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How to spot a puppy or pet scam

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Puppy and pet scams often follow the same pattern. A cute puppy at a good price. A deposit, then fees for transport, a crate or insurance. Then the seller stops replying, and there’s no puppy. So meet the seller and the puppy in person before you pay anything, including a deposit. For a breeder’s puppy, meet its mother too.

Already paid? Call your bank now and ask them to stop the payment. Scamwatch warns that many payments go through instantly. What to do next.

The short version

  • Meet the seller and the animal in person before you pay anything, including a deposit. For a breeder’s puppy or kitten, meet its mother too. A video call is a first look. It doesn’t count as meeting.
  • Pay only into an account in the seller’s own name, and only if your bank says the name matches. If your bank can’t check names, pay in person, once you’ve met.
  • Never pay a seller for transport, a crate or insurance. Book transport yourself.
  • Never pay by gift card, cryptocurrency or a money transfer service.
  • A number on an ad shows only what the seller typed. Look it up, but a match doesn’t prove the seller is the person it belongs to.
  • Treat any “escrow” (a service that holds your money until you get the animal) or “payment protection” a seller suggests as a scam. Pet Sales Australia doesn’t hold payments between buyers and sellers, so it isn’t ours, and we can’t get a deposit back.

Jump to: Warning signs · Before you pay · Deposits · Already paid? · Selling? Scams that target sellers

Puppy and pet scam warning signs

Scammers set up fake websites, and fake profiles on social media and online marketplaces, to sell pets that don’t exist, Scamwatch says. WA ScamNet warned in 2015 that the photos may be stolen from social media. Any one of these signs is a reason to stop and check.

  • A price that looks too good to be true. Scamwatch says that if a pet is very cheap, it’s likely a scam. But WA ScamNet said in 2015 that the asking price is usually only a little below what you’d expect to pay, so a fair price doesn’t prove an ad is real.
  • Be wary of a seller who only texts. Ask for a call or a video call. If there’s always a reason you can’t visit, don’t pay.
  • The puppy is “interstate” or overseas and will be sent to you. Then come fees for transport, a crate, insurance, a vet check or quarantine, sometimes from a “pet transport company”. Scamwatch warned about fees like these in 2013, WA ScamNet in 2015 and the ACCC in 2018.
  • They want a deposit before you’ve met the animal and, for a breeder’s puppy or kitten, its mother.
  • They want payment through a money transfer service. Scamwatch’s 2013 puppy scam alert warned about this.
  • Be wary if you’re rushed. A genuine seller shouldn’t rush you.
  • The account name isn’t the seller’s name.
  • They send screenshots as proof of papers. A screenshot proves nothing.

Tasmania Police warned in 2020 that once you’ve paid, the seller stops all contact.

Our puppy and kitten prices guide explains why a cheap puppy can be a warning sign. A seller who won’t let you visit may be hiding more than a scam: read how to spot a puppy farm.

Scamwatch lists pet scams with other buying and selling scams. WA ScamNet keeps a public list of fake pet websites. It names more than 100 fake puppy websites, most added between 2020 and 2023, and dozens of fake pet-transport companies linked to them. In 2025, 12,248 Australians told Scamwatch they’d lost money to shopping scams (online shopping and classified scams): $10.8 million in all, and 22.2% more people than in 2024. That’s from the National Anti-Scam Centre’s 2025 report (PDF, 2.7 MB), published in March 2026. The count is Scamwatch’s, not a national total, and the report doesn’t say how many were pet scams.

Think it’s a scam, but haven’t paid? Stop replying, and don’t pay anything. Report the ad to the site it’s on, and at scamwatch.gov.au. With your consent, Scamwatch can use your report to help remove scam websites, ads and contact details.

Before you pay

  • Meet the seller and the animal in person, where it was raised, and for a breeder’s puppy or kitten, its mother. Do it before you pay anything, including a deposit. Before you visit, ask for a live video call with the puppy, and for a breeder’s puppy, with its mother there too: a seller who won’t do a call is a red flag. A call is a first look. It doesn’t count as meeting.
  • Check the number on the ad. Most states and territories set what a dog or cat ad must show, such as a Victorian source number or a NSW breeder identification number (BIN). Our source number page shows where to look each one up, in the states that have a public search. The rules for each state are in State rules for ads and handover.
  • Look up the microchip. Ask the seller for the full microchip number, and search it at petaddress.com.au. It shows which registry holds the number, not whose name it’s in. It may not search every registry (PDF), such as the NSW and SA government registers. For a NSW pet, also try the NSW Pet Registry Buyer Search.
  • Search the ad. Paste the ad’s exact words into a search engine, and search its photos with a reverse image search. The same words or photos on other ads are a red flag.
  • Check the website. If you found the pet on a breeder’s own website, or a transport company contacts you, search its name on WA ScamNet’s list. Not being on the list doesn’t prove it’s real.
  • Pay only into the seller’s own account, and only if your bank says the name matches (how to check the name). If your bank can’t check names, don’t pay by transfer: pay in person, once you’ve met the seller and the animal.
  • Book transport yourself, or collect in person.
  • Get it in writing. Agree the price, any deposit, refund terms and the handover date in writing.

