Community Standards & Prohibited Conduct

Version 1.0

1. Purpose

PawPair HQ™ is designed to help breeders, pet owners, adopters, and breeding participants connect in a safe, transparent, respectful, and responsible environment.

These Community Standards apply to all users, including:

• Breeders
• Pet owners
• Buyers
• Adopters
• Breeding participants
• Reviewers
• Visitors
• Administrators

These Standards supplement the PawPair HQ Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, Breeder User Agreement, Breeder Practices & Community Standards, and PawPair SafeMeet™ Safety Guidelines & Liability Waiver.

Using PawPair HQ means agreeing to follow these Standards.

2. General Conduct

Users must:

• Provide truthful and accurate information.
• Treat other users respectfully.
• Communicate professionally.
• Follow applicable laws.
• Respect animal welfare.
• Use the Platform only for legitimate purposes.
• Cooperate with reasonable safety or fraud investigations.
• Follow all PawPair HQ policies and agreements.

Users are responsible for their own conduct, content, animals, listings, transactions, and communications.

3. Respectful Communication

Users may not engage in:

• Harassment
• Bullying
• Threats
• Intimidation
• Stalking
• Repeated unwanted contact
• Abusive language
• Sexual harassment
• Hate speech
• Degrading or humiliating conduct
• Encouraging harm against another person

Users must stop contacting another user when reasonably asked to do so, unless communication is necessary to complete a legitimate transaction, resolve a dispute, or comply with a legal obligation.

4. Discrimination

Users may not unlawfully discriminate against another person based on protected characteristics under applicable law.

PawPair HQ may remove content or restrict accounts that use hateful, demeaning, or exclusionary language.

Breeders may establish reasonable placement criteria related to:

• Animal safety
• Housing suitability
• Household environment
• Experience with the breed
• Ability to provide care
• Compatibility with other pets
• Compliance with breeder contracts

Such criteria must not be used as a pretext for unlawful discrimination.

5. Fraud and Misrepresentation

Users may not:

• Provide false identity information.
• Impersonate another person or business.
• Create fake breeder profiles.
• Misrepresent ownership of an animal.
• Misrepresent breed, age, sex, health, pedigree, or registration.
• Use stolen photographs.
• Submit forged or altered documents.
• Falsify health testing or genetic testing.
• Misrepresent breeding history.
• Misrepresent availability.
• Misrepresent pricing, deposits, refunds, or contract terms.
• Create deceptive or fraudulent listings.
• Use another user's reviews, reputation, or business identity.

PawPair HQ may suspend accounts while fraud concerns are investigated.

6. Duplicate Accounts and Evasion

Users may not create or use additional accounts to:

• Evade suspension
• Evade a ban
• Avoid negative reviews
• Bypass verification
• Manipulate ratings
• Circumvent payment obligations
• Repost removed listings
• Hide prior violations
• Impersonate a separate business

Shared households, partnerships, employees, and family breeding programs may maintain legitimate separate accounts only when approved by PawPair HQ and accurately disclosed.

7. Animal Welfare

Users may not use PawPair HQ to facilitate:

• Animal cruelty
• Animal neglect
• Animal fighting
• Abandonment
• Illegal trafficking
• Illegal breeding
• Illegal sale or transfer
• Sale of stolen animals
• Knowingly unsafe breeding practices
• Concealment of serious known health conditions
• Transfer of animals in violation of applicable law

Content showing suspected abuse, neglect, or unsafe conditions may be removed and reported to appropriate authorities when required or appropriate.

8. Prohibited Animals and Listings

Unless expressly approved by PawPair HQ, users may not list:

• Wildlife
• Endangered or protected species
• Exotic animals subject to legal restrictions
• Animals obtained illegally
• Stolen animals
• Animals involved in fighting
• Animals being transferred for unlawful purposes
• Animals whose ownership cannot be reasonably established

PawPair HQ may limit the Platform to specific species, breeds, or listing categories.

9. Listing Standards

Listings must be clear, accurate, and current.

Users must disclose material information, including when applicable:

• Known health conditions
• Known injuries
• Vaccination status
• Registration status
• Genetic testing status
• Health testing status
• Age
• Sex
• Breed
• Mixed-breed status
• Availability
• Price
• Deposit terms
• Refund terms
• Location
• Placement restrictions
• Breeding restrictions

Users must promptly update or remove listings that are no longer accurate.

10. Misleading Health and Registration Claims

Users may not make unsupported claims such as:

• "Disease-free"
• "Guaranteed healthy for life"
• "Perfect genetics"
• "Hypoallergenic guaranteed"
• "Vet certified" unless accurately documented
• "PawPair certified"
• "PawPair approved"
• "PawPair recommended"

Verification by PawPair HQ does not authorize users to imply endorsement, certification, or guarantee.

