General Terms and Conditions of Use and Sale (T&Cs)

1. Purpose

These General Terms and Conditions of Use and Sale (hereinafter the "T&Cs") define the conditions of access to, enrollment in and use of The Dog Nanny Academy training website, which offers:

online courses (e-learning),
in-person courses, including a certifying positive dog trainer course.

Any enrollment or use of the website implies full and unreserved acceptance of these T&Cs.

2. Target audience and prerequisites

The courses are intended for:

private individuals who own dogs,
professionals or future professionals in the dog sector.

Some courses, in particular the certifying in-person course, may be subject to prerequisites (level of knowledge, prior experience, ethical commitment). These prerequisites are specified on the course presentation page.

The Dog Nanny Academy reserves the right to refuse or cancel an enrollment if the prerequisites are clearly not met.

3. Enrollment and access to courses

3.1 Online courses

Access to online courses is strictly personal, registered in the student's name and non-transferable.

Any sharing of credentials or any fraudulent use will result in:

the immediate suspension or termination of access, without refund,
the application of the financial penalties provided for in Article 4.3 of these T&Cs.

Unless otherwise stated, access to online courses is granted for a period of one (1) year from the date of purchase.

4. Intellectual property – Enhanced protection of content

4.1 Ownership of rights

All content made available as part of the courses offered by The Dog Nanny Academy, whether online or in person, is protected by intellectual property law.

This includes, without limitation:

the pedagogical structure of the courses,
complete or partial tables of contents,
written materials (slides, PDFs, downloadable or non-downloadable documents),
videos, audio recordings, visuals, diagrams,
case studies, practical examples, methodologies,
content drawn from the trainer's professional experience,
the selection, organization and ranking of scientific sources.

This content constitutes original works of authorship, protected in particular by:

Book XI of the Belgian Code of Economic Law (copyright),
Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright in the information society,
the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.

All rights of reproduction, representation, adaptation, translation and distribution are strictly reserved.

4.2 Express prohibitions

Without the prior written authorization of The Dog Nanny Academy, it is strictly forbidden to:

reproduce, copy, share, transmit or distribute all or part of the course content,
communicate the content to third parties, whether free of charge or for a fee,
extract, reconstruct or disclose the complete or detailed table of contents of a course,
use the content for training, teaching, conference or publication purposes,
exploit the content to create a competing course, even in part.

These prohibitions apply for the duration of the course and without time limit thereafter.

4.3 Penalty clause – Financial penalties

In accordance with Articles XI.165 et seq. of the Belgian Code of Economic Law, any infringement of copyright constitutes counterfeiting.

a) Transmission or distribution of content

In the event of the transmission, in whole or in part, of course content to an unauthorized third party:

the person who transmitted the content shall be liable, by way of penalty clause, for the immediate payment of an amount equal to 100% of the total price of the course concerned,
the third party who unlawfully receives or uses the content shall be jointly and severally liable for payment of the same amount.

This clause is expressly accepted by the student upon enrollment, in accordance with Article 5.87 of the Belgian Civil Code, without prejudice to any additional damages.

b) Sharing of credentials and fraudulent access (online courses)

In the context of online courses, any sharing of personal credentials (username and/or password), as well as any fraudulent access to course content by a third party, constitutes a serious breach of these T&Cs.

In such a case:

the student holding the account shall be liable for a fixed, non-discharging fine of €2,000,
any person who has accessed, used or consulted the content without right or title shall be jointly and severally liable for the same sum.

This penalty applies independently of any termination of access and without prejudice to any legal proceedings, in accordance with Articles XI.165 et seq. of the Code of Economic Law and Article 5.87 of the Belgian Civil Code.

4.4 Evidence and means of control

The Dog Nanny Academy reserves the right to implement any technical or legal means to establish a breach of these provisions, including:

access traceability,
digital watermarks,
connection identification,
bailiff's reports.

5. Pedagogical confidentiality

All pedagogical information communicated as part of The Dog Nanny Academy courses, whether written, oral or audiovisual, is strictly confidential.

