Puppy Scams Are On The Rise In Michigan

Ever since the pandemic began, puppies scams have been on the rise all across Michigan and continue to be a problem for Michiganders.

When purchasing a new puppy, some breeds can be very expensive depending on where your purchase your pup. Many people look to alternate sources to get the puppy they want in order to save money.

Unfortunately there are a lot of people out there that try and take advantage of those who want a new puppy and many of those low life's are pretty good at what they do.

According to FOX 17, in just the last six months, Michigan residents have reported 48 puppy scams to the Better Business Bureau and those scams resulted in nearly $67,000 in losses. I did the math, that is nearly $1400 per puppy.

It is real easy for people to go online, build a fake website using photos from the internet to make a pretty good store front. There are also a lot of people who run ad's in the paper, put ad's on Craigslist or use social media to prey on suspecting new puppy owners.

FOX 17 reports that Hollie Kotwicki of White Lake Township went to one of those fake sites in September at MyTeaCupChihuahuaPuppies.com. Kotwicki not only purchased one puppy, she also picked out two more.

The website looked legit by offering American Kennel Club registered pups that checked out by a vet and came from a trusted breeder. Kotwicki even spoke with the alleged breeder as well and shared several dozen texts. Seem legit.

Kotwicki made a deposit using the cash app Zelle, which should have been a red flag right there. It wasn't until Kotwicki was notified from her bank who stopped the second payment alerting here this was a fraud account.

The people that run these fake operations are hard to find because they can hide so well on the internet, it makes them nearly impossible to locate, and they could be anywhere in the world.

The people running the website have the three puppies still listed and oddly they are still 10 weeks old which means they alleged puppy dealer has already moved on to its next mark.

It's nearly impossible to get this money back when falling for one of these scams. So its best when wanting a new puppy to really research who you are getting these dogs from. It's even better to get a dog through a reputable breeder that you know others have gotten their puppies from.

There are plenty of breeders all across the state of Michigan who can get you just about any dog you like. So don't let your heart get in the way of making a good decision when making an investment like this.