Neighbourhood rescue terms

1. Nature of the service

The neighbourhood rescue module means that, when a pet goes missing, the owner can trigger an S.O.S. and the local neighbourhood can join in to coordinate in real time: shared map, voice walkie-talkie, "I've seen it here" markers, a common timer.

It is a free and voluntary service. Mizuu provides the technical infrastructure; the physical search is carried out by volunteers.

2. Family vs nearby volunteers

• Family (blue) — the members of the animal's circle who have been accepted beforehand. Full permissions: closing the session, marking it as found or a false alarm, managing volunteers.
• Nearby volunteers (orange) — registered users who are within a reasonable distance of the search centre at the time they join. The distance is calculated against the last sighting or the session's starting point.

Only nearby volunteers are admitted, to avoid a mass presence of people who cannot contribute physically.

3. Ephemeral data — the session "leaves no trace"

By design, all data generated during a rescue session is deleted automatically when the session is closed:

• Participants' GPS positions.
• Virtual walkie chat messages (text and voice).
• Sighting photos and voice notes.
• Each volunteer's movement track.

When the family closes the session (pet found or cancellation), Mizuu purges the blobs from MinIO and applies a cascade DELETE in the database. This "no trace" promise is part of the contract with the volunteer, and tracking information is never retained beyond the session.

Exception: if during the session a formal complaint is made about harassment, violence or an attempted impersonation, Mizuu may preserve relevant evidence for the minimum time necessary to cooperate with the authorities.

4. The rescuer's commitment

By joining a rescue session you agree to:

• Behave with civility, and with respect for the animal and for the people you come across.
• Not use the walkie or the chat for conversations unrelated to the rescue.
• Report truthful sightings, marking them "unsure" or "certain" according to your degree of certainty.
• Stop the search and return home when the family closes the session.
• Not disclose outside Mizuu the content of the session's communications (personal data, locations, voices).

5. Anti-hoax clause and penalty regime

Activating a neighbourhood rescue when the pet is not really missing, repeatedly marking false sightings or using the system for purposes other than rescue (harassment, attempted doxxing, a prank) constitutes serious abuse of the service.

Applicable regime:

• First obvious false positive — formal warning and review.
• Repeated pattern or malicious intent — permanent account block and loss of access to Mizuu.
• Doxxing, harassment, impersonation, attempted unlawful seizure of animals — immediate block and report to the competent authorities (the police and animal welfare authorities such as the RSPCA).

6. Limits of liability

Rescue is a voluntary initiative. Mizuu:

• Does not guarantee the recovery of the missing pet.
• Accepts no liability for the actions of volunteers during the search.
• Accepts no liability for accidents suffered by the volunteer, who acts at their own risk.
• Recommends not entering private property, not crossing dangerous areas, and notifying the police / animal welfare authorities when situations of abuse are detected.

The timer shown during the session and the on-screen messages are indicative and do not constitute mandatory instructions.

7. Audio, photos and messages

Walkie-talkie voice notes have a maximum length of 30 seconds and, except when a participant enables accessible transcription (for hard-of-hearing users), are not transcribed. Sighting photos may be uploaded optionally and must comply with the following:

• Only photos of the located animal or of the surroundings where it has been sighted are allowed.
• Photographing recognisable people or vehicles with a visible number plate is not allowed — that would violate their right to their image and to privacy.

Any abuse (photographing a person, attempting to identify the person responsible for a hit-and-run, etc.) is considered a serious breach and triggers the penalty regime.