Checking the name with your bank

  • Since July 2025, banks across Australia have been rolling out Confirmation of Payee, and the Australian Banking Association says it’s now live at participating banks. When you pay someone new by BSB and account number, a participating bank checks the name you type against the account, and tells you whether it’s a match, a close match or no match.
  • Type the seller’s name exactly as they gave it. Pay only on a match. A match means only that the account is in that name. It doesn’t make the payment safe, so still meet the animal first.
  • Close match: if your bank shows the account name and the only difference is a middle name or initial, ask the seller to confirm before you pay. For any other difference, or if your bank doesn’t show the name, don’t pay.
  • No match: don’t pay. Your bank will usually still let you go ahead, so it’s up to you to stop.
  • Not every bank checks names yet. A payment screen that says nothing about the name isn’t a match.

Deposits

Some sellers take a deposit to hold a puppy or kitten. Scammers ask for one too, and a seller who wants a deposit before you’ve visited is a warning sign. So pay nothing, including a deposit, until you’ve met the seller and the animal in person, and for a breeder’s puppy or kitten, its mother. If you can’t visit yet, don’t pay to hold the animal: a genuine seller can wait for a visit.

  • Get the terms in writing: the amount, and when you’d get it back.
  • Never pay a deposit for a litter that isn’t born.

Our Terms of Use say the same to sellers: once listings open, a seller on Pet Sales Australia mustn’t ask for a deposit, or any other payment, before you’ve met them and the animal in person. That applies if you live in another state too. If a seller asks sooner, tell us.

Pet Sales Australia doesn’t hold deposits or any other payment between buyers and sellers, so any escrow or payment service someone suggests isn’t ours. Treat it as a scam.

If you buy from a business, such as a pet shop or a breeder selling as a business, the consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law apply, and deposit terms can’t take them away. The NSW Government’s buying a pet page and Western Australia’s Consumer Protection both say the guarantees don’t cover a one-off sale by a private seller, and Western Australia’s page says they’re limited when you adopt from a shelter or rescue. Your state or territory’s fair trading or consumer affairs office can explain your rights.

At pickup

  • Match the chip. Ask to see the chip scanned, and check the number matches the papers. Your vet can scan it again at the first visit.
  • Take the papers: the vaccination record, and the microchip change-of-ownership papers. Make sure the microchip registry is updated to your name, or that the seller has done it. Some states require more: see papers at handover.
  • Check the seller’s licence, if they agree. If they have a Victorian or NSW digital driver licence, ask to scan its QR code. In Victoria, use the Service Victoria app, or the myVicRoads app for a licence held in it. In NSW, use the Service NSW app. Service Victoria and Service NSW say the app shows whether the licence is genuine and current. Check the photo matches the seller, and the name matches the name you’re paying.

If you think you’ve paid a scammer

There’s no shame in it. Scams can happen to anyone. Act straight away.

  1. Call your bank now. Ask them to stop the payment.
  2. Stop paying, even if they ask for more. Scamwatch says to stop sending money.
  3. Report it at scamwatch.gov.au, and to police through ReportCyber at cyber.gov.au.
  4. If they have your ID details, contact IDCARE, Australia and New Zealand’s national identity and cyber support service, on 1800 595 160. Scamwatch says it can help you make a plan for free.
  5. Keep everything: the messages, the ad, your payment receipts and the account details you paid.
  6. Tell us at info@petsales.net.au, with the listing’s link or number if it was here. We reply within 2 working days to say we’ve got it. Our Listing Rules explain how we handle reports.

Don’t send us card or bank numbers, passwords, sign-in codes or ID documents. We use what you send to look into it, and may pass it, with your contact details, to police or another authority. Claude, an AI assistant made by Anthropic in the United States, reads every email sent to info@petsales.net.au, so your email goes to Anthropic, but not the files attached to it. Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle it.

We can’t get your money back: we don’t hold payments between buyers and sellers. If you’re not happy with how your bank handled it, you can complain to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority. Scamwatch says to watch out for anyone who offers to get your money back.

Scams that target sellers

Breeders, owners rehoming a pet, small-animal sellers and rescues get targeted too.

