Skip to content

Privacy Policy

How we collect, use, and protect your information

Search Facilities 15,767 USDA-licensed breeders & dealers Browse by State All 50 states with facility counts Violation Database 46,211 violations documented A+ to F Grades Every facility rated by inspection history

Last updated: April 11, 2026

1. Information We Collect

BreederCheck collects minimal information necessary to operate our service:

  • Usage data: Pages visited, search queries, and interactions with the site. This data is collected via server logs and Google Analytics to help us understand how visitors use our service.
  • Technical data: IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URL, and device information. This is collected automatically for security, rate limiting, and site performance.
  • Search queries: When you search for a breeder, we log the query to improve search results and understand user needs. Search queries are not linked to personal identifiers.

We do not require account registration, and we do not collect names, email addresses, phone numbers, or payment information unless you voluntarily contact us.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use collected information to:

  • Provide breeder search, facility profiles, and inspection data
  • Analyze usage patterns to improve the user experience
  • Maintain the security and integrity of our website
  • Prevent abuse, spam, and automated scraping
  • Generate aggregate, anonymized statistics about site usage

3. Data We Display

All breeder and facility data displayed on this website is public domain information from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). This data is available to anyone through federal public records under 17 U.S.C. § 105 and the OPEN Government Data Act.

We display: facility names, business addresses, license numbers, inspection dates, violation details, and severity classifications. We do not display personal home addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, or any private information about facility owners.

4. Cookies

We use the following types of cookies:

  • Essential cookies: Required for basic site functionality such as rate limiting and security. These cannot be disabled.
  • Analytics cookies: Google Analytics cookies help us understand traffic patterns and improve the site. These are loaded after a 3-second delay and can be blocked via browser settings.
  • Advertising cookies: If we display advertisements (Google AdSense), advertising cookies may be used to serve relevant ads. See Section 5 for details.

You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect site functionality.

5. Advertising & Google AdSense

We may use Google AdSense to display advertisements. Google AdSense uses cookies and similar technologies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this and other websites:

  • DoubleClick Cookie: Google's DoubleClick cookie enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your visits to this and other sites on the Internet.
  • Personalized Ads: Google may use information about your visits to provide relevant advertisements about goods and services.
  • Third-Party Vendors: Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on prior website visits.

Your Choices:

For more information, visit How Google uses data when you use our partners' sites.

6. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services:

7. Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures including HTTPS encryption, security headers (X-Frame-Options, Content-Security-Policy, X-Content-Type-Options), prepared SQL statements to prevent injection, rate limiting on API endpoints, and restricted access to sensitive server files.

8. Data Retention

Server logs are retained for up to 90 days. Analytics data is retained for 26 months in aggregate form. Rate-limiting data is automatically deleted after 60 seconds. We do not maintain persistent user profiles or accounts.

9. Your Rights

You have the right to:

  • Access any personal data we hold about you
  • Request deletion of any data associated with your IP address
  • Opt out of analytics tracking via browser settings or ad-blocker
  • Opt out of personalized advertising (see Section 5)
  • Disable cookies through your browser settings

10. Children's Privacy

Our services are not directed to children under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us immediately.

11. California Privacy Rights (CCPA)

If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act:

  • Right to Know: You can request what personal information we collect, use, and disclose.
  • Right to Delete: You can request deletion of personal information we hold about you.
  • Right to Opt-Out: You can opt out of the sale of personal information. Note: we do not sell your personal information.
  • Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising your CCPA rights.

To exercise these rights, contact us at [email protected]. We will respond within 45 days.

12. European Privacy Rights (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), you have additional rights under the General Data Protection Regulation:

  • Right of Access: Request a copy of your personal data.
  • Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data.
  • Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data.
  • Right to Restrict Processing: Request limitation of how we process your data.
  • Right to Data Portability: Request your data in a machine-readable format.
  • Right to Object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests, including advertising profiling.

Legal Basis for Processing: We process data based on (a) your consent (analytics, advertising cookies), (b) legitimate interests (site security, improvement, and abuse prevention).

To exercise your rights, email [email protected]. We will respond within 30 days.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated revision date. Continued use of our services after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

If you have questions about this privacy policy, please email us at [email protected].