Online Scammers Trick Puppy Buyers
When will people learn? If you want a purebred dog there are two options — adopt from a breed rescue (or a shelter that knows the desired breed) or buy directly from a reputable breeder after visiting their home (which should also be their kennel). NEVER, EVER buy a dog sight unseen from someone you don’t know.
Thanks to Kim for barking in this article from Yahoo Finance News.
Scammers Fetch Online Puppy-Buyers
by Leslie McFadden
Saturday, September 1, 2007Internet scammers are luring online puppy buyers with cute pictures and false promises, taking would-be dog owners for an emotional and financial ride.
Several organizations report an increasing number of complaints concerning online pet sales, including the American Kennel Club, the Council of Better Business Bureaus, the Humane Society of the United States and the Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3.Over the past year, the Internet Crime Complaint Center has received nearly 700 complaints — mostly coming from people contacted by fraudsters answering the victims’ ads for pet sales or people who answered fraudsters’ ads themselves.
Do’s:
Check out referrals
See the puppy in personDon’ts:
Pay via wire transfer
Buy from an overseas seller
Purchase a puppy, sight unseenThere are three main types of pet scams: an overpayment scheme, a Nigerian pet scam and a sale that provides you with an ill or dying puppy — or no puppy at all.
Because the scammers frequently operate from overseas, it’s often impossible for victims to recoup their money or take legal action. In the United States, California, Florida and Louisiana are hot spots. Victims lose anywhere from $250 to $2,000 to the scams, according to Alison Preszler, spokeswoman for the Council of Better Business Bureaus.
Here’s how to recognize these scams and how you can protect yourself while shopping for a furry family member.
Overpayment pet scam
How it works: This is a variation on a popular fraud scheme. An animal owner publishes an online ad offering a pet for sale. The fraudster contacts this person, negotiates a price and sends payment for the animal in the form of a cashier’s check.
The trick is that the check is for an amount much larger than the agreed upon price of the pet. The scammer then asks the potential victim to return the overpayment, usually through wire transfer, back to the fraudster or a third party.
The victim eventually learns the cashier’s check is counterfeit and loses the money he or she was supposed to get for the dog, plus any funds wired to the scammer. If the victim actually sent the dog, he or she won’t get it back.
A number of the pet scams reported to the IC3 involved advance-fee or fraudulent check schemes, says April Wall, a research assistant with the National White Collar Crime Center.
Nigerian pet scam
How it works: Scammers either run online classified ads or create breeder Web sites offering purebred puppies — typically English bulldogs or Yorkshire terriers — either free or at a discounted price.
The story can vary as to why the animal is free or discounted — the current owner is a missionary who needs to find the puppy a new home due to the terrible weather in its current location; the animal was rescued from a natural disaster and needs a good home, etc.
The scammer will then ask interested buyers to pay for the dog’s shipment, down payment, inoculations and any number of other miscellaneous fees. The victims wire money for the dogs but generally only get excuses for the delay. Instead, they’re repeatedly asked for more money to cover additional “fees” invented by the scammer.
Greedy scammers will concoct even more fees that the victim needs to pay after the dog has been supposedly shipped.
Unfortunately, once you wire the money, it’s gone, says Preszler.
The bait and switch
How it works: Scammers are selling purebreds, “designer dogs,” mutts and even made-up breeds through online classified ads and breeder Web sites. Often what people get are different dogs than the ones requested or puppies that are sickly. Sometimes they don’t get anything.
Nearly 20 percent of the complaints received over the last year referred to Internet sales, says Stephanie Shain, the director of outreach for companion animals at The Humane Society of the United States.
People searching online for a dog they want find a Web site or ad offering puppies for sale and send e-mails or call the breeders requesting ones they want. Shain says it’s common for the scammers to send you photos of the puppies they’re shipping to you, but the pictures may not be the dogs you actually receive.
“Sending you a photograph doesn’t mean they have that puppy,” she says. “It’s just a picture of a puppy.”
Scammers count on people not wanting to send puppies back, even if they are different from the ones they ordered. Who is going to send a puppy back?
The animal you receive might be from a puppy mill, a factory-like place that produces large numbers of puppies in cramped, unsavory conditions for sheer profit. These puppies can come with severe health and behavioral problems.
And that’s if you actually receive the dog.
April Buck of Grain Valley, Mo., was looking for an English bulldog puppy when she found a Web site offering one — named Buck — and wired $1,200 through Western Union to Miami to pay for the dog and its shipment.
The seller then asked her to pay another $300 for a DNA test that the airport supposedly required. She refused to send the money and contacted local authorities, the FBI and even Western Union about the scam with no luck.
“We didn’t get our puppy but he kept our money,” she says. “We lost a total of $1,289 to be exact. It cost us $89 to send the money.”
Buck says the seller had a normal-looking Web site, claimed he had been in the business for 11 years and said the puppies were AKC-registered.