The following in particular are considered confidential information:

the structure and pedagogical progression of the courses,
detailed tables of contents,
explanatory content, examples, case studies and feedback from experience,
pedagogical exchanges, feedback, corrections and discussions.

The student undertakes not to disclose any confidential information to third parties, in any form whatsoever, before, during or after the course.

Any breach of this confidentiality obligation will result in the application of the penalties provided for in these T&Cs, without prejudice to legal proceedings.

5 bis. Fees, payment and no right to a refund

Course fees are stated in euros (€), all taxes included.

Payment is made online via the secure payment methods offered on the website.

In accordance with Article VI.53, 13° of the Belgian Code of Economic Law, the user expressly acknowledges waiving their right of withdrawal for any digital content supplied immediately after purchase.

No refund may be claimed after the purchase of a course, for any reason whatsoever.

6. Certification, assessment and code of ethics

6.1 Nature of the certification

The positive dog trainer course offered by The Dog Nanny Academy leads, where applicable, to a private certification issued by The Dog Nanny Academy.

This certification is neither a state diploma nor an official recognition by any public authority.

6.2 Conditions for obtaining the certification

Obtaining the certification is subject to:

effective participation in the course,
passing the scheduled assessments,
compliance with The Dog Nanny Academy code of ethics and conduct.

The Dog Nanny Academy reserves the right to refuse certification to any student whose practices, behavior or public positions are contrary to the principles of positive dog training, professional ethics or animal welfare.

6.3 Signing and withdrawal of the code of ethics

Signing the code of ethics and conduct is reserved for students who have passed at the end of the course. It is neither automatic nor acquired as of right.

The Dog Nanny Academy reserves the right to subsequently withdraw this recognition in the event of:

practices contrary to the principles taught,
misleading or abusive use of the name, brand or certification,
behavior damaging the image or values of The Dog Nanny Academy.

7. Enhanced acceptance and contractual commitment

Enrollment in a course implies:

the explicit ticking of a checkbox certifying that the student has read and accepted these T&Cs,
express acknowledgment of the strictly personal nature of access,
acceptance of the financial and legal penalties provided for in the event of a breach.

This acceptance constitutes a firm contractual commitment, in accordance with Articles 5.52 et seq. of the Belgian Civil Code.

7 bis. Protection of personal data

Personal data collected in the course of using the website is processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR – EU 2016/679).

Users have the right to access, rectify, restrict and erase their personal data.

Any request relating to personal data may be sent by email to the contact address indicated on The Dog Nanny Academy website.

8. Liability and personal use

The courses are provided for pedagogical and educational purposes. The student remains solely responsible for the use they make of the knowledge acquired.

The Dog Nanny Academy cannot be held liable for any misapplication of the content or any misinterpretation by the student.

9. Termination, exclusion and non-disparagement

9.1 Termination and exclusion

In the event of non-compliance with these T&Cs, in particular the provisions relating to intellectual property, confidentiality or ethics, The Dog Nanny Academy reserves the right to:

suspend or terminate access to online courses,
permanently exclude the student from an in-person course,
refuse or withdraw a certification.

No compensation or refund may be claimed by an excluded student.

9.2 Non-disparagement clause

The student undertakes not to harm the image, reputation or credibility of The Dog Nanny Academy through defamatory, false or deliberately distorted statements, whether publicly or to third parties.

This clause does not prohibit the expression of an honest personal opinion, but is intended to prevent any abusive or malicious communication.

10. Amendment of the T&Cs

The Dog Nanny Academy reserves the right to amend these T&Cs at any time.

Users will be informed of any substantial change. The applicable T&Cs are those in force on the date of enrollment or purchase.

11. Applicable law and dispute resolution

These T&Cs are governed by Belgian law.

In the event of a dispute, an amicable solution will be sought as a priority.

Failing an amicable agreement, the competent courts shall be those of the judicial district of The Dog Nanny Academy's registered office.