Humane Societies warn to research before buying pets online

If you are one of thousands of Americans looking to buy a pet, and you are looking at online ads such as Facebook and Craigslist, make sure to do your due diligence before making a purchase.

According to the International Fund for Animal Welfare, hundreds of thousands of puppies are advertised for sale on the internet on any given day.

Wicomico County Humane Society Executive Director Aaron Balsamo warns that while there are legitimate sellers on these sites, you should beware of scammers.

He says while working in Pittsburgh he came across one person who wanted to buy online and lost thousands of dollars.

"There was an individual who bought a dog online from a breeder down south, I do believe it was Louisiana.  And the day the dog was supposed to arrive the dog never showed up."

Those purchasing can be victimized by a seller asking for money up-front.  Some of those buyers who pay up never receive an animal.

Balsamo raised other concerns saying you should research if the animal is up to date on vaccinations, has had visits to the vet and whether it has been spayed or neutered.

Balsamo says just a simple search on the internet can answer a lot of questions.

"If there's someone that's gotten a dog from them before and they had issues this day and age someone's going to say something on the internet somewhere.  And a simple Google search will usually help you out with that."

Caroline County Humane Society Executive Director Amanda Showell raised another point.  If you want to buy online try to see the animal and its mother and father first.

But Balsamo and Showell both warn that sellers can be victims as well.  Their animals can be purchased by people who want to breed them for puppy mills, or for dog fighting.

"Just please be careful of who your buyer is and please look into the buyer because there are people out there that want to do bad things to animals, and to just be so careful where you are placing your animal," said Showell.  "Be sure you know where that home is that it is going in to."

Showell went to on to advise buyers and sellers to never meet in a store parking lot, and buyers should try to acquire a health certificate.

Amanda went on to say that all pets sold in Caroline County must come with a health certificate.