Celebrate National Puppy Day with BBB’s safe shopping tips

National Puppy Day is celebrated each year on March 23, and it usually comes with a constant stream of cute puppy pictures being shared across social media feeds. After seeing these pictures, you might be motivated to get a dog of your own or decide it’s the perfect time to add an additional puppy to your family.

Pets are a big investment, so before buying or rescuing a puppy, your Better Business Bureau encourages you to create a budget and ensure you can devote adequate time to caring for your new friend. You also want to be on the lookout for puppy scams.

As you work to create a budget, keep in mind that your puppy could be a part of your family for 10-15 years, or more. In addition to adoption costs, you want to factor in the ongoing costs of food, medical care, toys and supplies, and possibly grooming or boarding. Will you need to hire a dog walker? You can read BBB’s tips for budgeting for your pet to build a full list of costs that you might encounter.

Also, verify you can provide the time to walk, train and care for your puppy, and that you have adequate space at home and a good place to walk them nearby.

You may also want to research different breeds of dogs before you make your decision. Some breeds are better with children than others, and some are more social. It’s best to decide which factors are important to you and go from there.

If you confirm that you’re ready for your new furry family member, it’s essential to exercise caution when shopping online for the perfect pet. BBB Scam Tracker has received many reports of pet related online purchase scams and these have proven to be very costly. A recent BBB study concluded that about 80% of sponsored pet ads are likely fake, and the median loss to a pet scam is $850.

In a recent BBB Scam Tracker report, one consumer shared, “I was scammed through an adoption puppy page. The person selling the dog requested $350 and then says the delivery was $100. After paying that amount, the freight company asked for money for insurance, crates, etc. After I paid for the deposit of the insurance with the word I will get it back, they asked for $2,000 more, which I didn’t send, and they never sent the puppy.”

Another consumer reported to BBB Scam Tracker that they lost $850 when attempting to buy a Chihuahua puppy online. After paying the initial $650 for the puppy and $200 for airline shipping, the consumer was asked for an additional $950 in cash for pet insurance prior to shipping the puppy. The “breeder” asked for the payment to be made by Zelle, and the consumer realized then that the entire transaction was a scam. Unfortunately, they did not recover the initial $850 they paid to the impostor.

Even though puppies are the most common type of animal used in a pet scam, BBB also receives reports of fraudulent sellers advertising the sale of kittens, reptiles and exotic birds. In most cases, consumers only recognize they are interacting with a scammer once they start arranging for the transportation of the animal after the purchase.

It can be hard to resist an adorable face and a decent deal, so be sure to consider the following BBB tips:

Visit the seller in person. Responsible breeders are happy to offer you a tour and let you see the available puppies in person. This is a much better alternative to relying on pictures and risking that you are dealing with an impostor.

Check references. Visit BBB.org to check business profiles, read reviews and find BBB-accredited breeders near you. You can also read other online reviews and talk to others who have purchased pets from the place you are considering to help you determine if the seller is trustworthy.

Look for website warning signs. If you are pursuing a puppy online, keep in mind that fake puppy sale sites can look legitimate because they steal content from other websites. An easy way to spot a duplicate site is to copy a line of text from the website and paste it into a search engine to see if it has been copied from another source. You can also do a reverse image search of the puppy’s photo by using images.google.com to see if the photos are stolen from somewhere else.

Use a credit card to make payment. Credit cards offer additional protection if you purchase online. Asking a customer to pay by wire transfer or prepaid card is illegal, and any breeder that pressures you to do so is most likely a scam. Paying via a digital wallet app is also a red flag for a scam.

Consider adopting a pet from a rescue shelter. Adopting a pet from a reputable shelter provides a great alternative. You’ll want to take steps to be sure you don’t deal with a scammer pretending to be a rescue shelter or who falsely claims they’re a local individual who wants to re-home a puppy.

In addition to the risks associated with purchasing a puppy online, many charitable givers may consider donating to causes that support dogs to celebrate National Puppy Day. While BBB encourages charitable giving, it is vital to remain aware of scammers who create fraudulent charities and crowdfunding initiatives disguised as worthy causes.

It’s always best to research a charity or foundation through a site like BBB Wise Giving Alliance’s Give.org before committing any funds to their stated cause or mission. It takes some investigatory work on your part as a donor to ensure your money is going to a worthy organization.

If considering donating to a crowdfunding initiative, BBB recommends donating only to those you know or can independently verify as legitimate.

If you think you have been scammed or have found a suspicious website, report it to the Federal Trade Commission, BBB Scam Tracker and Petscams.com. Petscams.com tracks complaints, catalogs puppy scammers and endeavors to get fraudulent pet sales websites taken down. BBB recommends checking this site before you purchase a pet to see if the breeder’s site is included on their list of fraudulent websites.

Michele Mason is president of the Better Business Bureau in Chattanooga.