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What should you verify before paying a deposit for a puppy?

Answer fourteen questions about the breeder, the listing, the health records and how you are asked to pay. See which checks are done and what to look into before sending money. Runs in your browser. No account, no card, no call.

The listing you are considering

Answer for how things are today. Runs in your browser. Nothing is sent.

The breeder

Have you spoken to the breeder by phone or live video, not only by message?

Have you seen the puppy, its mother and the premises on a live video walkthrough?

Have you searched the breeder's name, phone number and email for scam reports?

Can you collect the puppy in person?

The listing

Have you run the listing photos through a reverse image search?

Has the breeder sent a new photo of the puppy that you asked for?

Has the breeder avoided pressing you to pay quickly to hold the puppy?

Have the price and the puppy's details stayed the same across your messages?

Health records

Have you seen genetic health testing results for the breed?

Have you seen the dam's health record?

Have you contacted the breeder's vet to confirm the records?

Payment

Is the deposit paid some way other than a wire transfer to the seller?

Will the payment be held until you have collected the puppy?

Is the full price agreed in writing, with no new fees added since?

Answer the questions to see your score. It updates as you go.

Method: yes counts a check in full, partly counts half and no counts nothing. Each is weighted from one to three by how much money an unverified answer could put at risk, and the score is the weighted share of the points available. It measures the checks you have done, not whether a listing is genuine.

What should you verify before paying a deposit for a puppy?

Answer fourteen questions about the breeder, the listing, the health records and how you are asked to pay. See which checks are done and what to look into before sending money. Runs in your browser. No account, no card, no call.

Open the free tool

It runs in your browser. AwwPups never sees your inputs.