Privacy Policy

Information we collect

Bark & Hike provides dog adventures and training on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria. This policy explains information handling through our website, application and booking systems, client portal and communications.

• Your name, email, phone number, suburb and pickup address, plus how you heard about us.
• Your dog’s name, breed, age, sex, desexing status, socialisation, recall, energy, temperament, training history and any triggers or health concerns you choose to share.
• Service interests, appointment dates and times, bookings, cancellations, dog profile notes and messages.
• For client accounts, account status, password hashes and session information used to sign you in.
• Website usage and technical information described below.

We collect information when you submit an application, book, use an account or contact us. Only provide information about another person when you have permission. Please avoid including unnecessary personal health or other sensitive information in free-text fields.

Why we use it

We use information to respond to enquiries, assess suitability, arrange meet and greets, plan appropriate packs and training, organise pickup and drop-off, manage accounts and bookings, communicate about services and support safety. Required details help us provide these services; without them we may be unable to process your application or booking.

Bookings, accounts and service providers

The public application form sends your contact details, dog information, address, service interests and chosen appointment to BookSwift at book-swift.com. BookSwift also supplies appointment availability. The client portal stores account, dog and booking records in the website’s database and uses session cookies to maintain sign-in. Booking notifications may be sent by email to the business.

Information may be available to authorised staff and providers supporting hosting, booking, email and website operation, where needed for those services. The website is hosted through HostGator and uses NRT Digital for analytics. Information may also be disclosed when required by law or needed to respond to an emergency.

Website analytics, cookies and embedded content

The NRT Digital analytics script sends the page path, referring website’s hostname and a site identifier to nrtdigital.com. These requests, like hosting requests, can expose an IP address and browser request information to the receiving server. The current tracking script does not itself set cookies or read browser storage, and does not send application field values. This does not describe every server-side log or third-party cookie.

Google Fonts loads fonts from Google’s servers. Instagram posts embedded on the home page load from Instagram when the browser requests them; Meta may receive technical information and use cookies or other tracking under its own policies. Facebook and Instagram links take you to external services with their own privacy practices.

You can manage cookies through your browser. Blocking session cookies can prevent portal sign-in. Browser privacy settings and content blockers may limit analytics or embedded content.

Photos, videos and adventure tracking

Our services may involve photos and videos of dogs, progress updates and GPS tracking during adventures. Photos or location records can also reveal information about people, routines or pickup locations. Contact us about what is recorded, how it is shared, or any concerns about identifying images or locations before your dog’s outing. This policy does not grant permission to publish your image.

Storage, overseas providers and retention

Records are held in the booking system, website database and relevant business communications. Account passwords are stored as hashes and portal sessions use security settings intended to protect sign-in. No internet service can guarantee absolute security.

Providers may process information outside Australia. Their processing locations and the business’s full retention schedule have not yet been verified for this website policy; contact us if you need those details. We have not assumed that every provider stores data in Australia.

We retain records for service administration, safety, dispute handling and applicable recordkeeping needs. Contact us to request deletion of information no longer needed. Some records may need to be kept for legal or operational reasons.

Access, correction and privacy concerns

Email hello@barkandhike.com.au or call 0428 494 007 to request access, correction or deletion, raise a concern, or ask about information sharing. We may need to verify your identity before providing account information. Explain your concern and the outcome you would like so we can investigate and respond.

If a concern remains unresolved, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner provides information about privacy complaints and whether it can assist.

Policy updates

We will update this page when website features or information practices change. This version reflects the website features reviewed on 3 October 2026. Business-wide retention arrangements, provider processing locations and media practices remain subject to business confirmation.