Minnesota 56219
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Adoption Service Area's Include:
South 
       Dakota
North 
      Dakota
Nebreska
Iowa
Located In:
Minnesota

Heartland Pugs

Subtitle

Click on Picture to go to the Better Business Beau -  

Puppy Scams: How to Protect Yourself from Fake 

Online Pet Sellers.


Copy and paste this link below for more tips on how to 

recognize puppy mills: 

http//offleashk9training.com/dogtrainingblog/10-warning-signs-to-ensure-you-are-not-getting-dog-from-a-puppy-mill/
How to Recognize a Puppy Scam:

The information below is based on my own personal 

experience and information given to me by some of my 

adopters.


It is a shame that I need to add this to my website but 

unfortunately scams are everywhere! I've created this 

page just for this subject.  I want to try and help 

prevent anyone from being taken advantage of.  I 

have adopted to several people who lost hundreds of 

dollars and suffered heart breaking disappointment to 

puppy adoption scams!  Pugs are in high demand and 

short supply.  For this reason pugs are used in a lot of 

puppy scams.


1.) Beware!! of any breeder willing to take a non-

refundable hold deposit on puppies that have not been 

born yet.  This practice is unethical and plays upon the 

high demand for pug puppies and the lack of 

responsible breeders.  This is a very popular practice

practice with scammers and puppy mills. They 

continuously come up with endless excuses as to why 

your puppy is not available yet. until the adopter 

becomes so frustrated that they back out and look 

elsewhere.  Hold deposits are designed to discourage 

adopters from backing out by loosing several hundred 

dollars..Their goal is for the adopter to back out giving 

the breeder or scammer a legitimate reason to keep the 

deposit.  Think of it this way; your giving them

$300 to $500 for a "promise" that "eventually" 

"someday" you'll get a puppy. Which is very different 

then putting a legitimate hold deposit on an actual live 

puppy. When an adopter puts down a deposit on a 

"promise of a future puppy" then they enter a contract 

that forfeits the deposit if the adopter backs out for any 

reason, including time. 

*(This is different then a notification fee.  A notification 

fee is normally $50 to $100 and is a non-refundable fee 

that pays for a service to be notified only.)


2.) Beware!! If the price seems too good to be true, 

it probably is.  Advertise "50% off puppies" or "free 

shipping". This is a general statement to draw you to t

the website.


3.)  A reputable breeder will never offer free shipping 

through an unknown ground shipping company.


4.)  They will not except cash and want you to use 

Western Union or MoneyGram for all payments.


5.)  They will not give you the option to travel and 

pick up in person.  If it is a scam they will not answer 

you if you ask about this option.  Ask for this option 

before sending any money.  Even if you can't make the 

trip and need them to be shipped, it is a great test.


6.)  They will not speak with you in person.  They will 

only communicate through email, text and when you 

call you must always leave a message.  The messages 

you receive will repeat the same information with no 

real additional details and lack a personal sound.  You 

will feel like your talking to a scripted message. Because 

you are!!


7.)  Research the site on the internet.  Usually you can 

find post from people who have been scammed by 

them before.


8.)  Both scammers and puppy mills will not let you see 

where your puppies were born and raised.  Either 

because it is unsanitary, filled with too many over 

bred, diseased and neglected animals or it doesn't even 

exist!!


9.)  They will not have multiple pictures of the same 

puppy.  They find these pics on the internet and copy 

them to their site.  They will not offer updated pics at 

different ages or in different situations because they 

can't.  The puppy doesn't exist!


Known Scam Websites


1.)  puppies4you.com - check it out.  This website is a 

well known SCAM!


2.)  Craigslist - as we all know craigslist is extremely 

popular and attracts a multitude of scammers!   


3.) Puppyfind.com  - AKC papers does not protect you 

from a puppy mill.  Most puppy mills offer AKC 

registration. How they work:  They have you wire the 

initial price of the puppy, which is surprisingly cheap.  

These scammers are so greedy they don't stop there!  

