1) Information on the collection of personal data and contact details of the data controller

1.1  We are pleased that you are visiting our website and thank you for your interest. Below, we inform you about how we handle your personal data when you use our website. Personal data is any data that can be used to personally identify you.

1.2  The data controller for this website within the meaning of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is Brakeler Tierwelt GmbH & Co. KG, Am Thy 28, 33034 Brakel, Germany, Tel.: +49 5272 3929280, Fax: +49 5272 3929282, E-mail: shop@zoo-brakel.de. The data controller is the natural or legal person who, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data.

1.3  This website uses SSL or TLS encryption for security reasons and to protect the transmission of personal data and other confidential content (e.g., orders or inquiries to the data controller). You can recognize an encrypted connection by the “https://” prefix and the padlock symbol in your browser’s address bar.

2) Data collection when visiting our website

When you simply use our website for informational purposes, i.e., if you do not register or otherwise provide us with information, we only collect data that your browser transmits to our server (so-called “server log files”). When you access our website, we collect the following data, which is technically necessary for us to display the website to you:

• Our visited website
• Date and time of access
• Amount of data sent in bytes
• Source/referrer from which you accessed this page
• Browser used
• Operating system used
• IP address used (possibly in anonymized form)

The processing is carried out in accordance with Article 6(1)(f) GDPR on the basis of our legitimate interest in improving the stability and functionality of our website. The data will not be disclosed or used for any other purpose. However, we reserve the right to subsequently review the server log files should there be concrete indications of unlawful use.

3) Cookies

To make your visit to our website more attractive and to enable the use of certain functions, we use so-called cookies on various pages. These are small text files that are stored on your device. Some of the cookies we use are deleted after the end of your browser session, i.e., after you close your browser (session cookies). Other cookies remain on your device and allow us or our partner companies (third-party cookies) to recognize your browser on your next visit (persistent cookies). When cookies are set, they collect and process certain user information, such as browser and location data, as well as IP addresses, to varying degrees. Persistent cookies are automatically deleted after a predetermined period, which can vary depending on the cookie.

If personal data is processed through individual cookies implemented by us, the processing is carried out in accordance with Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR either for the performance of the contract or in accordance with Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR to safeguard our legitimate interests in the best possible functionality of the website as well as a customer-friendly and effective design of the website visit.

We may work with advertising partners who help us make our website more interesting for you. For this purpose, when you visit our website, cookies from partner companies may also be stored on your hard drive (third-party cookies). If we work with the aforementioned advertising partners, you will be informed individually and separately about the use of such cookies and the scope of the information collected in the paragraphs below.

Please note that you can configure your browser to notify you when cookies are being set, allowing you to decide whether to accept them individually, or to block cookies in certain cases or entirely. Each browser manages cookie settings differently. This is described in the help menu of each browser, which explains how to change your cookie settings. You can find this information for the respective browsers at the following links:

Internet Explorer: http://windows.microsoft.com/de-DE/windows-vista/Block-or-allow-cookies
Firefox: https://support.mozilla.org/de/kb/cookies-erlauben-und-ablehne
Chrome: http://support.google.com/chrome/bin/answer.py?hl=de&hlrm=en&answer=95647
Safari: https://support.apple.com/de-de/guide/safari/sfri11471/mac
Opera: http://help.opera.com/Windows/10.20/de/cookies.html

Please note that if you do not accept cookies, the functionality of our website may be limited.

4) Making contact

4.1  When you contact us (e.g., via contact form or email), personal data is collected. The specific data collected when using a contact form is indicated on the respective form. This data is stored and used solely for the purpose of responding to your inquiry, contacting you, and for the associated technical administration. The legal basis for processing this data is our legitimate interest in responding to your inquiry pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR. If your contact is aimed at concluding a contract, the additional legal basis for processing is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR. Your data will be deleted after your inquiry has been fully processed. This is the case when it is clear from the circumstances that the matter has been resolved and provided that no statutory retention obligations apply.

4.2  WhatsApp Business

We offer visitors to our website the opportunity to contact us via the WhatsApp messaging service provided by WhatsApp Ireland Limited, 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland. For this purpose, we use the so-called “Business version” of WhatsApp.

