Terms of use

1What dogwalking.pt is

dogwalking.pt is a website that puts dog owners in touch with independent dog walkers in Portugal. dogwalking.pt does not provide the walks, visits, nights or boarding itself: the walker the owner chooses does. dogwalking.pt vets walkers before their profile is published, provides the tools to book, follow and review, and steps in when something goes wrong.

Each booking is an agreement between the owner and the walker. dogwalking.pt is not a party to it, is not the walkers' employer, does not set prices and does not receive payment for the services.

When creating an account, asking for a service and accepting a request, each person confirms they understand this role of dogwalking.pt. We keep the date of that confirmation and the version of these terms it was made under.

By creating an account or making a booking, you accept these terms. If you disagree with any of them, please do not use the site.

2Accounts

You must be 18 or older. The details you give must be true and up to date, especially your address, emergency contact and each dog's profile: that is what the walker works from.

Your account is personal. Keep your password safe and tell us if you think someone else has used it.

For owners, dogwalking.pt is free. Before your first request you confirm your email; until you have a completed booking, you can send up to 2 requests a day to new walkers. A request the walker does not accept within 24 hours expires at no cost.

3Walkers

Walkers are independent people, not dogwalking.pt employees. They set their own prices, hours, areas, free-cancellation window and how many dogs they take on a group walk.

Before publishing a profile, dogwalking.pt reviews the application. The "Identity confirmed" badge means we have seen a video introduction from the walker and an identity document.

The "Insured" and "First aid" badges mean we have seen the policy or the certificate; the "Veterinary training" badge means we have seen the diploma or licence of a veterinarian, veterinary nurse or veterinary assistant. This reduces risk; it does not remove it.

Each walker chooses which requests to accept and may turn down any of them; turning one down or letting it expire does not change their place in the list. They may have their own clients and work elsewhere. They are responsible for their own business, taxes, the receipts or invoices they issue to owners, and their insurance.

A walker may pay, in credits, for a Featured place: during the paid period they come first in the list for their areas, always with the "Featured · Sponsored" label, and there is a maximum number of places per municipality. Below that, the list follows the order described in "How we order walkers".

By accepting a booking, the walker undertakes to the owner to do what they agreed and to tell them as soon as they cannot. Check-in and check-out, the route and the report are tools available to the walker and the owner.

4The dogs

The owner confirms that each dog is microchipped and registered on SIAC, has a valid rabies vaccination, other vaccinations and worming up to date, and that the profile tells the truth about the dog's temperament: how it reacts to people, other dogs and other animals, whether it has ever bitten, and whether it belongs to a breed classed as potentially dangerous.

A dog of a potentially dangerous breed is walked only muzzled and on a short lead, by a walker who expressly accepts it, and does not join group walks. The walker may refuse or stop a service if the dog becomes aggressive or if the safety of the dog, the walker or other people is at risk, and tells the owner at once.

5Walks

What follows is the starting point: the owner and the walker may agree otherwise, within what the law allows.

• The dog is always on a lead, attached to a well-fitted collar or harness carrying the owner's ID tag.
• Off the lead only if the owner allows it in writing (in the dog's profile or the booking messages) and only where the law and local rules allow it, such as fenced dog parks. Even with permission, the walker may decide not to let the dog off.
• Group walks: at most the number of dogs the walker shows on their profile, and never more than 6. Only sociable dogs with up-to-date vaccinations; the walker may turn down a dog that does not settle in the group.
• The walker always picks up after the dog and follows the rules of each place, including beaches and gardens where dogs are not allowed.
• If the walker uses a car, the owner is told beforehand, and the dog travels safely (crate, dog seat belt or guard).

6Boarding at the walker's home

With boarding, the dog stays at the walker's home. The walker runs it on their own account and responsibility and, before offering it, declares that they follow the rules on lodging companion animals (Decree-Law 276/2001), including, where it applies, notifying DGAV and the municipality, and their municipality's and building's rules on how many animals they keep at home. dogwalking.pt does not visit or check the walker's home. If in doubt, talk to the walker before booking, for example at a first meeting.

7The walker's own clients

A walker can record on dogwalking.pt clients of their own who have no account (name, contacts, address, dogs and bookings).

For that data the walker is the controller; dogwalking.pt processes it on the walker's behalf, only to provide the site's tools (processor, Article 28 GDPR): it does not use it for anything else, does not share it, protects it with the same security measures and deletes it when the walker deletes it or closes their account.

The walker confirms they may record that data and tells those clients they use dogwalking.pt.

