Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
placeholder article
placeholder article

6 Tips On How To (Safely) Buy A Dog From Craigslist

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Chapman chapter.

It’s really not as sketchy as it sounds…

1. Text the poster.

This is kind of obvious as you need to know if the dog is still available and how to go check him/her out.

2. Ask questions.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions; this dog could be a part of your life for (hopefully) a long time, so you want to make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into. Also ask about any shots or medical issues that he/she may have, especially if he/she is a puppy.

3. Meet in a public place.

This is so, so important. Although it may seem like you know the seller, you really don’t, and I mean it is Craigslist, so just arrange to meet somewhere with a lot of people around and in the day.

4. Bring a friend.

Again, you can never be too safe; for all you know, the dog could not even exist.

5. Bring cash.

The person selling their dog probably won’t have a way of getting money from your card, so bringing cash is the best option. This way, you can probably bargain and get the dog for less too!

6. Schedule a vet appointment.

It’s hard to tell if anything is wrong with a dog from just looking at it. You want to make sure your dog is as healthy as possible, so making a vet appointment as early as you can is really vital for your dog’s wellbeing.