The Puppy Mafia: Black Market in Dogs Big Business in Germany

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The results can be traumatic. Sandra Meier, from the region of Danndorf in the German state of Lower Saxony, had to watch her pug Maja die an agonizing death over the space of several days. Meier had initially found the black bitch online at a German trading site similar to Ebay. The seller had acted as though he was a breeder and because the price of €590 seemed right, Meier's suspicions were not aroused. Neither did she become suspicious when the seller suggested meeting at the train station because his address -- so he said -- did not show up on vehicle navigational systems.

When they met, he pulled the dog out of a box, took the money and rushed off. Neither a sales contract nor a certificate of vaccination was exchanged. Later on, Meier found out that the man had given her a false name and that his mobile phone number had since been canceled. The seller also turned out to be known for selling a variety of dog breeds from neighboring Poland.

Once at home, Meier's new dog became weaker after just a few hours, suffering from diarrhea and vomiting. Sadly, the dog could not be saved. She died after four days.

Meier decided to look for another dog, locally this time. She saw a golden retriever advertised in a newspaper, also apparently by a breeder. She bought the dog, vaccinated and de-wormed, for €990. But this time she wanted the dog's papers too. That cost her another €220. And when the pedigree papers arrived two weeks later, Meier thought they were a bad joke: The documents were decorated with kitsch comic drawings of dogs, the names of the dog's parents were fictional and the issuing association did not exist.

The Need for Caution

"We have confirmed that more and more Germans are getting mixed up in the puppy trade," Four Paws' Birgitt Thiesmann explains. Dealers and private individuals out to make money are going to Poland or to the dog market in the Hungarian town of Monor, stocking up on puppies and then selling them back home, passing themselves off as genuine dog breeders. The only way to prevent the rogue trade in dogs would be to enact stronger controls and harsher punishments. But until now there does not seem to be the political will in the EU to make this happen.

Currently, the only thing that dog lovers can do when they are buying a puppy is to exercise caution. Animal welfare organizations recommend that a buyer visit a puppy several times before it leaves its mother and insist on seeing its parents. Additionally, any seller offering several different breeds should be considered suspicious. And buyers should absolutely avoid purchasing a dog just because they feel sorry for it, Thiesmann says: "By doing this, you are only spurring on the bargain-basement trade in puppies."

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• Part 1: Black Market in Dogs Big Business in Germany
• Part 2: Owner Had to Watch Her New Dog Die