The USPCA, Northern Ireland’s animal welfare charity, has published a new puppy scam alert.
Illegal puppy farmers are inventing new ways to fake legitimacy and make a quick buck at the cost of the poor animal’s wellbeing. They are insisting on home checks before handing over the puppy. However, they don’t execute them. They simply want cash in an envelope handed over on the doorstep.
This puppy scam alert is thanks to activity reported across Co. Antrim including Templepatrick, Belfast, Tullycarnet, and Carrickfergus. What’s more, it is likely to be occurring elsewhere too. The targeted breeds are Shih Tzus, Pomeranians, Chorkies, and Cockapoos.
The pups are often sick, ill-bred, not necessarily the required gender, often too young, and certainly not from “loving family homes”.
Sellers make identification difficult by wearing hats and facemasks.
“These individuals are continually adapting their operations in order to dupe unsuspecting members of the public. Over the past two years, they have used the excuse of Covid to stop buyers from viewing where the pup has been born and bred – and now we see them using the ploy of ‘home checks’ in a bid to gain the buyer’s trust,” says USPCA animal care manager Deirdre McArdle.
“These reports also give us cause for concern regarding the safety of the buyer. Although no threats or intimidation have been involved in the reported cases, we are urging members of the public to be vigilant against this new method of operation, for their own safety and the poor animals who are mercilessly bred for profit.”