless integration with research information systems.

7. Monitoring, Review, and Continuous Improvement

7.1 Preservation Monitoring

OVJ periodically reviews its digital preservation practices, including file formats, metadata quality, backup procedures, and platform stability, to ensure compliance with evolving preservation standards.

7.2 Policy Review and Enhancement

This policy is reviewed regularly and updated as needed in response to technological developments, community feedback, and emerging best practices in digital archiving and scholarly publishing.

Open Veterinary Journal’s digital archiving and preservation practices reflect its commitment to protecting the scholarly record, promoting open access, and ensuring the enduring availability of veterinary research. Through robust infrastructure, standardized metadata, trusted preservation partnerships, and ongoing assessment, OVJ aims to contribute meaningfully to the global preservation of scientific knowledge in veterinary medicine.