If you contact us via WhatsApp regarding a specific transaction (for example, an order you have placed), we will store and use the mobile phone number you use with WhatsApp, as well as your first and last name (if provided), in accordance with Article 6(1)(b) of the GDPR, to process and respond to your inquiry. Based on the same legal basis, we may ask you via WhatsApp to provide further data (order number, customer number, address, or email address) in order to assign your inquiry to a specific transaction.

If you use our WhatsApp contact for general inquiries (e.g., regarding our range of services, availability, or our website), we store and use the mobile phone number you use on WhatsApp and – if provided – your first and last name in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR on the basis of our legitimate interest in the efficient and timely provision of the requested information.

Your data will only be used to answer your inquiry via WhatsApp. It will not be shared with third parties.

Please note that WhatsApp Business accesses the address book of the mobile device we use for this purpose and automatically transfers phone numbers stored in the address book to a server of its parent company, Meta Platforms Inc., in the USA. For the operation of our WhatsApp Business account, we use a mobile device whose address book contains only the WhatsApp contact data of users who have actually contacted us via WhatsApp.

This ensures that every person whose WhatsApp contact details are stored in our address book has already consented to the transfer of their WhatsApp phone number from the address books of their chat contacts, in accordance with Article 6(1)(a) GDPR, by accepting the WhatsApp Terms of Service upon first using the app on their device. The transfer of data from users who do not use WhatsApp and/or have not contacted us via WhatsApp is therefore excluded.

For information on the purpose and scope of data collection and the further processing and use of data by WhatsApp, as well as your related rights and privacy settings, please refer to WhatsApp’s privacy policy: https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/?eea=1#privacy-policy

5) Use of customer data for direct marketing

Subscribe to our email newsletter

When you subscribe to our email newsletter, we will regularly send you information about our offers. The only mandatory information required to send you the newsletter is your email address. Providing any further information is voluntary and is used to personalize our communications with you. We use the double opt-in procedure for sending our newsletter. This means that we will only send you an email newsletter after you have explicitly confirmed that you consent to receiving it. We will then send you a confirmation email asking you to click on a link to confirm that you wish to receive the newsletter in the future.

By activating the confirmation link, you give us your consent to use your personal data in accordance with Article 6 Paragraph 1 Letter a of the GDPR. When you subscribe to the newsletter, we store your IP address, which is registered by your internet service provider (ISP), as well as the date and time of registration, in order to be able to trace any potential misuse of your email address at a later date. The data we collect when you subscribe to the newsletter is used exclusively for sending you promotional material via the newsletter. You can unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time via the unsubscribe link provided in the newsletter or by sending a corresponding message to the data controller named above. After you unsubscribe, your email address will be immediately deleted from our newsletter mailing list, unless you have expressly consented to further use of your data or we reserve the right to use your data for other purposes permitted by law, about which we inform you in this privacy policy.

6) Web analytics services

Google (Universal) Analytics:
This website uses Google (Universal) Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin, D04 E5W5, Ireland (“Google”). Google (Universal) Analytics uses “cookies,” which are text files placed on your computer, to help the website analyze how users use the site. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including your truncated IP address) will generally be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States.
This website uses Google (Universal) Analytics exclusively with the extension “_anonymizeIp()”, which ensures anonymization of the IP address by truncation and prevents direct identification of individuals. With this extension, your IP address is truncated by Google within member states of the European Union or in other contracting states to the Agreement on the European Economic Area before being transmitted. Only in exceptional cases will the full IP address be transmitted to a Google LLC server in the USA and truncated there. On our behalf, Google will use this information to evaluate your use of the website, to compile reports on website activity, and to provide us with other services relating to website activity and internet usage. The IP address transmitted by your browser as part of Google (Universal) Analytics will not be merged with other Google data.
Google Analytics also enables the creation of statistics about the age, gender, and interests of website visitors through a special function called “demographic characteristics.” This is based on an analysis of interest-based advertising and the use of third-party information. This allows us to define and differentiate user groups for the website in order to optimize marketing measures. However, the data collected via “demographic characteristics” cannot be attributed to any specific person.
All processing described above, in particular the setting of Google Analytics cookies to read information on the device used, will only take place if you have given us your explicit consent in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR. Without this consent, Google Analytics will not be used during your visit to our website.
You can withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future. To exercise your right of withdrawal, please deactivate this service in the “Cookie Consent Tool” provided on the website. We have concluded a data processing agreement with Google for the use of Google Analytics, which obligates Google to protect the data of our website visitors and not to disclose it to third parties.
For the transfer of data from the EU to the USA, Google relies on so-called standard contractual clauses of the European Commission, which are intended to ensure compliance with the European level of data protection in the USA.
Further information on Google (Universal) Analytics can be found here: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=de&gl=de

