A heartbreaking situation for Bay Area pet owners is being exploited by scammers who target distraught families searching for their missing animals. The scammers pretend to be from veterinary hospitals and attempt to convince people to shell out thousands of dollars to save their pets. Now, one S an Jose family is speaking out to warn others. It all started on July 1 when the Nottingham family’s 8-year-old cat, Tylette, went missing. “She’s my little cuddle bug, I miss her every day,” Madison Nottingham said. Madison Nottingham and her mother, Bobbie Nottingham, put up more than 300 fliers in their neighborhood and posted an online plea for help finding their cat. Weeks later, they received a call from a man who said he was at a San Jose veterinary hospital with Tylette. He even gave the name of a woman who he claimed brought the cat in after it had been hit by a car, offering specific medical details. “The cat is sedated and is immobilized,” Bobbie Nottingham said. “I asked what type of surgery did she need, he said spinal alignment and broken femur and she’d need surgery immediately.” Bobbie Nottingham said the man told her the operation would cost more than $2,700. Suspicious, she called the veterinary hospital directly and learned her cat was not there. “Pretty shocked that someone would prey on our grief and on our fears,” Bobbie Nottingham said. The Nottinghams aren’t the only ones being targeted. Rebekah Davis-Matthews, the founder of Lost and Found Pets of Santa Clara County, says this type of deception is common, and scammers are now turning to artificial intelligence to pull it off. “If they have a picture of your pet, because you posted it, they can always alter it with AI to make it look like they have your animal,” Davis-Matthews said. She also warned of another common tactic. “There’s these people who say they have drones and will help you search for the animal and they demand payment up front, but there’s no search. They are just trying to scam money from people,” Davis-Matthews said. While the Nottinghams did not give the scammer any money, they spoke to other pet owners who unfortunately did. “You are so hopeful. You want to believe anyone who has your cat,” Madison Nottingham said. The search for Tylette continues, and the family has added a $500 reward, hoping to be reunited with their beloved pet. ...read more read less