Don’t lose your money: Pet scams skyrocket as holiday shopping season heats up

If adding a furry friend to your family is on your last-minute Christmas list, watch out as complaints about pet scams continue to skyrocket according to the Better Business Bureau.

Every year around the holidays, Troubleshooter Diane Wilson hears from a family who not only lost money but had to deal with major heartbreak after falling for a pet scam.

This scam works two ways. First, you find a dog or cat advertised online. Typically it’s a popular breed, and the post contains cute pictures and a discounted price.

You pay for the pet up front, either by wiring the money, or through a cash app, or even gift cards. Once paying all that money, the scammers keep asking for more money and the pet never arrives.

Recently, a Raleigh family lost more than $1,000 when they thought they were buying a Yorkshire Terrier from a legit breeder.

We’ve shown you how scammers create websites to make it seem like they’re legit breeders. Alyssa Parker with BBB of Eastern North Carolina says, “Be aware of maybe any grammatical errors on the website or actually see if the address they post on there is legitimate.” A quick google search and image search will also help you determine if it’s a scam.

We’ve also shown you the heartbreak of a Raleigh family who lost money to this scam after buying a sick puppy from someone local. Days after bringing the new addition home, the family realized the pet was very sick and needed thousands of dollars in medical attention.

In one case the puppy was so sick, she…

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