Privacy Policy

Summary

• All your personal data (dog profile, walk history, preferences) is stored on your device only
• We do not have user accounts or servers that store your data
• Anonymous usage analytics are sent to PostHog (hosted in the EU) to help us improve the app
• Weather data is fetched from Open-Meteo, a free open-source weather API
• Apple Health data is read on-device and never transmitted externally

Data stored on your device

The following data is stored locally on your device using AsyncStorage. It never leaves your device unless explicitly noted below.

• Dog profile — your dog's name and weather preference (1–5 scale)
• Walk history — GPS route, timestamps, distance, duration, speed, and health data for each walk (up to 100 walks)
• Achievements — which achievements you have unlocked
• Preferences — theme (light/dark/system), units (metric/imperial), language, and notification settings
• Last known location — used to show weather without requiring a new GPS fix each time

You can delete all local data at any time by uninstalling the app or clearing app storage in your device settings.

Location data

WalkMyDoggo requests location access for two purposes:

1. Weather forecasts — your coordinates are sent to Open-Meteo's API to retrieve local weather and air quality data. Open-Meteo is a free, open-source service that does not require authentication or track users. See open-meteo.com/en/terms.
2. Walk tracking — when you start a walk, the app records your GPS route in the background. This route is stored locally on your device only and is never uploaded to any server.

You can also search for a location manually instead of using GPS.

Apple Health (iOS only)

When you start your first walk, the app requests read-only access to Apple Health for:

• Step count
• Active energy burned (calories)
• Heart rate
• Walking & running distance

This data is queried on-device to show walk statistics. It is never sent to any external service. WalkMyDoggo does not write any data to Apple Health. If you deny access, the app falls back to estimated values.

Analytics

We use PostHog (hosted in the EU at eu.posthog.com) to collect anonymous usage analytics. This helps us understand how features are used and improve the app. No personal identifiers are attached to these events.

What we track:

• App screens viewed
• Feature usage (e.g. walk started, walk completed, achievement unlocked, theme changed)
• Walk statistics (duration and distance, not routes or locations)
• Onboarding progress and permission grant/deny choices
• Dog name and weather preference (to understand usage patterns)

Session replay:

PostHog's session replay feature is enabled to help us diagnose issues and understand how the app is used. All text inputs are automatically masked. No GPS routes, health data, or location coordinates are included in replays.

What we do NOT track:

• GPS routes or coordinates
• Health data (steps, calories, heart rate)
• Your precise location
• Any data that could identify you personally

You cannot currently opt out of analytics within the app. If you would like your data removed from PostHog, contact us at the email below.

Notifications

If you enable walk reminders, notifications are scheduled locally on your device. No push notification tokens or personal data are sent to any server for this feature.

Third-party services

Data retention

• On-device data is retained until you uninstall the app or clear app storage.
• Analytics data in PostHog is retained according to PostHog's data retention policies.

Changes to this policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. The "last updated" date at the top will reflect the most recent revision.

Contact

If you have questions about this privacy policy, contact us at: walkmydoggoapp@gmail.com