It’s unfortunate to say, but in the Puppy world there are a worrying amount of scammers. I’m a member of multiple puppy groups on facebook, and every few days I see the same thing, members posting screenshots of a conversation they had with someone who either scammed them, or came close to, out of hundreds or thousands of dollars. As a breeder, and as a person who simply cares about others, it’s disheartening to see. So the goal of todays post is to prevent YOU, dear reader, from becoming one of the unlucky folks who gets scammed while on the hunt for your new family member.
First, let’s clarify what I mean when I say scammer. In this post when I refer to scammers I’m not talking about bad breeders, puppy mills, or the like. While I have plenty to say on those topics, that’s a post for another day. For our purposes today, scammer means a person posing as a breeder for the sole purpose of getting you to place a deposit with them and then disappearing forever. Think Nigerian Princes, only with puppies.
Click the below links for an in depth breakdown of each topic.
- Ask for staged photos. It’s very difficult for a fake breeder to take a specific picture of a dog they don’t have.
- Schedule a video chat or in person meeting. A breeder will be thrilled to set an appointment, a scammer will go running for the hills.
- Breeder Verification through google. It’s 2022. Who doesn’t have a web presence on google in 2022 .
- Breeder Verification through facebook. Facebook groups are terrific tools for learning about your potential breeder, and also learning about your new breed! Join a group and start asking questions!
- Be leery of breeders who only use Cashapp or venmo. Pay in person if possible.
- Paypal invoicing is a sign your breeder cares about buyer protection. Paypal transfer to email is not.
- Hoobly: Every breeder on hoobly is not a scam, but every scammer is on hoobly because it’s free; tread cautiously.
- Low prices are low for a reason, it’s important to learn what that reason is.
So let’s start with the mechanics of the scam, and how it works.
The Scam: Stolen Photos
Typically a scammer will start by stealing photos of puppies off the internet, as they never ever actually have any puppies to sell. As someone who pays a photographer over $50 per image for their puppy photographs, this is particularly irksome. But as a potential puppy buyer, this is an advantage.
Solution 1: Staged Photos
One of the easiest ways to sus out a scammer is to request more photos than what they have shown. If the scammer is particularly lazy they’ll just google more photos of that breed, and if you look closely at the markings you can easily spot that the puppy they are showing you is not the puppy they have listed. ALWAYS request more photos. And while you’re at it, request Staged Photos. When someone asks me to send more photos, I first apologize for what I know will be poor quality photography (I’m a lover not a photographer xD ), then I take my phone and snap some photos of the pups. Someone who is trying to scam you out of you money doesn’t have real puppies, so they have to rely on google, and google will not help them if you ask for a staged photo. If you were to ask any of the breeders to place the puppy on a dinner plate and send a photo, most of them would roll their eyes a bit while laughing to themselves and then head for the kitchen. A scammer will go silent, or come up with a million excuses for why they can’t do that. And you will have just avoided being scammed.
Solution 2: Video Chat
Similar to requesting staged photos, a video chat is a terrific tool in nullifying scammers. Just about everyone has either zoom, google duo, facebook messenger, or whatever the apple one is called xD. And just about every breeder should be able to schedule a video meeting with you and the pup. It may be a day or two before they can do it, breeders live lives too, but the important thing to know is not to put down a deposit until after you’ve done the video chat and met the pup. Again, if they don’t have the pup, you’ve just avoided being scammed.
The Scam: Pretending to be a breeder
It’s important to remember that most scammers do not actually breed puppies. They simply steal their pictures, post them online, and pretend to be a breeder. This is can also work to your advantage.
Solution 1: Breeder verification through Google
So how do you know the breeder you are working with is actually who they say they are? There’s a few things you can and should do. First, google. If you google Bean Creek Doodles, you’ll find our webpage, our facebook page, our youtube, and our google business address. Odds are, if all of that information is consistent, you’re talking with a real breeder. And all it took was a quick google search.
Solution 2: Breeder verification through Facebook
Another very useful tool is facebook. If you haven’t already, join a couple of the breed specific facebook groups. While they have very strict rules about posting in search of a puppy, they do allow you post questions about a specific breeder. If no one in the group has ever heard of them, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re a scammer (they may just be new) but be wary.
The Scam: Payment
So how does a scammer actually part you from your money? With the deposit. Deposits are common practice in the puppy world. You decide on a pup, but it’s a week before you can pick them up or have them delivered? You put down a deposit to reserve that pup. Then, all the sudden you stop hearing from the breeder and they’ve blocked you on all social media. This is the moment you realize you’ve been scammed.
Two of the primary tools scammers use for scamming are Venmo and Cashapp. These are money apps that allow you to send money to someone else quickly and easily. Unfortunately, both of these apps are renowned for viewing these transactions as strictly between the payer and the payee, and take the position that they are just the vehicle for the transaction. What that means in English is that they have no buyer protections, and once you send that money it’s the same as handing cash over. If you handed it over to a scammer, they will not help you get it back.
