Puppy scams are an all-too-common occurrence as of late, and unfortunately, more and more people are falling prey to these schemes every single day. Here at PetRelocation.com, we receive a minimum of 10 calls per day from people who are expecting to receive pups from some source or another - pups that sadly aren't coming because they simply don't exist. Below is a list of some helpful tips to help you identifiy a potential puppy scam:
- Be wary of outlandish background stories. If someone says they're a missionary that needs help finding a good home for their dog, they're probably lying.
- If someone is offering to send you a dog for the cost of shipping alone - they are lying. Owners who are in need of finding a good home for a pet will typically search locally - there's not really any logical need to search internationally or out-of-state if money is not an issue and/or special attention is needed.
- Throw up the red flag if your communication with the "seller" consists of broken English emails. "I dog send to you because puppy good be" should not provide the confidence that all bodes well.
- If they are operating as if they are PetRelocation.com or another reputable pet shipping company, but they are sending emails from Hotmail, Yahoo or other free email accounts, then they are not affiliated with our company. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.
- Many of these puppies are English bulldogs, Yorkshire terriers (Yorkies) or other rare breeds that are expensive. If you are told that you will only need to pay for insurance for your new dog, and that the price of the puppy itself is free, it is likely a scam.
- Be extremely cautious of "sellers" who will only accept payment via Western Union or money gram. These are both non-refundable means of currency transaction that are a favorite among scammers.
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they sent this email to me... is it am i in dangeorous situation??? will i get harmed??? will they do anything that harmful to me??? will they still able to steal my money???
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: UAE PET Transporters
Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 05:10:37 -0500
Subject: Payment notification
PENDING PAYMENTS FOR THE DELIVERY OF YOUR PUPPY
Dear Customer,
We wish to inform you that the puppy has been registered in your
name but we cannot proceed with the transportation and delivery to
your location because you have not confirmed payments.As soon as the payment
of 350 USD is confirmed we will immediately send you the tracking details
for your puppy and the exact time of delivery to your home address which you
must be present in person to sign and collect it.Use the
information's below to make
payments to our Headquarters through WESTERN UNION
Using the information below to make the payments
Receivers Name.............XXXXXXX
Country....................CAMEROON
Zip..........................237
You will need a test question and answer,it should be
Test Question..........Where
Answer...............There
The reason you are paying the money to our Headquarters is Cameroon
is simply because
our account has been under auditing for the past 4 Months
so all our monetary transactions are sent and confirmed at our branch
in Cameroon.
There we have a WESTERN UNION store at our head office where the
accountant will
confirm the money
Once you have confirmed the payments to our head office in
Cameroon,scan a copy of
the transfer receipt and email to us and your sender and also email
us the following
information's
Senders Name..
Reference Number/M CTN Number...
Test Question and Answer..
--
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