MARION, Iowa (KCRG) – For Sandra Higgins, having a dog is more than a luxury: it’s a necessity.

Specifically, an emotional support animal to help him deal with his PTSD from a car accident.

And when she saw this photo, she thought she had finally found the one.

“We had done all the things before the puppy. We had a bed and we had the food and we had the leash and we had everything. I had a carrying case, the whole thing. she said.

She found the dog on Craigslist.

After contacting the seller, Higgins and her husband paid a $25 deposit and made the two-hour drive to Des Moines to pick up their four-legged friend.

But upon arriving at the address given by the seller, Higgins realized that the dog did not exist.

“It was a mixture of anger and a sort of disbelief, I suppose. I just wanted to cry, you know? she said.

Since the pandemic, the Better Business Bureau says it has seen an increase in puppy-related scams on websites like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace.

They recommend searching for the seller on the The BBB website and reverse search images in Google ads to make sure they are legitimate.

But Higgins said she was just shocked that someone would try a scam like this.

“If people try to steal a living, breathing animal from you… who can you trust?” she asked.

But despite the loss of time, money and companionship, she says she’s not giving up on her goal of having a dog.

“I always try, yeah. I’m not going to give up. Higgins said.

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