Lost pet scams, and how to shut them down

Nothing about this is personal, and none of it means you did something careless. A lost pet post is simply a public signal that ticks every box a fraudster looks for.

• It is emotionally urgent, so you will act quickly
• It contains a working phone number
• It often mentions a reward, which sets your price
• It contains a full description, so a stranger can sound convincing
• It tells them roughly where you live

People run these scripts at volume, contacting dozens of owners from public groups and photographed posters. The good news is that volume makes them lazy, and a single specific question usually ends the conversation.

This is the whole defence, and it takes one sentence. Before you post anything publicly, choose a detail and keep it to yourself.

• A scar, or a patch of missing fur
• A notch or a fold in one ear
• The exact wording on the tag
• A marking somewhere that does not show in the photo you posted

Then, when someone calls, ask them to describe it. Not does your dog have a scar, which invites a yes. Ask an open question: what is unusual about her left ear?

A real finder is looking at the animal and will answer easily, or will say they cannot see it from where they are standing, which is also a real answer. Someone working from your poster will deflect, get angry, or change the subject to money.

Asking for a photo is good too, but ask for a specific one: the pet next to a set of keys, or a hand showing three fingers. A stolen photo cannot satisfy that.

Every version of this ends with a payment that cannot be reversed. That is the point of the payment methods they ask for.

• Interac e-transfer. Once it is accepted it is effectively gone, and the recipient can be untraceable.
• Wire transfer. Same, across borders, and usually faster than any bank can intervene.
• Gift cards. There is no legitimate reason on earth for a pet to be returned in exchange for gift card codes.
• Cryptocurrency. Irreversible by design.

A genuine person returning your pet does not need money in advance. If someone has paid a real vet bill, you can settle it at the clinic, with the clinic, once you have your pet.

One more to watch for: someone who asks you to read back a numeric code they have just texted you, framed as proving you are the real owner. That code is a login or account verification code, and handing it over gives them the account, not you the pet. Never read a code out to anyone.

Report it even if you lost nothing. Reports are how these networks get mapped, and how the next owner gets warned.

1. If you sent money, call your bank or e-transfer provider immediately. Speed is the only thing that ever helps here, and it is worth the call even when it feels hopeless.
2. Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. They take reports online and by phone at 1-888-495-8501. Keep the messages, the phone number and any transaction records.
3. Report to your local police if money changed hands, and get a file number.
4. Report the account to the platform. Facebook groups in particular will often ban a repeat offender quickly once admins see a pattern.
5. Tell the group. A short factual post warning other owners in your area does more good than anything else on this list.

Do not arrange to meet someone alone to confront them. Report it, and let the search itself carry on through the shelter and the neighbourhood.