Privacy Policy

Tether is a foster-first platform connecting Houston shelter dogs with homes that fit them. We take your privacy seriously — this page explains, in plain English, what information we collect, why, and what we do (and don't do) with it.

      The short version: We collect only what we need to match fosters with dogs. We never sell your data. We never share it with advertisers. Shelter coordinators see foster profiles only to make matches. You can ask us to delete your data at any time.
    

What we collect

When you sign up as a foster, we ask for:

Your name, email, phone number, and ZIP code
Information about your home (housing type, yard, rent/own status)
Information about your household (children, other pets)
Your fostering experience and lifestyle (schedule, activity level, preferences)
Optional photos of your living space

When a shelter joins Tether, we collect organizational contact information and information about the dogs in their care.

Why we collect it

One reason: to match dogs with the homes that fit them. Every field we ask for feeds our matching process. We don't collect data we don't use.

Who can see your information

Partner shelter coordinators can view foster profiles to evaluate and contact potential matches.
Tether administrators can access data to operate and improve the platform.
Nobody else. Your information is never public, never sold, and never shared with third parties for marketing.

Photos of your home

Home photos are always optional. If you share them, they are viewed only by shelter coordinators evaluating a match — they are reviewed by people, not analyzed by automated systems, and are never made public. If you leave the Tether network, your photos are deleted.

How we protect your data

Data submitted to Tether is stored with encryption in transit and at rest. Access is limited to the parties described above. Each partner shelter can only access data relevant to their own operations.

Your rights

You can, at any time:

Ask what information we hold about you
Ask us to correct your information
Ask us to delete your information entirely

To do any of these, email us at hello.tether.dog@gmail.com. We'll respond within 30 days.

Children's privacy

Tether is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. Foster applicants must be adults.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, we'll update this page and the date at the top. Significant changes will be communicated to registered users by email.

Contact

Questions about privacy or your data: hello.tether.dog@gmail.com