7) Page functionalities

7.1  Use of YouTube Videos
This website uses the YouTube embedding function to display and play videos from the provider “YouTube,” which belongs to Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin, D04 E5W5, Ireland (“Google”).
The enhanced privacy mode is used, which, according to the provider, only initiates the storage of user information when the video(s) are played. When embedded YouTube videos are played, the provider “YouTube” sets cookies to collect information about user behavior. According to YouTube, this information is used, among other things, to collect video statistics, improve user-friendliness, and prevent misuse. If you are logged into Google, your data will be directly associated with your account when you click on a video. If you do not want this association with your YouTube profile, you must log out before activating the button. You have the right to object to the creation of these user profiles, and to exercise this right, you must contact YouTube. When using YouTube, personal data may be transferred to the servers of Google LLC in the USA.
Regardless of whether the embedded videos are played, a connection to the Google network is established each time this website is accessed, which may trigger further data processing operations beyond our control.
All processing described above, in particular the reading of information on the device used via the tracking pixel, will only take place if you have given us your explicit consent in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR. Without this consent, YouTube videos will not be displayed during your visit to our website.
You can withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future. To exercise your right of withdrawal, please deactivate this service in the “Cookie Consent Tool” provided on the website using the alternative methods explained to you on the website.
Further information on data protection at YouTube can be found in the YouTube Terms of Service at https://www.youtube.com/static?template=terms and in Google’s Privacy Policy at https://www.google.de/intl/de/policies/privacy

7.2  Job Applications via Email
On our website, we list current job vacancies in a separate section. Interested candidates can apply for these positions by emailing the provided contact address.
To be included in the application process, applicants must provide us with all personal data necessary for a thorough and informed assessment and selection, along with their application via email.
This includes general personal information (name, address, telephone or email contact details) as well as performance-related documentation demonstrating the qualifications required for the position. Health-related information may also be required, which, in the interest of the applicant’s social protection, must be given special consideration under labor and social security law.
The specific components required for an application to be considered, and the format in which these components must be submitted via email, can be found in the respective job posting.
Upon receipt of the application sent using the provided email contact address, the applicant’s data will be stored and evaluated solely for the purpose of processing the application. For any follow-up questions that may arise during the application process, we will use, at our discretion, either the email address or telephone number provided by the applicant with their application.
The legal basis for this processing, including contacting applicants for follow-up questions, is generally Article 6(1)(b) GDPR (in Germany, in conjunction with Section 26(1) BDSG), according to which the application process is considered the initiation of an employment contract.
If, during the application process, special categories of personal data within the meaning of Article 9(1) GDPR (e.g., health data such as information about severe disability) are requested from applicants, the processing is carried out in accordance with Article 9(2)(b) GDPR so that we can exercise our rights and fulfill our obligations arising from employment law and social security and social protection law.
Alternatively or cumulatively, the processing of special categories of data may also be based on Article 9(1)(h) GDPR if it is carried out for the purposes of preventive or occupational medicine, for the assessment of the applicant’s fitness for work, for medical diagnosis, for the provision of health or social care or treatment or for the management of health or social care systems and services.
If the applicant is not selected during the evaluation process described above, or if an applicant withdraws their application prematurely, their data transmitted by email, as well as all electronic correspondence, including the original application email, will be deleted no later than six months after notification. This period is based on our legitimate interest in being able to answer any follow-up questions regarding the application and, if necessary, to comply with our obligations to provide evidence under the regulations on equal treatment of applicants.
In the event of a successful application, the provided data will be further processed for the purposes of carrying out the employment relationship, based on Article 6 Paragraph 1 Letter b GDPR (in conjunction with Section 26 Paragraph 1 BDSG for processing in Germany).