Now, that said, here’s the tricky part. MANY GOOD BREEDERS ALSO USE THOSE APPS. I personally don’t because for me it’s something I chose to take a stand on, and I feel very strongly that I don’t want to support those apps. But that’s just me. Most other breeders use them, and I can’t fault them for it. So a breeder using those apps doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re a scammer. But if they cannot provide photos, video chats, don’t have an established web presence AND only use those apps, then you are very likely dealing with a scammer.
Solution 1: Pay In Person
This one is particularly straightforward. Go to their home, meet the puppies, the breeders, and if you like what you see, hand them over the cash. Now although it’s straightforward, it’s not always easy. Bean Creek Doodles is located in Michigan, and we routinely send pups clear across to California. In that situation it’s not very practical for someone to fly out (although many times families have, and I commend them for doing it the right way.) So how do you avoid being scammed when they’relocated far away?
Solution 2: Paypal Invoicing
My prefer method of payment when not using cash is Paypal Invoicing. As a breeder, it allows me to create an actual bill of sale. In it I include the name and all of the relevant information about the pup, a photo of the pup, and all of the buyers relevant information. I can then send it to my buyer, and they receive an actual bill of sale, ie a papertrail. A receipt. Something tangible that shows they paid x amount of dollars for a specific pup, and that the money was paid to us. That is the surest way I can offer my puppy families buyer protection. The drawback is that paypal takes a percentage of the sale for themselves, so it may cost a little more. But in the end it’s worth that piece of mind.
Now, it’s important to also call out paypal here, as it too can be used by scammers. The difference is that they aren’t using the invoicing feature. They simply give you an email address, and tell you to send the money to that address. When used in this manner paypal also takes the same stance that cashapp and venmo take, so it’s very important that you receive an invoice FIRST before sending any money to anyone.
Red Flags
Now that we’ve covered the various aspects of the scam, let’s also look at a couple of red flags you should be wary of when searching for a new pup.
Hoobly: Typically when someone decides it’s time to add a new member to their family, they go over to google and search something like Mini Bernedoodle Puppies in Michigan. Google then returns their results, typically with a handful of breeders (you might even see Bean Creek Doodlers on that list 😉 ), and a few directory sites such as Puppies.com, Lancaster Puppies, or even Hoobly.
In my experience, you can certainly find scammers on all three sites, but Hoobly is the most prominent. Why? Because the other sites charge money to list puppies. Not every puppy breeder on hoobly is a scam, but every scammer is on hoobly. If that’s the only place you find that breeder, run away.
Price: So you’ve found a directory of puppy listings, and see the picture of the cutest mini bernedoodle puppy you’ve ever seen, and simply must have him. And best of all, the price is soooo much better than many of the other listings! In reality, that price should be your first red flag.
It is entirely possible to find puppies at a below market average price. For example, at the time of writing I have a litter of 6 week old mini bernedoodle puppies listed for $2500 each. That’s actually quite a bit lower than we were doing this time last year, but the market goes up and down, as do expenses. But I also have a 6 month old mini Aussiedoodle in our Lonely Hearts Club who we only have listed for $500. He’s in perfect health, and is a fantastic cuddler, but for one reason or another he got passed over and still hasn’t found a good home yet. So we priced him low to help him find his new family a little more quickly. So, good deals exist out there. BUT if you find someone selling a litter of young puppies well below what everyone else is selling them for, be suspicious. As a breeder I can tell you it’s not a cheap thing to raise puppies. From genetic testing the parents to feeding the pups, all of those costs add up quick. So if someone is drastically underpriced, there is a reason. It might not necessarily be a scam, but it’s a flag.
Final Thoughts
Let’s sum up. If you’re in the market for a new puppy, and want to make sure you don’t get scammed, what are the things you can do?
- Ask for staged photos. It’s very difficult for a fake breeder to take a specific picture of a dog they don’t have.
- Schedule a video chat or in person meeting. A breeder will be thrilled to set an appointment, a scammer will go running for the hills.
- Breeder Verification through google. It’s 2022. Who doesn’t have a web presence on google in 2022 .
- Breeder Verification through facebook. Facebook groups are terrific tools for learning about your potential breeder, and also learning about your new breed! Join a group and start asking questions!
- Be leery of breeders who only use Cashapp or venmo. Pay in person if possible.
- Paypal invoicing is a sign your breeder cares about buyer protection. Paypal transfer to email is not.
- Hoobly: Every breeder on hoobly is not a scam, but every scammer is on hoobly because it’s free; tread cautiously.
- Low prices are low for a reason, it’s important to learn what that reason is.
So that’s my list of ways to avoid being scammed when in the market for a puppy. Honest to God I hope it helps at least one of you avoid being scammed. If it does, please comment below and tell everyone about your experience. And if you’ve been scammed in the past and are brave enough to post about it, please let us know the specifics below too. The more people can learn about the scams and how they operate the more people can avoid them.
Thanks for reading,
Joe Klaczynski