  • Never refund an “overpayment”. Scamwatch warns of fake buyers who send more than the price, then ask for the difference back.
  • Check the money has arrived in your own account before you hand over an animal. A screenshot or email of a payment isn’t proof.
  • Ignore a “PayID upgrade”. NAB and Westpac warn of fake buyers who say their payment is stuck until you upgrade to a business PayID account. They send a fake email saying they’ve paid extra to cover it, and ask you to pay that back. No money arrives. PayID is free and never needs an upgrade.
  • Be wary of buyers who won’t visit. Scamwatch lists a buyer willing to buy an expensive item without viewing it in person as a warning sign. Ask them to visit. Be wary too of a buyer who sends their own courier, or wants to pay by gift card, cryptocurrency or a money transfer service.
  • Never give anyone a code sent to your phone or email, even someone who says they’re a buyer or from Pet Sales Australia.
  • Take no payment before the buyer has met you and the animal in person. That includes a deposit: take it when you meet, with the terms in writing. It’s our rule once listings open, and it’s what we tell buyers.
  • Refund a deposit only to the account it came from, when your deposit terms or the law require it.
  • Use an account in your own name. We tell buyers to pay only into an account in the seller’s own name. If your bank account is in a business name, give buyers one in your own name, or take payment at pickup. Rescues can use an account in the rescue’s name.

Selling or rehoming? See sell your pet or rehome a pet.

If someone copies your listing

If your photos, words, name or registration number (source number, BIN or supply number) turn up in someone else’s ad, report it to the site it’s on and at scamwatch.gov.au. If the ad is on Pet Sales Australia, email the link and proof it’s yours to info@petsales.net.au, and we’ll treat it as a scam report. Don’t send us card or bank numbers, passwords, sign-in codes or ID documents. We use what you send to look into it, and may pass it, with your contact details, to police or another authority. Claude, an AI assistant made by Anthropic in the United States, reads every email sent to info@petsales.net.au, so your email goes to Anthropic, but not the files attached to it. Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle what you send.

State rules for ads and handover

State law decides what a dog or cat ad must show, and what the seller must give you. A number on an ad shows only what the seller typed, so look it up before you pay.

What the ad must show

State What the ad must show Where to check
Victoria Almost every dog and cat ad, sold or given away, including by owners rehoming and rescues: the seller’s source number and each animal’s microchip number. How to check in Victoria
New South Wales Dogs: each dog’s microchip number (a puppy 8 weeks or younger can show its mother’s instead, labelled as hers). Plus the breeder’s identification number (BIN) for dogs born on or after 1 December 2025. A rehoming organisation that doesn’t know the breeder must show its rehoming organisation number (RON) instead, whenever the dog was born. Neither number is needed once the dog is 6 months or older and the number is recorded against its microchip on the NSW Pet Registry. Cats: the NSW Government says every cat ad must include identification details, such as a microchip number. The Act requires a microchip number, BIN or RON on ads for cats in the custody of a council or council pound, RSPCA NSW, the Animal Welfare League NSW or the Cat Protection Society. Ask for the chip number. How to check in NSW
Queensland Dogs born on or after 26 May 2017: the dog’s supply number, recorded with its microchip. How to check in Queensland
South Australia Dogs and cats: the seller’s name and phone number, and each breeder’s name and phone number, plus the breeder’s Dogs and Cats Online ID if registered. How to check in South Australia
Tasmania Puppies under 12 months: the puppy’s or its mother’s microchip number. If neither is chipped, the mother’s registration number and council. How to check in Tasmania
ACT Licensed breeders: their breeding licence number. Anyone else: the animal’s microchip number, or their rehoming identifier (a state rehoming number, their ABN, or their name if they have no ABN). How to check in the ACT
Western Australia No number rule for dog or cat ads at the moment. What to check in WA
Northern Territory No number rule for ads that we know of. What to check in the NT

Papers at handover

  • Victoria: the microchip certificate and a signed change-of-ownership form (Animal Welfare Victoria’s guidance).
  • New South Wales (dogs; Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979): if the dog wasn’t advertised, the seller must give you its identification details before or at the sale: the microchip number and any BIN or RON an ad would have needed.
  • Queensland (dogs; Animal Management (Cats and Dogs) Act 2008): a notice with the seller’s name and the dog’s supply number, and a change-of-ownership form the seller has completed and signed.
  • South Australia (dogs and cats; Dog and Cat Management Regulations 2017): a written notice with the seller’s and each breeder’s name, address and phone number, the breeder’s ID if registered, vaccinations, desexing and other vet treatment, and the microchip details. It also gives details of any vet exemption or time extension for microchipping or desexing, any known illness or medical condition, and any control order on a dog.
  • Tasmania (dogs; Animal Welfare (Dogs) Regulations 2026): a vaccination certificate issued and signed by a vet, and the date of the dog’s last vet health check. The seller must also tell you anything they know or suspect about injury, sickness, disease, physical impairment, pregnancy, aggression or behaviour problems, and why. For a puppy, also its own or its mother’s microchip number or, if neither is chipped, the mother’s registration number and council.
  • ACT (dogs and cats; Domestic Animals Act 2000 (PDF, 1.8 MB)): a licensed breeder’s breeding licence number or, from anyone else, their rehoming identifier and the animal’s microchip number.

