Headlines

These States Have the Most Puppy Scams

The number of scams grew dramatically during the pandemic.

Published

2 years ago

December 1, 2021

PETS+ Staff

A new report from Veterinarians.org, a veterinarian location service, examines which states have the most puppy scams.

The ranking is called “Puppies for Sale: The States with the Most Online Puppy Scams,” and it’s based on data reported to the Better Business Bureau during the 10-month period beginning on Jan. 1, 2021.

In all, nearly 3,000 puppy-related scams were reported to the Better Business Bureau during that time frame. That represented an increase of 165 percent from the same period in pre-pandemic 2019.

During the pandemic, “a lot of people were turning to animals as a form of therapy,” Lily Velez, the author of the Puppy Scam Report, told CBS DFW.

“And unfortunately, a lot of the scam artists saw an opportunity to put up these fraudulent puppy sites.”

California had the most scams, with 345. The average loss per victim was $733.69.

The Golden State was followed by Texas, with 242 scams and an average loss of $913.20, and Florida, with 219 scams and an average loss of $738.53.

Veterinarians.org also looked at which states had the most puppy scams per 100,000 people. That list was topped by Montana, Colorado and Nevada.

Read the report here.

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