Emily Walker
Facebook is one of the largest social media on the planet with billions of users. No wonder many businesses promote their products on Facebook due to the largest audience reach.
You might be wondering, “is it safe to buy a puppy from Facebook?”
Unfortunately, it’s not only legit sellers promoting their products but also scammers too. Scammers are not only selling fake items but also pets. It’s so easy to pull on your heartstrings with an adorable puppy. Once you see those puppy photos it’s hard to resist.
There are so many people getting scammed on Facebook by the puppy scammers, some of them report to Facebook and share their bad experience to others on Facebook groups so there won’t be anyone that is going to get scammed, but some of them are too embarrassed to report and share.
Check the fake profile on Facebook
At Petpress, we have several Facebook groups of specific dog breeds with almost hundreds of thousands of members. Members can share their cute puppy’s images and videos to the groups, or ask questions that might help their pups.
Here are just some of our dog Facebook groups:
- Golden Retriever – https://www.facebook.com/groups/goldenretrieverthe/
- Doberman Pinscher – https://www.facebook.com/groups/dobermanpinscherthepaws/
- Border Collie – https://www.facebook.com/groups/bordercolliethe/
- Siberian Husky – https://www.facebook.com/groups/huskythepaws/
Every day we have to block hundreds of puppy scammers that are selling a dog breed that doesn’t exist.
We know that they are using fake Facebook accounts by checking their profile. Most scammers have similarities in their profile, such as:
- No detailed information about themselves in the “about” section.
- Never post a single status, image or video
- Recently joined Facebook and have joined hundreds of Facebook groups
- Only have one or two images on their profile
The scammers often post about cute puppies that they took from the internet in many groups and also comment on people’s posts.
The purpose is to grab people’s attention, and if they are lucky, the animal lover will get attached to the puppy emotionally and start asking questions about the puppy. Once you agree to the deal, they will drain your bank account and keep asking for more. Even if your first agreement was free or a cheap price.
Report a puppy scammer on facebook
Before you decide to buy a puppy online and send your money to the seller you found on Facebook, make sure you have detailed information about the seller. If the seller shows any signs we listed above, you should be more cautious.
Pay attention as well to the payment method requested. Most scammers are using sketchy payment methods that are unsafe, and you can’t get back your money once you send it.
If you are sure that a Facebook account profile is a scammer, you can report it to Facebook by
- Visit their profile and click three dots beside “ message button” and click “find support or report profile”
2. After you clicked “ report profile” there will be a pop-up and you can choose that the profile is a fake
Conclusion
Facebook is one of the largest social networks and it’s the best platform to promote products, including puppies. Beware of the many fake profile accounts that keep posting about puppies for sale, puppies to adopt or puppy for rehoming.
If you are interested in getting a puppy from someone on Facebook, make sure to run a background check on the seller, so you won’t end up getting scammed and lose your money or get a dog from a puppy mill.
It’s better to buy a puppy from a shelter since it’s legit and they really care about the dog’s health.