8Bookings and payment

A booking is an agreement between the owner and the walker. The price is what the profile shows at the time of booking: per walk, per dog on a group walk, per visit or per night, plus the price for each extra dog where it applies. The total is shown before you confirm.

The owner pays the walker directly, as they agree (MB WAY, bank transfer, cash or the "Pay now" button, which uses the walker's own ifthenpay account). dogwalking.pt does not take or hold owners' payments and does not issue invoices on the walker's behalf.

dogwalking.pt charges the walker, in credits (1 credit ≈ €1), for the introduction to each new client:

• 2 credits for a one-off request;
• 4 for overnight stays or boarding;
• 6 for regular walks or visits.

How it works:

• Before accepting, the walker sees the whole request, the client's reviews and how often they cancelled after a walker accepted, and can ask the owner 1 question.
• The credits are charged when the walker accepts the request, and the walker then sees the client's name, phone and address.
• The credits are not given back if the owner or the walker cancels afterwards. Owners' cancellations after acceptance are recorded and shown to walkers.
• In serious situations (a fake client, the owner did not show up or answer, the dog very different from its profile), the walker can ask for a refund in writing in their account, up to 14 days after accepting and at most twice a month. The team looks into it and decides; a false request can lead to the profile being suspended.
• Later bookings with the same client, and the ones the walker records for their own clients, cost nothing.
• Credits bought never expire. Bonus credits are valid for 90 days from the first request from a new client and cannot be exchanged for money.

9Cancellations

The rules are on the cancellations page, which is part of these terms. In short: each walker chooses their free-cancellation window, shown on their profile and on the booking (if they do not choose one, 24 hours); within it, the owner cancels each walk, visit or night free of charge; after that, the service is owed to the walker.

A walker who cancels must tell the owner as early as possible; dogwalking.pt shows the owner other free walkers.

10Keys and home

The owner decides how to hand over the keys. dogwalking.pt records the handover and the return when both sides mark them on the booking page. The walker uses the keys only for the booked services and makes no copies. The walker is responsible for the keys handed to them; dogwalking.pt steps in to help resolve the situation.

11GPS location on walks

During a walk, the walker's phone records its location to draw the route, which the owner sees live and in the report. The route is shared only with the dog's owner. dogwalking.pt does not use routes to assess, rank or control walkers.

On group walks, each owner sees the route without the first and last 150 metres, so nobody sees where the other dogs live.

Routes are deleted after 90 days; the duration, distance, notes and report stay.

12Photos and reports

Report photos belong to the owner and the walker. dogwalking.pt keeps them for 365 days and then deletes them. The owner may allow dogwalking.pt to use photos of their dog on the site; without that permission, they are not used.

13Reviews

After at least three completed walks, visits or nights, the owner can review the walker and the walker can review the client. Both reviews stay hidden until both have written, or 14 days pass.

Reviews of walkers are public; reviews of clients never are: only the client and the walkers they send requests to see them. dogwalking.pt removes those that insult, reveal personal data or are plainly false.

14Liability

dogwalking.pt is responsible for the running of the site and for vetting walkers as described above. The service itself (walk, visit, night or boarding), and what happens during it, is the walker's responsibility, within the limits of the law. The owner is responsible for the accuracy of the dog's and home's details.

Damage a dog causes to people, animals or property is dealt with under the law. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits anyone's liability, including dogwalking.pt's, for death or personal injury, or for wilful misconduct or gross negligence.

We recommend that owners and walkers have liability insurance; for dogs of potentially dangerous breeds, the owner's insurance is required by law.

If there is a problem, follow the "If something goes wrong" page: dogwalking.pt steps in and helps resolve it.

15Suspension

dogwalking.pt may suspend or remove an account that breaks these terms, gives false information, mistreats animals or people, lets dogs off the lead without permission, or uses the site to get round the rules (for example, booking off-site to avoid the new-client fee after the contact was made here).

16Identifying walkers

Before a profile goes live, dogwalking.pt asks the walker for their tax number, date of birth and tax address, and for an undertaking to offer, through dogwalking.pt, only services that comply with the law.

These details are private: they are needed to comply with the Digital Services Act and to report to the tax office, once a year, what each walker earned through dogwalking.pt (DAC7).

17Reports

Anyone can report a profile they believe is illegal or breaks these terms, with "Report this profile" at the end of each profile.

We confirm receipt by email, a person on our team looks at the report (we do not use automated decisions) and we tell the person who reported it what we decided. Repeated, manifestly unfounded reports may no longer be looked at.

18Decisions and complaints

When dogwalking.pt removes content from a profile, or suspends or removes a profile, it tells the walker what it decided and why, with the rule in these terms or the law concerned.

