WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah — West Valley Animal Services is warning residents about a pet scam after reports that someone has been calling and posing as a West Valley City Animal Control officer, telling people their pet was hit by a car and demanding money.
"They were ultimately brought to a panic state just worried about their pet and were asked for money over the phone,” Hannah Wright, a coordinator with West Valley Animal Services said. “Scammers will take advantage of you knowing you’re in that vulnerable state.”
Wright says pet scams are scams in which someone poses as police, animal services or another official and claims a pet is in trouble in an effort to get money.
That warning comes months after West Jordan woman Elora Nelson said she nearly fell for a similar scam in June, when a caller claimed her missing cat had been hit by a car and needed surgery.
Nelson said her cat usually went out through the doggy door to hang out in the backyard, but she did not come back this time. She had been missing for a couple of days. “We became really worried. I started posting on Facebook groups. A shelter contacted me about a cat that looked like her so I went down and checked, but it wasn't her,” Nelson explained.
Then, she got a call from a man who said he was an on-call doctor at an emergency vet. He told her he was about to take a cat that had been hit by a car in for surgery, and said it might be hers.
“After I hung up with them I asked for proof, so they sent me an AI generated picture. In my emotionally heightened state, I believed it was real at first glance,” she said.
She says he was demanding money through Venmo and PayPal to complete the surgery, which raised a red flag for her. Nelson suggested paying in-person instead. She eventually called the hospital he claimed to be at, and they told her not to send any money.
“When you’re in that vulnerable state, you’re not thinking clearly, I just wanted my cat back,” Nelson said.
So, how do you protect yourself from these scams?
“Be cautious when you’re posting your lost pets. Make sure that you’re being cautious when you’re posting your information online, for example, posting your number and email on social media,” she explained.
Elora’s cat, Cora Bob, made it home safely after three weeks, after a couple found her and took her to a vet.
“As soon as we heard that she was back, we were all elated. We missed her, she really missed us,” Nelson said.
