Adopting a rescue dog may give you a warm feeling in your heart, but scammers are ready to take advantage of your good-natured decision. The Better Business Bureau is warning about a scam in which the seller continues to up the price, but the dog never arrives.
The BBB says it happens when someone finds a person or organization online who wants to rehome a puppy. The prospective buyer then reaches out to get more information.
From there, the seller comes up with a list of problems which require more money from the buyer. They may need you to pay shipping fees, most likely through wire transfer or a pre-paid debit or gift card.
Then more problems show up, according to BBB. The dog may need an emergency visit to the vet, or there may be added shipping fees. The scammers may say the money will be refunded when the pet is delivered. They may even threaten to put the dog to sleep if the money is not paid.
As often happens, once the scammers get their money, they disappear -- and the person who was looking forward to a new four-legged family member is out the money and learns the dog never existed.
The BBB says it's not just dogs. Other pets have been used in such scams.
The best ways to avoid a pet adoption scam, according to the BBB:
- Never buy or adopt a pet without seeing it in person.
- Do an internet search for the pet’s image that you found online. Upload the pet’s photo to a reverse image search (Google Images is the most common). If you see multiple pet adoptions sites using the same picture, it’s probably a scam.
- Remember that pre-paid debit or gift cards and wire transfers. Money sent this way cannot be refunded.
