How to Spot a Pet Scam: Pet Scams Take Your Money or Your Pet

We recently gave a daughter a pet dog who was not exactly a poodle. He was more a foodle. She really took care of the dog and dyed the dog pink. She bought the dog a fancy collar and from time to time would let the dog play in her upstate back yard. One day the dog disappeared from the closed yard and was never found again.

My first thought was of the people who train their dogs to be mean and to fight. Folks like these in some neighborhoods are known to steal small dogs to be attacked and killed by the larger dog. I once witnessed several large dogs attacking a smaller dog in a remote Manhattan park.

There is a scam however where dogs are taken off of the street and are then photographed and advertised being put up for sale. This scam involves stealing a dog from one person then selling the dog to another person who ends up paying for a stolen dog. The first person ends up without their pet and he scammer ends up with cash in their pocket.

Recent news in my area involved an owner who was missing their dog, finding the dog being sold online. The police were alerted and the investigation result was finding a house filled with poorly cared for stolen dogs who were up for sale. The thieves and scammers involved were all arrested and the dogs were taken away to be treated and cared for. If the owners are not found many of the dogs may face eventual extermination in a pound. Events like this however having been televised are helpful as owners and potential adopters are able to take notice and try to reclaim or adopt the poorly kept pets.

Another scam run on EBay involved putting dogs up for adoption. In many cases a picture of the same dog was used over and over again. The person wanting to adopt the dog would get the pet for free or for a good price since the owner just could not keep it any more. The pet traveling a great distance would need money paid for travel, for a case to travel in, for insurance, room and board while waiting and more.

Money would be requested in this scam at intervals. This scam which was also televised was followed up on by a reporter. Money for a doctor's care was even requested. The animal would need a series of shots to be allowed to travel on a plane. In the end no pet was sent and no pet was received.

The pet scam can be found on Craig's List and on EBay. The scammer preys on your love for animals and takes advantage of your desire to own a cute pet. The scammer milks your pockets until no more money is sent and you realize that you are wasting your time and that the cute pet you were about to own and love is just a figment of your imagination. All you get is an empty pocket and no pet.