“I thought that meant these people were screened,” Buck says. As it turns out, the AKC had never heard of the seller.
In any case, the AKC is just a registry, says Shain, not a quality control organization.
“If you don’t know anything about the Web, don’t buy anything off the Web,” Buck says.
Where to report a scam:
Internet Crime Complaint Center
Better Business Bureau
American Kennel Club
Humane Society Web site hosting the fraudulent ad
How to buy a puppyShain agrees. “You should never buy a dog over the Internet,” she says.
Using the Web to find a local breeder is OK, but she recommends physically going to visit the puppy and seeing its living conditions before making a purchase. Reputable breeders will always require that personal meeting — they’re going to want you to come and see it, she says. They won’t send you a puppy as soon as you send payment. Consider it a red flag if you are discouraged from coming to see the puppy first.
Other red flags:
You aren’t allowed to spend time with the parent dogs or see where they are kept.
You are told to stay put while the breeder disappears to get the dog.
The puppy acts fearful or shows signs of sickness.
The seller focuses on getting paid.If they’re pushing you to buy the animal online without first meeting it, you should be concerned, says Shain. “That dog is going to be in your family for at least 10 to 20 years,” she says. “It’s worth making sure this is the right dog.”
If you’re inquiring about a purebred puppy, ask the breeder if they belong to an AKC club and then contact the club, says Anne Donoghue, director of public relations for the AKC.
But remember, a high price or a mention of “AKC papers” does not necessarily mean a healthy, quality puppy. Breeds such as English or French bulldogs typically fetch high prices, so price shouldn’t be used to gauge value.
Follow this link to read the rest of the article.
The moral of the story is to not let an emotional response to a cute puppy picture disengage your brain. Be sure to ask plenty of questions. Remember that a good decision by you is also a good decision of the dog.
Lot of information missing:
Don’t buy EVER from a pet store!
Don’t buy from a home either, if parent dogs are missing, or there are lots of different breeds (Specially if it is one puppy of each breed – those are puppies from auctions!
Buying from someone’s home means nothing.
Check with each breed’s CLUB – info is given for each club by akc.org – for reputable breeders in your areas).
Do never buy upon impulse or if the deal just sounds too good.
DogNanny 911
Good points! Thanks for sharing them.
Very good points. For the respondees, please keep in mind that some reputable breeders will pay to use an outside stud. I would say that it is most important to see the mom of the litter and if the dad is there, then that’s even better. If an outside stud was used, at the very least ask to see pictures.
Some breeds recommend or require health screenings/tests on the parents. Some examples would be ratings for hips, knees and/or elbows from the Orthopedic Foundation of America (OFA), screening for eye diseases (CERF) which should be done annually, and tests for hearing (BAER) done once to verify a dog has hearing in both ears. There are many other tests, so be sure to access a parent club (aka breed club) website to see what they recommend for testing, etc. Ask to see these results or for copies of the results. Any reputable breeder will not have a problem with the request.
And PLEASE remember, just because they may be on breeder referral doesn’t mean that they are necessarily honest and vice versa. I am not, yet, part of our parent club or parent club’s breeder referral. When one is new to the breed, they must spend time in the breed (and bred some litters) before becoming a member, let alone on breeder referral. In addition, there is one that is on the breeder referral list that has been less than honest. So use good judgement and common sense when purchasing a quality pet.
Just my 2 cents (and I’m sure there’s other good ideas out there too)…
Let me recount a good online buying experience.
I have a beautiful, healthy, athletic, extremely intelligent German Shepherd who I bought after searching online and then calling and talking with the breeders. The breeder is several states away from me, and was willing to spend the couple of hours on the phone (over 2 or 3 calls) that I required, to talk about their program, themselves, how the pups are raised, what they’re exposed to (animals, people, exercise, terrain), how they begin puppy socialization and training, and the parents of the puppy I was considering. They invited me to visit them, which I wasn’t able to do, but at that point I felt very comfortable.
I haven’t spent a moment regretting the experience, but recommend that online puppy purchases be conducted as I did. Talk to the breeders – at length – about everything you need to know. A good breeder, dealing with someone who can’t visit, should expect and honor that.
However, I usually recommend against it, because often people don’t know how to screen sellers. You can get a great dog off of the streets or from a puppymill, they don’t have to carefully bred to be great….that’s beside the point. the point is to avoid scammers and people who are breeding only for profit; against the best interest of the animals.
I would recommend research, research, research. particularly on how to screen breeders, then on your particular breed.
Good breeders do have websites. if you can’t visit their home personally, you would hopefully have some references of people who have visited them. If they are a reputable breeder, they are known in their area by breed club members, as well as breed specific rescues. That doesn’t mean the are honest and breeding to better the breed, but it is definitely a feature of a reputable breeder.
I have a friend who put her deposit down before visiting, but, of course, after her application was approved. The breeder was recommended to her by a friend, and she got to see the place when her puppy was old enough to be picked up. Her research paid off, and she now has a wonderful American Bulldog who is neutered and will have his hips checked at age 2.
