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Article Archive > Puppy scams can prey on good-hearted pet lovers Puppy scams can prey on good-hearted pet lovers Imagine if you heard about an English bulldog being stuck in Nigeria. Allegedly, the stranded pup went to Africa with its Christian missionary owner. Then you might be told that the Christian missionary owner of the dog was so wrapped up with doing God's work that there was no time left over for the puppy. After all, the hot climate would even conspire against the poor little bulldog, which would be struggling in a condition of high heat and humidity. As a dog lover yourself, you might be tempted to help out this missionary by offering a good home for the bulldog, which usually costs upward of $2,000 to adopt from a reputable breeder. Of course, to adopt this puppy from Africa, all one might have to do is send fees totaling more than $1,500 to these missionaries (who, no doubt, would probably do some incredible good with the money). But this is a scam, just like the kind that end up in all of our spam filters every day within E-mails. Granted, the bulldog stranded in Africa pitch is a new wrinkle, but it amounts to the same thing as the spam mail informing random people they have won some foreign lottery they never bought a ticket for, or ever heard of previously. Monmouth County SPCA Chief of Police Victor "Buddy" Amato and his wife, Ruth, unearthed this most recent scam. Mrs. Amato put a lot of work into finding out these alleged missionaries were not missionaries at all-just thieves with a new line of bull. I've known Buddy and Ruth for more than 10 years, since that time of my life I call `Before the Gray Hair Came.' In that time, I have never seen two people more concerned about the welfare of animals, or humans for that matter. What the Amatos found out was that the Council of Better Business Bureaus and the American Kennel Club have issued warnings about fraudulent Web sites, MySpace postings and print ads asking people to help save animals in desperate straits. According to Mrs. Amato, the sites usually show ads or have information about adorable puppies stuck in Nigeria or other countries. Ostensibly, the puppies, usually an expensive breed, are supposed to be free to anyone offering a good home to them. Then, people who respond to the ads were asked to send hundreds of dollars to cover bogus expenses, such as shipping, customs, taxes and inoculations on an ever-escalating scale. Mrs. Amato said the American Kennel Club (AKC) and the Bulldog Club of America (BCA) are the first place to start if someone were to want an Old English bulldog. In general, though, if someone is privately selling an expensive breed dog, and the offer sounds too good to be true-then it's usually too good to be true. That is why going to responsible, established organizations for help and direction will always be responsible advice. Surfing the Internet for a puppy may be tempting. But the best way to use the Internet could also be using it to find reputable breeders. Mrs. Amato noted that, when selecting a new puppy, it is important to see the puppy's parents, the health and pedigree records, and get a feel for the temperament of the puppy also. Thanks to Buddy and Ruth for letting me know about this scam. A would-be pet owner may be able to avoid a real problem using some of this insight.
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