Then the shipping company contacts you and request 

an additional hundreds of dollars.  They claim they 

will refund the shipping cost (since they initially 

claimed shipping was free in the add) when 

they arrive at your door with the imaginary puppy.  

Most figure it out when the shipping company contacts 

them but your still out the initial hundreds of dollars 

you already sent for a fictional puppy!  Western Union 

and MoneyGram will not refund your money.  It's 

gone!  I got this information first hand from two of my 

adopters that were left heart broken!


4.) FYI!  A breeder registered with AKC does not mean 

they are a responsible breeder.  Their are many puppy 

mills registered as an official "AKC breeder".  If you call 

AKC they will tell you they don't inspect, question or 

follow up on any of their registered breeders.  All the 

breeder has to do to become a registered AKC breeder is 

register the pug through AKC and pay the fee.  They 

will tell you to call the ASPCA or your local humane 

society because that is not their job.  Going to a 

registered AKC breeders doesn't protect anyone 

or guarantee anything.


I really hope this helps.  It is bad enough to loose 

money but it just makes it worse when you and your 

family's ❤ hearts are involved.  Please let me know if 

you have any other tips to spot a puppy scam or a 

known puppy scam website and I will add it.  These 

scammers are disgusting people with no conscience!!  I 

want to do my part to prevent this from 

happening to anyone ever again!!  Thank you! 

What are

 responsible  

breeding

 practices??



That's the million dollar   


question.  The following is 


the policy and procedures for 


"responsible breeding"  


@ MN Heartland Pugs.  


These policy and procedures 


are based on my 20+ years 


of experience, common sense


& our love for all pugs.  If you 


have any questions please


feel free to contact us .

  • First and very important is the reason you become a breeder.  This reason is the foundation for the type of breeder you will become.  If you are breeding for any other reason than love for the breed.  Then you should not be breeding.  EVER!

  • All pugs, adults & puppies, health, safety & happiness is the #1 priority .  No exceptions!  This is your guide for all of the policies & procedures.

  • MN Heartland Pugs breed purebred pet quality pugs only.  Our puppies are guaranteed purebred but are not AKC or CKC registered.

  • No inbreeding.  Helps to prevent genetic disorders and diseases.  I usually find my female breeders out of state to prevent any chances of inbreeding.

  • Never over breed females. My females are allowed 1 litter every year for up to 5 years.  After the 5th litter our females are spaded and retired to a new home.  Over breeding causes health problems for the female and her puppies.  Females are retired early if they have any issues with breeding, pregnancy or birth.

  • Our pugs are family first and breeders second.  My pugs don't live in kennels.  They have access to most of our home with a doggy door that lead to a beautiful fenced in large back yard.  Because I don't keep them in kennels I never have more than three breeding females at any time.

  • We take bringing our puppies into this world very seriously.  We are available 24/7 to every one of our adopters for the life of the adopted pug.  We are here for advice or questions concerning the care of your pug.

  • We always have open and honest communication with our adopters.  An update of your puppies progress with recent pics are provided once a week.  We always notify our adopters immediately of any health issues that come up.  We pay for all vet care needed while the puppy is in our care.  Adopters are always given the option to back out of the adoption and receive a full refund of the deposit in that situation.

  • Our breeders receive regular vet care and are always up to date on all vaccinations.  Puppies are dewormed @ 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 8 weeks old.  Each puppy receives their first puppy vaccination and a health exam by our vet.  We provide a health record from the vet with your puppy.

  • All potential adopters are welcome to make an appointment to visit our home to meet the parents and puppies in person.  It will depend on the age of the puppy if it will be safe for you to hold them.  Remember their safety and health always come first.

  • Puppies must be 8 weeks old to go to their new home.  It's state law but more importantly it's what is best for your puppy physically and emotionally.  We have kept some puppies in the past until they were 9 weeks old because they were slow in their development.  We guarantee you a healthy happy puppy. Our pug puppies never leave our care unless I know they are healthy and ready.