Removing a profile for good is announced 30 days in advance, unless the law prevents it or in serious or repeated cases (a risk to animals or people, fraud, getting round the new-client fee).

The walker can contest that decision, and any other decision that affects them (the order in the list, for example), for 6 months, through the contact form (topic "I am a walker: contest a decision") or by email to filipe@dogwalking.pt.

A person reviews the case and replies within 15 days. They can also go to an out-of-court dispute settlement body or to the courts.

19How we order walkers

We order profiles like this:

• First, Featured profiles: a paid place, always marked.
• Then reviews: a weighted average, so one or two do not weigh too much. No reviews is no penalty.
• Services done through dogwalking.pt.
• Checks: identity confirmed, insurance, first aid.
• A complete profile.
• A boost for new profiles in their first weeks.

A small daily rotation takes turns between profiles with similar scores. Walkers cannot pay for a better place, apart from Featured. Acceptance rate, response time, declined requests and walk routes never count.

20The app

The dogwalking.pt app is free and is the site itself, installed on your phone. These terms and the privacy policy apply to it. If you download it from Google Play, Google Play's terms also apply to the download, but Google is not a party to this agreement and is not responsible for the service.

It needs an internet connection. We keep it working on current browsers and current versions of Android and iOS, without guaranteeing every device. We may change the app or stop offering it; the site stays available in the browser.

Notifications and location are optional and can be turned off at any time in the phone's settings; without location, the walker cannot record the route of a walk. Notifications are for the service (bookings, walks, messages), not for advertising.

The name, logo and content of the app belong to dogwalking.pt. You may use it for your own use, without copying or changing it, or trying to reach other people's data.

21Changes and law

We may change these terms; active accounts are told by email 15 days in advance. Portuguese law applies.

For a consumer dispute you may turn to the Lisbon Consumer Arbitration Centre, Centro de Arbitragem de Conflitos de Consumo de Lisboa (www.centroarbitragemlisboa.pt, juridico@centroarbitragemlisboa.pt, +351 218 807 000, Rua dos Douradores, 116, 2.º, 1100-207 Lisboa) or, outside the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, to CNIACC, the national consumer arbitration centre (www.arbitragemdeconsumo.org, cniacc@fd.unl.pt).

More at the Portal do Consumidor (www.consumidor.gov.pt). You can also use the electronic Livro de Reclamações.

Contact: filipe@dogwalking.pt. This is also the single point of contact for authorities and users under the Digital Services Act (Articles 11 and 12), in Portuguese or English.

22Open requests

An owner may leave an open request:

• dogwalking.pt tells the walkers who cover the area, offer the service and accept the dogs. Up to 3 may reply, in order of arrival.
• Replying costs the walker 2 credits, refunded if the owner chooses them.
• The owner chooses freely, or chooses no one. Credits of walkers not chosen are not refunded.
• Contact details are only shared when the owner books and the walker accepts the booking; the normal new-client fee applies then.

23Local business directory

The directory lists businesses for dogs (vets, shops, grooming, training, kennels and day care, physio). dogwalking.pt does not provide these services, take payments for them or take part in any agreement between the businesses and their customers.

The information on each business comes from the business itself, which is responsible for it being accurate.

The basic listing is free. The full profile:

• costs €29 a month or €290 a year, VAT included, paid in advance and with no automatic renewal;
• keeps the price of the first payment while the business renews with no gap over 60 days;
• has a maximum number per category and municipality (per parish in Lisbon, Porto and the larger municipalities), shown in the account.

When the period ends, the business goes back to the basic listing. What was paid is not refunded if the business stops using the profile before the end, unless we made a mistake.

Launch offer: businesses that join the directory by 30 November 2026 pay €9 a month or €90 a year for the full profile, for 2 years from the date they joined; after that, the normal price applies. These businesses also get the founding partner mark, with no end date, for as long as they are in the directory.

Order:

• In the directory and on area pages, full profiles come first, always labelled "Featured", then basic listings. Within each group, alphabetically.
• Full profiles may also appear, always labelled and only in the owner's municipality, in the owner's account, in reports and in booking and diary reminder emails, in a daily rotation. Owners can switch the email suggestions off.
• Kennels and day care never appear next to bookings with walkers.
• Walkers may recommend up to 3 businesses in their area, with no payment from either side.

Before publishing, we check that the business exists. We may refuse or remove a business with false, misleading or illegal information; the business receives the decision by email, with the reason, and can challenge it. If it is removed for a reason that is not the business's fault, we refund the unused part of the full profile.

Anyone can tell us about a mistake, with "Something wrong?", in the directory and on each page.