I do not souly agree with the tips. I have sold 18 out of 22 dogs through puppyfind. I send camera’s every 6 months to check on how my pups are doing- – even the ones from last year and I e-mail constantly. I speak with all prospective buyers and I think I worry more about them than they do me. I love all my pups as if they were my children and would regret anyone of them having any harm done. I would take them back before I let them go somewhere I know nothing about. Sorry, I do not agree with all of your tips.
Hi I breed Buggs
I have heard all the comments about breeding Hybrids and I do not want to enter into a debate about breeding.
I often sell pups via internet sight unseen. I am in Alberta Canada and have shipped to the States.
As a breeder we offer on our site letters from our past customers. We also upon request will put you in touch with past customers. We welcome all who can come to our home.
We have been payed over 5500.00 for a pup (We never cashed the cheque) . Our best advice to buyers would be to take the time to get to know your breeder. My pups are sold from day of birth and we spend 8 weeks communicating With our new family members. We do this for the sake of the pup as we don’t know the buyer any more than the buyer knows us. When we ship a pup we want to know we did the pup good.
I agree with most everything you said. I have a super impressive Pet Resort, where my large family and a couple of friends breed 4 breeds of Champion line dogs, and we do ship around the world. We’ve produced Champions and Grand Champions. Our place is FULLY open to the public and you can see all the dogs/ pups / and newborns, and where and how they live. They’re all happy and social and clean, and have tons of fun in our dog parks. I don’t agree that you shouldn’t wire money, because we aren’t going to take any type of bank checques . There are way too many seller scams. We take US Postal Money orders or bank wires. But, we also are ready to give out endless references, vet references, pix and pedigrees. Buyers MUST beware. If you can’t visit in person, at least talk to a couple of people, vets/ buyers, who have. Check their local animal control for complaints. Buyers and sellers can both get scammed. There is a new service called “Puppy Visits” who will visit the breeder in another state FOR you.
I’ll stick with pups from the shelters!
AKC also has referral for Kennels… I skipped all the local sub-standard breeders and bought online when no shelters had available min-pins to rescue. I am happy to say my research paid off and I was able to give an older puppy to a beloved family member when she lost her min-pin to a bad relationship ending. http://www.dierkings.com/ They are a small family run kennel that takes pride in placing lovely well-bred min pins and italian greyhounds to the best homes.
Sincerely, One Happy Grandma to a min-pin and Mom of a shelter pitbull rescue (Hunny)
This has happened to an ad I had posted on Petfinder to find my foster dog a home. I received all kinds of strange emails indicating they would send the money, arrange transportation etc. Thankfully I did not fall for any of it and would never adopt out my rescue to someone I cannot meet and do a thorough check on.
After reading all the articles and responses on puppy scams on-line, I feel extremely grateful and very lucky. I bought my little darling on-line after doing some research as far as I was able on the owner in Missouri.
She arrived for the agreed on price, with health records and was the exact puppy pictured. But I also had several phone conversations with the breeder, as well as verifiable e-mails.
I would, however, never do it that way again, as it was really nerve wracking until she arrived.
I SEE SOMEONE ELSE ALSO GOT EMAIL TO ADOPT THE CUTE PUPY FROM A MISSIOARY OR SOEMOE CALSIMTO BE DR SO AND SO.. DONT HAVE EMAIL HANDY JUST OW THE HIS WIFE EMAILED ME TO ADOTPT. THEFIRST EMAIL I GOT I REPLIED HOW TO COPE TWITH WEATHER CONDITIONS. IT WS ATOY OR TEACUP PUPPY . UT I DID NOT BITE JUST GAVE ADVISE HOW TOTAKE CARE OF THE PUPPY. DID NOT HAVE TO ADOPT IT OUT ADWHEN WIFE SENT ME SAME EMAIL I DELETED IT. I STILL HAVE COPY OF THE EMAIL .I BELIEVE. HOW DO THESE CROOKS GET HOLD OF OUR EMAILS FROM FOREIGN COUTRIES.?? THAK YOU FOR GIVING ME OPPORTUITY TO LET SOEMONE KNOW ABOUT THIS CROOK. ADNLIAR I AMSUSRE.. G-D BLESS.
DAKOTA
these crooks get our emails through companies and sites we’ve signed up fpr or visited. they search the “wanted” ads then contact you stating they have what your looking for. they are sneaky and evil people who thrive on hurting others. i have dozens of emails from scammers that i am keeping to educate others. i just want a tiny puppy and i can find is people who want to steal all my money. unfortunately i didn’t research before i bought the 1st time around i am much too ebarrassed to admit how much i lost but it was all my puppy money. now i have no money and no puppy. these people are heartless and they are getting away with it.
a guy told my babysitter to buy a puppy he got it from the computer plz help
his name is rev john collins she thinks he scamming her =(