I'm a dog breeder - here's how to spot a pet adoption SCAM online

These are the four words that should be a 'red flag' for any animal lover looking to get their next pet on Facebook Marketplace.

Brittany Brody, who is the founder and CEO of online matching service for breeders and buyers Tail Tell Match, issued a scam warning on her TikTok account to potential owners.

'I'm gonna give you four words to avoid some of the worst pet scammers on Facebook. I spend my days, studying these scammers. I know how they operate, and I know how to avoid them,' she said in a video, which has so far had more than 22,000 views.

Brittany, from Iowa, reveals the four words as 'for adopting and rehoming' as she shows a series of Facebook Marketplace ads in the background of her clip.

Brittany Brody, who is founder and CEO of online matching service for breeders and buyers Tail Tell Match, issued a scam warning on her TikTok account to potential owners 

'You'll see as I scroll these Facebook groups, they have those four words in common,' Brittany explained.

'They prey on people who are looking for very specific types of dogs by creating these groups that are found in Facebook searches.

'Just a disclaimer I can't say 100 per cent for sure these are scammers, but from the research that I've done, they don't look very legit. I've also talked to a few of them on Facebook and let's just say, my red flags went off.'

Brittany went on to say that there were dozens of posts in one of the forums 'gushing' over the Facebook group admins and lots of photos that didn't belong to those who had uploaded them.

'The only people who are allowed to post puppies for sale are the admin,' she added.

'That was actually one of the first really big red flags that I saw on these groups, is that the only people who are allowed to sell dogs are the admins of the group, or what appear to be very scammy (sic) accounts. 

'They also turn off commenting on most of the posts. So the only people who are allowed to comment are admins or what appear to be very hacked scammy (sic) accounts.' 

Another red flag is when pictures and captions of people who have 'happily adopted' are posted by an admin account. 

Brittany (pictured with dog Oscar), from Iowa, reveals the four words as 'for adopting and rehoming' as she shows a series of Facebook Marketplace ads in the background of her clip 

'You'll see as I scroll these Facebook groups, they have those four words in common,' Brittany explained

In these posts, a completely different person is featured in the profile picture of the account claiming to be a 'happy buyer.'

There are also scammer accounts that comment on seller's posts, with the intention of 'warning' people away from being duped.

They then proceed to provide the contact info for a 'legit' breeder, but Brittany claims that person is also likely to be a scammer.

In the comments, Brittany's followers were grateful for her words of warning.

One person wrote: 'I was just scammed. I wish I would have seen your video before I was scammed.' 

Another added: 'I am so glad you are helping people avoid scams! Another suggestion... Ask for Vets info. Also, if they have a website.'

Someone else provided some comedic relief to Brittany's 'four words' warning: 'Two words: Facebook marketplace.'

'The only people who are allowed to post puppies for sale are the admin. That was actually one of the first really big red flags that I saw on these groups,' she said

Brittany passionately states in the video: 'These are sophisticated scammers... the process of bringing a puppy home is so exciting and so emotional, so to get scammed in the process is just devastating.' 

She grew up in Iowa with several dogs and, when she started looking for her current puppy Oscar, she got first-hand experience on what the red flags are when it comes to breeders.

The dog lover began sharing her negative online experiences and came to realize she wasn't alone.

Brittany is a qualified lawyer and has used her legal background to start her company Tell Tail Match.