8) Tools and other items

Cookie consent tool

This website uses a “cookie consent tool” to obtain valid user consent for cookies and cookie-based applications that require consent. The cookie consent tool is displayed to users upon visiting the site as an interactive interface, where consent for specific cookies and/or cookie-based applications can be granted by ticking boxes. By using this tool, all cookies/services requiring consent are only loaded if the respective user grants the corresponding consent by ticking the boxes. This ensures that such cookies are only placed on the user’s device if consent has been given.
The tool uses technically necessary cookies to store your cookie preferences. No personal user data is processed in this process.
If, in individual cases, the processing of personal data (such as the IP address) occurs for the purpose of storing, assigning, or logging cookie settings, this is done in accordance with Article 6(1)(f) GDPR based on our legitimate interest in legally compliant, user-specific, and user-friendly cookie consent management and thus in the legally compliant design of our website.
A further legal basis for the processing is Article 6(1)(c) GDPR. As the data controller, we are legally obligated to make the use of cookies that are not technically necessary dependent on the respective user’s consent.
Further information about the operator and the settings options of the cookie consent tool can be found directly in the corresponding user interface on our website.

9) Rights of the data subject

9.1  The applicable data protection law grants you the following rights as a data subject (rights of access and intervention) vis-à-vis the controller with regard to the processing of your personal data, whereby reference is made to the legal basis stated for the respective conditions for exercising these rights:

• Right of access pursuant to Art. 15 GDPR;
• Right to rectification pursuant to Article 16 GDPR;
• Right to erasure pursuant to Article 17 GDPR;
• Right to restriction of processing pursuant to Article 18 GDPR;
• Right to information pursuant to Article 19 GDPR;
• Right to data portability pursuant to Art. 20 GDPR;
• Right to withdraw consent pursuant to Art. 7 para. 3 GDPR;
• Right to lodge a complaint pursuant to Article 77 GDPR.

9.2  Right of objection

If we process your personal data based on our overriding legitimate interest as part of a balancing of interests, you have the right to object to this processing at any time, on grounds relating to your particular situation, with effect for the future.
If you exercise your right to object, we will cease processing the data in question. However, further processing remains reserved if we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing which override your interests, fundamental rights and freedoms, or if the processing serves the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims.

If we process your personal data for direct marketing purposes, you have the right to object at any time to the processing of your personal data for such marketing. You can exercise your right to object as described above.

If you exercise your right to object, we will cease processing the data in question for direct marketing purposes.

10) Duration of storage of personal data

The duration of the storage of personal data is determined by the respective legal basis, the purpose of processing and – if applicable – additionally by the respective statutory retention period (e.g. commercial and tax law retention periods).

When processing personal data on the basis of explicit consent pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR, this data will be stored until the data subject withdraws his or her consent.

If statutory retention periods exist for data processed in the context of contractual or quasi-contractual obligations on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR, this data will be routinely deleted after the expiry of the retention periods, provided that it is no longer required for the performance of a contract or for initiating a contract and/or we no longer have a legitimate interest in its continued storage.

When processing personal data on the basis of Article 6(1)(f) GDPR, this data will be stored until the data subject exercises their right to object pursuant to Article 21(1) GDPR, unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing which override the interests, rights and freedoms of the data subject, or the processing serves the purpose of establishing, exercising or defending legal claims.

When processing personal data for direct marketing purposes on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR, this data will be stored until the data subject exercises his or her right to object pursuant to Art. 21 para. 2 GDPR.

Unless otherwise stated in the other information in this declaration regarding specific processing situations, stored personal data will be deleted when it is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected or otherwise processed.