Rent-A-Dog Repossession!

By Amy Fernandez

In these financially dicey times, we hear way too much about cars repossessed and mortgages foreclosed. The economic downturn seems to spare no one–apparently that includes the family pet.  In previous articles I have described those “easy terms” and “payment plans” that have become a ubiquitous business tool of both retail pet shops and questionable rescue groups. I realize that the whole concept may sound ridiculous to actual dog people. But these scams work simply because they play on that unfailing element of the sales pitch and emotional bonding. Those tactics can be predicted at the very moment cute and cuddly overtakes financial common sense.  Unsuspecting buyers willingly agree to terms they can ill afford–for dogs that are worth a fraction of the vastly inflated selling prices (or faux adoption fees) that supposedly represent a legal transfer of ownership. The fine print reality of this scam is now hitting Americans with a vengeance.

Last week, a settlement announced by the Massachussets Attorney General will force the California-based Monterey Financial Services LLC to waive debts and refund payments to legions of unsuspecting owners who had assumed they were buying their dogs outright on various structured payment plans. The terms were plainly outrageous. One case, noted in a recent New York Times story, cited a Poodle/Shih Tzu crossbred puppy purchased in 2019 under terms that would have eventually added up to a $13,000 price tag… for a mixed breed pup! Okay, that’s shocking enough right there.

But things got really got interesting when this 22-year-old dog lover, who had faithfully maintained her payments, lost her job like many others did during the COVID meltdown. As she spiraled into the typical money shortage, she stopped making payments on her dog. As usual, a collection agency took over and at that point she finally discovered the real story. What she had believed to be a sales contract was actually a rental agreement.  And yes, after three years of happy life together, the repo man was coming for Milo. (Just think about that after you’ve lost your job, possibly your apartment, and maybe a friend or two during the pandemic.)

As bizarre as this seems, dog leasing has been around long enough to prompt legislation barring it in California, Connecticut, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, and Washington since 2017.  Illinois also has put some legislation in place blocking the practice. However, it remains legal in most states. Regardless of that, the entire concept comes as a big old shocking surprise to most pet buyers.

Arguably, the past two years have exacerbated the every aspect of this scam in a couple ways. As we know, dog ownership became a major solution to combat lockdown loneliness. Thousands of Americans acquired new dogs in record numbers in the past couple of years. At the same time, most businesses have moved away from personal interfacing with customers. Rather than personally signing a hardcopy sales contract at the time of sale, buyers simply initial the bottom line on a tablet. They don’t even receive a copy to possibly read later.

Throughout the transaction, it simply never occurs to them that their new, much loved puppy is actually a short-term rental. As in the case of Milo, only if and when they have reason to carefully review the fine print terms of what they signed do they discover that the so-called payment plan is actually a lifetime lease. That generally happens when the buyer is in default (usually for multiple crucial things) and Collections comes knocking on the door.

A spate of recent cases has brought some long overdue focus on this issue, but personally the safest bet is to buy from a reputable breeder (and judging by these cases, it’s also the most economical option.)

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Posted by showresults on May 1 2022. Filed under Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.