I tried to buy a Yorkie off Craigslist, the owner seemed genuine, although I thought the puppy lived in Washington (was an ad in the Seattle section) when really the puppy was in MARYLAND.
I thought about shipping the dog here, but then I read on the Federal Trade Commission that scammers use free dogs by using a compelling story about the family, make the new adoptive house pay for shipping of the dog, only to never receive a dog because there never was one.
This freaked me out and I asked the owners of the dog I was trying to adopt if they were scamming me using this EXACT story people have been scammed into.
One of the comments on the website is EXACTLY what Maryland owner told me. I can’t tell if the dog owners story is real or not now because their family situation is the same as someone who was scammed.
So I called off the adoption. Pretty sure the dog owner felt insulted I wouldn’t believe her family situation for why the dog was free. Owner didn’t end the email with anything nice to say either. They could have said something like “thanks for having interest in our puppy, it was nice talking with you” or something.
Instead it was “it’s true people use a lot of shit online but I can’t use my sons name just to get rid of your heart earned money” and nothing else said afterward.
I couldn’t trust the family after I read the article. They may actually have a genuine heart and need to rehome their Yorkie, but I cannot tell who is telling the truth and now I look mean to this family.
That puppy was adorable too. Sigh.
Was I too skeptical of the adoption? Like I should have trusted the Yorkie would actually exist and be shipped to Washington?
