PAAG Social Media Moderation Week 2026 – Results and Topline Findings

The Pet Advertising Advisory Group (PAAG) held its annual Social Media Moderation Week from Monday 13th July to Friday 17th July 2026. Volunteers from across PAAG member organisations monitored pet advertisements on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. The aim was to find adverts and determine whether they breach both PAAG’s Advertising Standards, and the platforms’ own policies. These findings will help us build an annual picture of the state of pet advertising on social media, strengthen our campaigning work, and shape our recommendations to improve the welfare of pets advertised for sale online.

Social media continues to present significant risks for both animal welfare and consumer protections. Unlike dedicated pet-selling websites, these platforms have limited safeguards around the advertising of pets, making it easier for irresponsible sellers and scammers to interact with prospective owners.

Quick Look

During the week, volunteers moderated a total of 339 pet advertisements across the three platforms:

• Facebook: 151 ads
• Instagram: 75 ads
• TikTok: 113 ads

Key Findings

Fewer adverts breached PAAG’s Advertising Standards this year compared to previous years; this figure now sits at 59%.

• 2026: 59%
• 2025: 73%
• 2024: 94%

Though this trend may be improving, the majority of adverts still fail to meet the minimum information needed for prospective owners to make informed decisions.

The most common issues identified across all three platforms and the most frequent breaches were:

• 46% did not include a photo of the young animal with its mother.
• 33% did not state the animal's age.
• 24% did not specify the animal's sex.

These findings closely mirror those from 2025, when the three most common issues identified were:

• No photo of the Mum with the young animal
• No age provided
• No microchip status included

More than half of adverts (55%) breached the social media platform's own policies and advertising rules. TikTok continued to lead this trend, with 99% of the adverts reviewed breaching the platforms own polices, an increase from 98% in 2025. This highlights the ongoing need for stronger enforcement of existing platform rules.

The leading concern of this year’s moderation is the rise of suspected scam adverts reported. 26% of all adverts moderated were identified as potential scams, a stark increase from 17% in 2025. The increased accessibility of AI generated images and content may be contributing to this trend. Of all potential scam adverts moderated this year, 16% raised concerns that AI had been used, making scam adverts increasingly difficult for prospective pet owners to identify. This emphasises the importance of remaining vigilant and highlights the growing risk of online pet scams and need for tougher regulations surrounding the use of AI in pet adverts on platforms.

The findings once again reinforce PAAG's advice that people should avoid buying pets through social media. With limited safeguards in place, purchasing a pet through these platforms can put both animal welfare and consumers at unnecessary risk.