Scammers Fetch Online Puppy-Buyers

[pk]

Internet 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 person

Don'ts:
Pay via wire transfer
Buy from an overseas seller
Purchase a puppy, sight unseen
There 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.
There 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.

FULL STORY HERE:

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home...e-Puppy-Buyers

[Kris10]

A lot of these scams use "designer dogs" as bait. Puggles seem to be a popular mutt used lately. Bulldogs are often used too.

Watch for misspellings and bad grammar. If the ad sounds like this it's probably a scam:

pretty bulldogge puppies come along with all health papers and potty and trained, perfect temperament and housebroken. have all shots and are lovely with kids and the pets. contact for more infromations and pictures.

If you see an ad for a dog, do some Googling to research the ad poster. Look up any identifying information in the ad... phone number, email, username, etc. If you see that the person has many ads online (especially for a new breed each time they post), question that. Why does someone have yorkies one month, puggles next month and labradoodles after that? Likely it's a puppy mill or scammer.

[Tinkdedoodle]

Hi, my first time in this forum, but this thread caught my eye.

I breed Labradoodles... another type of "designer dog".
I have to wonder why anyone would buy ANY dog sight unseen. To me it makes no sense. Beyond the pedigree, what can you really know about them? I always want to meet a dog... meet it's parents and littermates if possible and spend some time finding out what kind of terperament and personalities they have. I want to know how they've been raised, handled, and socialized. To me those things are extremely important and to take the word of someone who is looking to "make a sale" just doesn't feel smart to me. You could be asking for trouble and if you get it, you shouldn't be surprised.

I have a website for people to check out my dogs before they make a long drive to see them, but I won't ship a dog to someone I've not met and have to wonder about someone who'd ask me to!

Just my $.02 worth