11. Payments and Financial Conduct

Users may not:

• Request payment through fraudulent methods.
• Misrepresent deposits or fees.
• Refuse to honor clearly stated refund terms.
• Use stolen payment information.
• Conduct chargeback fraud.
• Pressure users into immediate payment.
• Request unnecessary financial account information.
• Use PawPair HQ for money laundering or illegal transactions.

Users are responsible for reviewing contracts, receipts, payment terms, and refund conditions before sending money.

12. Off-Platform Transactions

PawPair HQ may permit users to communicate or transact outside the Platform.

Users who move communications or payments off-platform acknowledge that PawPair HQ may have limited ability to:

• Verify communications
• Review payment records
• Investigate disputes
• Confirm agreements
• Assist with fraud reports

Users may not move transactions off-platform to evade fees, enforcement, safety systems, or platform restrictions where prohibited by applicable subscription or payment terms.

13. Messaging Rules

Messaging may not be used for:

• Spam
• Advertising unrelated products
• Repeated unsolicited messages
• Harassment
• Threats
• Fraud
• Phishing
• Malware
• Illegal activity
• Collection of unnecessary sensitive information
• Sexual content
• Hate speech
• Review manipulation

PawPair HQ may review reported messages or messages reasonably necessary to investigate fraud, safety concerns, or policy violations.

14. PawPair SafeMeet™ Conduct

During a PawPair SafeMeet™, users must:

• Behave respectfully.
• Follow applicable laws.
• Handle animals responsibly.
• Avoid threatening behavior.
• Respect meeting locations and property.
• Leave when reasonably asked.
• Avoid bringing undisclosed participants when doing so creates a safety concern.
• Provide accurate meeting details.

Users may not use PawPair SafeMeet™ to facilitate:

• Theft
• Assault
• Harassment
• Fraud
• Illegal sales
• Animal fighting
• Unauthorized surveillance
• Any unlawful activity

PawPair SafeMeet™ provides tools designed to support planning, identity awareness, documentation, and safer in-person connections. It cannot eliminate risk or guarantee another user’s conduct, and it is not a security or supervision service.

15. Reviews and Ratings

Reviews must be based on genuine experiences.

Users may not:

• Post fake reviews.
• Review themselves.
• Review a competitor without a legitimate interaction.
• Offer money, discounts, or benefits for positive reviews.
• Threaten negative reviews to obtain money or concessions.
• Coordinate review manipulation.
• Post private personal information.
• Include threats, hate speech, or harassment.
• Repeatedly review the same interaction.

PawPair HQ may remove reviews that are fraudulent, abusive, irrelevant, defamatory, or inconsistent with these Standards.

Breeders and users may respond to reviews but must do so respectfully.

16. Retaliation

Users may not retaliate against someone for:

• Reporting a safety concern
• Filing a complaint
• Posting a truthful review
• Cooperating with an investigation
• Declining a transaction
• Declining a breeding match
• Requesting documentation
• Exercising legal rights

Retaliation may result in immediate account restrictions.

17. Privacy and Personal Information

Users may not publish or share another person's private information without permission, including:

• Full home address
• Personal phone number
• Personal email address
• Government identification
• Financial information
• Private veterinary records
• Private messages
• Account credentials
• Information about minors

Users must not use information obtained through PawPair HQ for stalking, harassment, identity theft, unsolicited marketing, or unrelated commercial purposes.

18. Intellectual Property

Users may not upload or use:

• Stolen photographs
• Copyrighted content without permission
• Another business's logo
• Another breeder's branding
• False registry documents
• Altered certificates
• Content that infringes trademarks, copyrights, or other rights

Users must have permission to upload all photos, videos, documents, logos, and written materials.

19. Platform Security

Users may not:

• Attempt to gain unauthorized access.
• Bypass security controls.
• Scrape data without permission.
• Use bots to manipulate activity.
• Distribute malware.
• Test vulnerabilities without authorization.
• Interfere with Platform operations.
• Reverse engineer protected Platform systems where prohibited by law.
• Collect user data for unrelated commercial use.

Security concerns should be reported to PawPair HQ rather than exploited.

20. Spam and Commercial Solicitation

Users may not use PawPair HQ to distribute:

• Unsolicited advertisements
• Chain messages
• Mass marketing messages
• Referral spam
• Unrelated affiliate promotions
• Pyramid schemes
• Fraudulent investment opportunities
• Unrelated products or services

Approved breeders and service providers may promote offerings only through features designated for that purpose.

21. Illegal and Dangerous Conduct

Users may not use PawPair HQ to promote, arrange, or facilitate:

• Criminal activity
• Violence
• Animal fighting
• Fraud
• Theft
• Trafficking
• Illegal drugs
• Weapons transactions
• Exploitation
• Money laundering
• Threats against people or animals
• Any conduct prohibited by applicable law

22. Content Standards

Content must not contain:

• Graphic cruelty
• Pornographic material
• Sexual exploitation
• Hate speech
• Threats
• Fraudulent claims
• Malware
• Private personal information
• Instructions for illegal acts
• Content intended to deceive users
• Content unrelated to PawPair HQ's legitimate purposes

Educational animal-health or breeding content may be permitted when presented responsibly and without graphic or exploitative material.