From each state’s law, and government guidance where a row says so, checked October 2026. Not legal advice. The sources:

Pet Sales Australia and scams

Accounts, listings and messages on Pet Sales Australia open soon. Until then there are no listings, check stamps or messages here. If someone says their ad, stamp or receipt is from us before then, or asks for a sign-in code or a payment in our name, treat it as a scam.

Watch out for people pretending to be us

We’ll never ask you, by email or message, for your bank or card details or a sign-in code, or ask you to pay another member. Buyers pay us nothing. When accounts open, we’ll sign you in with an emailed code. Never share it, even with us.

To report an ad, a seller or a scam using our name, see Report a Concern or email info@petsales.net.au.

Read how to spot a puppy farm and where to buy a puppy, and look up a seller’s number before you pay. Thinking of adopting? See rescue and adoption.

Questions

I’ve paid and the seller stopped replying. Can I get my money back?
Often not, so act fast. Call your bank now and ask them to stop the payment. Scamwatch says many payments now go through instantly, and it’s unlikely you’ll get the money back. Then report it at scamwatch.gov.au and to police through ReportCyber at cyber.gov.au. Keep every message. If the seller has your ID details, contact IDCARE. If you’re not happy with how your bank handled it, you can complain to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority. Scamwatch says to watch out for anyone who offers to get your money back. Tell us at info@petsales.net.au, but don’t send us card or bank numbers or ID documents. We use what you send to look into it, and may pass it, with your contact details, to police or another authority. Pet Sales Australia doesn’t hold payments between buyers and sellers, so we can’t get your money back.
How do I check a puppy seller is real?
Visit the seller and meet the puppy where it was raised, and for a breeder’s puppy, its mother. Look up any number the ad shows, where your state has a public search. Search the microchip number at petaddress.com.au, which shows which registry holds the number, not whose name it’s in. Search the ad’s words and photos online. Pay only into an account in the seller’s own name. When listings open on Pet Sales Australia, read each check stamp and its date too.
Is it safe to pay a deposit for a puppy?
No deposit is risk-free. Pay nothing, including a deposit, until you’ve met the seller and the puppy in person, and for a breeder’s puppy, its mother. A seller who wants a deposit before you’ve visited is a warning sign. After you’ve met, pay only into an account in the seller’s own name, and only if your bank says the name matches. If your bank can’t check names, pay in person, once you’ve met. Get the deposit terms in writing. Never pay a deposit for a litter that isn’t born yet.
Is a video call with the puppy enough?
No. Ask for a live video call with the puppy, and for a breeder’s puppy, with its mother there too: a seller who won’t do a call is a red flag. But a call can’t show where the puppy really lives or who owns it, and it doesn’t count as meeting. Meet the seller and the puppy in person before you pay anything, including a deposit, and for a breeder’s puppy, its mother.
Why would a seller ask me to pay for transport, a crate or insurance?
Because it’s a known pet scam: Scamwatch warned about it in 2013, WA ScamNet in 2015 and the ACCC in 2018. The seller says the puppy is interstate, then adds fees for transport, a crate or insurance, sometimes through a fake transport company. A new fee after you’ve paid, such as for a vet check, is a warning sign too. Never pay a seller for transport, a crate or insurance. If you need transport, book it yourself.
Is there a list of puppy scammers?
We don’t publish one, and we don’t name people as scammers. Report a scam to Scamwatch: with your consent, it can use your report to help remove scam websites, ads and contact details. WA ScamNet publishes a list of fake pet websites and fake pet-transport companies. Search it for the website or transport company’s name before you pay.
Does Pet Sales Australia hold my deposit?
No. Pet Sales Australia doesn’t hold or protect payments between buyers and sellers. You pay the seller directly. Any escrow (a service that holds your money until you get the animal) or payment service someone suggests isn’t ours. Treat it as a scam.
Can a seller with an ID Checked stamp still scam me?
Yes. Once listings open, a listing on Pet Sales Australia can show an ID Checked stamp, with the date of the check and what it used: a photo ID and a selfie. The check makes listing under a false name harder, but can’t rule it out. It doesn’t prove the animal exists or is healthy, that the seller is honest, or that the person messaging you is the person who did the check. We don’t check the ID with the government that issued it. Meet the seller and the animal in person before you pay anything, including a deposit, and pay only into an account in the seller’s own name. Until listings open, there are no stamps here, so treat any stamp said to be ours as fake.
Will Pet Sales Australia ever ask for my bank details or sign-in code?
No. We’ll never ask you, by email or message, for your bank or card details or a sign-in code, or ask you to pay another member. Buyers pay us nothing. Accounts open soon. Until then, treat anyone asking for a code or a payment in our name as a scam.
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