Is it safe to buy a pet from an online listing?
Pet scams are widespread and involve fake listings, deposits paid for animals that do not exist, and additional fees invented after payment. Always see the animal in person before paying.
Last reviewed: 10 June 2026
Explanation
Online pet fraud is one of the most emotionally manipulative scam types because it targets people who want to welcome an animal into their family. The pattern is consistent: a listing presents an attractive animal at a competitive price, the seller claims to be located at a distance or overseas, a deposit is requested, and then additional fees appear — shipping costs, veterinary clearances, vaccination certificates, insurance for transit — each of which must be paid before the animal arrives. The animal never arrives because it does not exist.
The photographs are typically stolen from legitimate breeders, rescue organisations, or pet-sharing social media accounts. Reverse image searching the photos frequently reveals their origin.
Puppy scams and kitten scams are particularly common, but the same fraud is applied to more exotic animals — parrots, reptiles, rare dog breeds — where physical inspection is more challenging for buyers.
The simple protection is to see the animal in person before any money changes hands. Meeting the animal, the seller, and ideally seeing its environment is both the best fraud protection and the best animal welfare practice. If geography makes this impossible, at minimum conduct a live, unscripted video call where the seller interacts naturally with the specific animal.
Common red flags
- Seller is located remotely and cannot facilitate an in-person viewing
- Deposit is requested before any meeting or video verification
- Additional fees appear after initial payment — transport, insurance, vaccination
- Photos appear on other sites or under different sellers when reverse-image-searched
- Price is unusually low for the breed or species
- Seller uses emotional pressure — other buyers are waiting, the animal needs a home urgently
What to do now
- See the animal in person before paying anything
- Reverse-image-search all provided photos
- Video call with the seller and the specific animal if in-person meeting is impossible
- Never pay additional fees after an initial deposit without verifying the service independently
- If you have been defrauded, report to your national fraud authority and the platform where the listing appeared
- Report stolen photos to the original breeder or rescue if you can identify them
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to buy from a registered breeder online?
Registered breeders should be verifiable with the relevant kennel club or breed association. Even with a verified breeder, seeing the animal in person or via live video and confirming the litter exists before paying is best practice.
The seller showed me photos with a timestamp — is that proof the animal is real?
Photos can be staged or borrowed. A live, unscripted video call where the seller interacts with the specific animal and responds to requests (hold the animal closer, show its markings) is much harder to fake than photographs.