Puppies for sale!
November is the time of the year when lots of families wish to buy a puppy for Christmas time. But since 2019, pre-pandemic time, there have been 165% more puppy scams in the U.S.
Overall, there were almost 3,000 puppy-related scams reported between January 1,2021 and October 31,2021. The Special Reports team at Veterinarians.org analyzed data to rank the states with the most reported puppy scams. New York in this data took the fourth place on the list.
The most amount of scams appeared to be in California. Future owners lost over a quarter of a million dollars to puppy scams. The amount per victim is around $733.69.
Texas, Florida and New York didn’t fall far apart from California. The average losing amount there is about $700. But when you sum it together, in Taxes for instance the total amount added to $220,000.
Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, Google searches on puppies for sale increased to phenomenal amounts. Social distancing led people to want someone around them, and it helped to prevent people from impacting their mental health by being isolated. So when opportunity took its place, scammers didn’t miss it.
There are some tips on how to identify a puppy scam and warning signs. First, the seller does not provide enough videos and pictures of the desired puppy. The seller asks you for an upfront payment via Zelle, Cash App, MoneyGram or Western Union or even a gift card. The seller is asking for additional fees for shipping, vaccinations or transportation insurance or life insurance. The breeders website does not prove the proof of health records or AKC Certification. And finally, if you saw a website where puppies of the breed you desired are offered for a much lesser price, it is probably a scam.
Having a new member in your family is truly amazing, but with all the statistics people should be aware and know how to secure themselves in order not to get into a scam. If you will see at least one warning sign from a breeder, it is better to move one and look elsewhere. By raising awareness it will help to prevent the scams around us.
For more information on puppy scams, visit www.veterinarians.org
