Consumers: Beware of Purchasing Puppies from Unknown Sources
Thousands of underage puppies, many toy breeds, are brought into the U.S. for resale via the border crossing stations annually. Many are later discovered to be sick, potentially creating a health epidemic for animals and people in the U.S. Adding to this problem are inhumane breeding and transportation issues, an already prevalent animal overpopulation problem and the fact that people may spend thousands of dollars on veterinary bills for a puppy in very poor health, which oftentimes die.
Consumers should beware when purchasing pets. Following are some tips before purchasing a pet from a private seller:
- Make sure a veterinarian has checked the animal's health. Request vaccination records from the seller and call to confirm the records with the veterinarian. Animals can be vaccinated as early as 6 weeks but must be 16 weeks or older before they can receive their rabies vaccine.
- Don't purchase an animal on a street corner, alley, parking lot or at a swap meet.
- Cash transaction can't be traced back to the seller. Don't pay cash and ask for a receipt. Make sure your receipt includes an imprint of the seller's name, address and license number.
- Try to meet the seller where the animal has been living. The animal's living conditions in the first months of life could have a long-term effect on their health and/or behavior. A responsible seller will have cared for their animals in a clean and sanitary environment.
spcaLA Humane Officers participate in the Border Puppy Task Force, which consists of several Southern California animal agencies. The goal of the task force is to reduce and eliminate the illegal smuggling and selling of under-aged animals. spcaLA Humane Officers routinely deploy to the California/Mexico border for weeks of around-the-clock shifts to recover sick and under-aged puppies.
If you would like to report the purchase of a sick puppy or a puppy peddler, please call 1-800-540-SPCA (7722).
