{"id":336405,"date":"2026-07-11T00:28:14","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T00:28:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/336405\/"},"modified":"2026-07-11T00:28:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T00:28:14","slug":"people-come-in-crying-leon-county-humane-society-reports-at-least-7-victims-of-lost-pet-scam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/336405\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018People come in crying\u2019: Leon County Humane Society reports at least 7 victims of lost pet scam"},"content":{"rendered":"

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – The number of victims of a lost pet scam in Tallahassee <\/a>continues to climb. <\/p>\n

The head of the Leon County Humane Society says scammers are taking advantage of people who have posted lost cat or lost dog flyers in their neighborhood or online. <\/p>\n

LCHS Executive Director Lisa Glunt says the scammers call and claim that the pet has been hit by a car and is about to go into emergency surgery, but the owner needs to remit a down payment on the surgery right away.<\/p>\n

The scammers then share the address of the Leon County Humane Society. Glunt says at least seven people have shown up at their door.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne happened the other day, she came in with her poodle expecting to find her other poodle,\u201d Glunt said. \u201cWe\u2019ve had people come in crying – emotionally exhausted between joy that they found their animal, stress that their animal is injured and then we have to tell them it\u2019s a scam.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not clear how many people have actually lost money in the scam or how much. We have reached out to the Leon County Sheriff\u2019s Office and Tallahassee Police to see if they are working on any cases. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think the person on the other end of the phone is just preying on people in their time of need,\u201d Glunt said.<\/p>\n

Glunt said they have reported the scam to the Leon County Sheriff\u2019s Office and they encourage everyone to be alert. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we were told by the sheriff\u2019s department is that the hackers who do this sort of thing are smart about it, they change phone numbers, they use different numbers, they use temporary phone lines,\u201d Glunt said. \u201cThe best thing to do if they feel like they are on the other end of this scam or something similar is to call local law enforcement.\u201d<\/p>\n

To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Nextdoor<\/a> <\/a>and X<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n

Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n