How to Avoid Internet Pet Scams

Buying a new pet on the Internet is never a good idea. In addition to unscrupulous dealers and puppy mills/brokers selling their “stock” to unsuspecting buyers—online scammers use elaborate websites and fabricated stories to bilk substantial amounts of money out of people for pets that don't even exist. And the pets that do exist, very often have serious health problems. Here are ways to keep from getting duped by online pet sellers.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. If buying a dog from a breeder, always visit in person to see how the animals are living and to ensure that it's not a puppy mill. Puppy mills are inhumane factory-style operations that churn out puppies to be sold for a quick profit. Puppy mill puppies are often malnourished and taken from their mothers too early, as well as have a host of inherited health disorders, in addition to their parents spending their entire lives in cages being bred over and over.

2. Don’t buy pets from a distant buyer, seller or adopter. Often times a buyer isn’t aware that their puppy was born overseas in a puppy mill, then sold to a U.S. broker. Tens of thousands of dogs are shipped into the United States from puppy mills in countries such as Russia and China.

3. Check references, which can include veterinarians and others who've purchased pets from this breeder. And make sure you deal directly with a breeder, not a broker.

4. Don’t deal with anyone who promises a free puppy for just the cost of shipping. Scammers in these types of transactions often ask you to send more money because the nonexistent dog is "stuck at the airport" for various reasons such as customs complications or problems with the crate.

5. Don’t fall for claims that the seller represents an animal shelter or is a “good Samaritan” offering the dogs for "adoption." Reputable shelters do not place animals by sending out mass emails and then shipping them to people.

6. Never purchase a puppy with the promise of getting the AKC (American Kennel Club) papers from the seller at a later time. It takes 6 to 8 weeks for puppies to be ready for a new home, which is ample time for the breeder to receive the papers. It takes a couple of weeks through the mail and only a week if registration is done online. The AKC cannot help you get papers after the sale. In other words, if the seller tells you the dog is "register-able"—run the other way.

Tips & Warnings

• English bulldogs and Yorkshire terriers are two breeds that are very often promised in Internet scams because they are popular and expensive.
• See if any complaints have been filed against the breeder/seller with The Humane Society of the United States or Companion Animal Protection Society (CAPS). See links in Resources below.
• If you are interested in a particular breed of dog, consider adopting from a local shelter or breed specific rescue first. About 30 percent of dogs found at shelters are purebreds and there are rescues for just about every breed you can think of. Shelters and rescues screen dogs and cats for health and temperament.
• Petfinder.com, AdoptaPet.com and Pets 911 are popular websites for finding adoptable animals. Petfinder.com lists pets from throughout North America, Adopt a Pet.com lists pets from all over the United States and Canada and Pets 911 features adoptable animals from all over the United States. Just put in your zip code. (see links below).
• Internet scammers can deceive buyers by using readily available online photos or stolen photos of other people's pets to represent the nonexistent animal.
• Online scammers will often copy the claims of legitimate rescue groups and attempt to sound reputable by saying things like, "will only adopt to someone with a fenced yard." They may also copy breeder ads and claim to have registration certificates, vet records and health guarantees.
• The AKC requires DNA samples for all sires producing more than three litters in a year or seven litters in a lifetime. If a puppy does not have AKC papers, it is an automatic red flag (although AKC papers are not an automatic guarantee of healthy breeding—AKC papers are also issued to puppy mills).
• Beware of vendors selling sickly and very young puppies from Mexico that are smuggled in under cruel conditions. This is most prevalent in California and other border states.
• One Tennessee bulldog "breeder" listed on her website a "health guarantee" that promised a replacement dog if the buyer shipped to her the carcass of a bulldog that died from poor health (that would normally be a red flag for most of us, but it wasn't for everyone apparently). The woman has since been brought to trial on multiple counts of operating a puppy mill.

Resources

• The Humane Society of the United States
• Companion Animal Protection Society
• Petfinder.com
• AdoptaPet.com
• Pets 911

[diggitydogg]

on 12/3/2008 Yes, very true. That's why I wrote that AKC papers are not a guarantee of healthy breeding because they sell papers to puppy mills! The bottom line for the AKC is to make money, not to care about animals. We are on the same page and the same side.

[garyloewenthal]

on 12/2/2008 Note that the AKC papers are no guarantee of decent breeding conditions or practices. The AKC has issued papers for many puppy mill animals.

[acopro13]

on 1/16/2008 Thank you so much for writing this. The public needs to be educated and this a thorough and to the point article.