How to protect yourself from puppy selling scams this holiday season

CHICAGO - A new warning is out from the Better Business Bureau.

If you're thinking about getting a puppy this holiday season, they're urging you to be careful.

The BBB says puppy selling scams spike this time of year.

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"It's somebody else's puppy, they use a picture, and they say they have this great puppy or cat or whatever it may be, and it's a reduced price you can't pass up, and you fall in love with the dog, and you buy it everything works well, and then all of a sudden it's a multi-tier scam. And what I mean by that is they start adding on things, all of a sudden you need shipping insurance, or you need a special crate, so they keep getting as much money from you as they possibly can," said Steve Bernas, President and CEO of BBB.

Another red flag to watch out for is the seller has you pay by Venmo or Zelle, which has almost no buyer protection compared to a credit card.