23. Reporting Violations

Users may report:

• Fraud
• Harassment
• Animal welfare concerns
• Misleading listings
• False documents
• Duplicate accounts
• Suspicious payments
• Unsafe PawPair SafeMeet™ conduct
• Review manipulation
• Privacy violations
• Other prohibited conduct

Reports should be truthful and made in good faith.

Intentionally false, malicious, or retaliatory reports may result in account action.

24. Investigations

PawPair HQ may investigate suspected violations by reviewing:

• Account information
• Listings
• Verification records
• Reports
• Reviews
• Platform messages
• Transaction-related information submitted by users
• Account history
• Duplicate-account signals
• Relevant documents

Users agree to reasonably cooperate with investigations.

PawPair HQ may temporarily restrict accounts or hide listings while an investigation is pending.

25. Enforcement Actions

Depending on the severity, frequency, and risk of a violation, PawPair HQ may:

• Issue a warning
• Remove content
• Remove a listing
• Restrict messaging
• Restrict PawPair SafeMeet™ access
• Remove verification badges
• Pause publishing privileges
• Require additional verification
• Temporarily suspend an account
• Permanently ban an account
• Block related accounts
• Preserve evidence
• Refer suspected unlawful conduct to appropriate authorities

PawPair HQ may act without advance notice when necessary to protect users, animals, or the Platform.

Enforcement actions require a review and decision by authorized PawPair HQ staff. Automated systems and routine reminders may create or prioritize a Trust & Safety case, but do not independently restrict, suspend, or remove an account, apart from narrowly defined emergency security controls approved by PawPair HQ (for example, blocking an active security threat).

Routine Program Health reminders and recommendations are informational only and never result in restriction, suspension, or removal.

26. Factors Considered in Enforcement

PawPair HQ may consider:

• Severity of the conduct
• Risk to people or animals
• Whether the conduct was intentional
• Prior violations
• Cooperation during review
• Credibility of available evidence
• Whether corrective action was taken
• Whether the violation involved fraud or evasion
• Applicable legal obligations

Enforcement decisions remain within PawPair HQ's reasonable discretion.

27. Appeals

Users may appeal enforcement decisions. Appeals are reviewed by authorized PawPair HQ staff, and a person — not an automated system — makes the final decision.

An appeal should include:

• The decision being appealed
• The reason the user believes the decision was incorrect
• Relevant supporting information
• Any corrective action taken

Submitting an appeal does not guarantee reinstatement.

PawPair HQ may decline repeated, abusive, fraudulent, or unsupported appeals.

28. Emergency and Legal Disclosures

PawPair HQ may disclose information when reasonably necessary to:

• Comply with law
• Respond to valid legal process
• Protect users
• Protect animals
• Investigate fraud
• Prevent imminent harm
• Enforce Platform agreements
• Cooperate with law enforcement or animal welfare authorities

Any disclosure will be handled in accordance with the PawPair HQ Privacy Policy and applicable law.

29. No Guarantee of Enforcement Outcome

PawPair HQ does not guarantee that:

• Every report will result in action.
• Every dispute will be resolved.
• Every violation will be detected.
• Every user will be verified.
• Every claim will be independently confirmed.

Users remain responsible for conducting their own due diligence and making their own decisions.

30. Changes to These Standards

PawPair HQ may update these Community Standards and Prohibited Conduct rules from time to time.

The updated version will include a revised Effective Date and version number.

Continued use of the Platform after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the revised Standards.

31. Contact Information

PawPair HQ

• Email: safety@pawpairhq.com
• Legal inquiries: legal@pawpairhq.com
• Website: www.pawpairhq.com

User Acknowledgment

By creating an account, publishing a listing, communicating with another user, scheduling a PawPair SafeMeet™, or otherwise using PawPair HQ, you acknowledge that:

• You have read and understand these Community Standards.
• You agree not to engage in prohibited conduct.
• You understand that PawPair HQ may investigate reports and enforce Platform rules.
• You understand that PawPair HQ is not responsible for user conduct, animal health, transactions, or off-platform interactions.
• You agree to comply with all applicable PawPair HQ agreements and policies.

PawPair HQ is a technology and connection platform. PawPair HQ is not a breeder, seller, broker, veterinarian, transporter, trainer, genetic testing provider, or insurer. PawPair HQ does not guarantee breeders, users, animals, health, temperament, fertility, breeding outcomes, pregnancy, litter size, registration, pedigree, transactions, payments, or user behavior, and is not a party to any agreement or transaction between users. PawPair HQ does not provide veterinary, legal, genetic, financial, or professional advice.