A fundraising campaign for a dog's vet bills was scammed out of £1,200 by an imitation funding page.

Pictures and copied stories of Molly, a dog from Welwyn Garden City, were shared on a GoFundMe page by a Hemel Hempstead man, only with the dog's name changed to Daisy. 

Molly, who is eight years old, belongs to Welwyn Garden City resident Radoslav Petrov. She was hurt by an aggressive dog on Saturday, December 10.    

The brutal attack left Molly in need of expensive vet treatments, for which Radoslav started a GoFundMe page. 

This went well until he noticed another fundraiser which also used Molly's picture.

Radoslav immediately reported the scam to GoFundMe and paid £5 to the scammer's page, just to notify other donors about the fraud. 

Molly’s owner said: "When I reported the scam, GoFundMe temporarily blocked my funds too and asked me for more information and proof to show that my campaign is genuine. 

"It took a couple of hours before they reviewed it and lifted the block." 

Once GoFundMe was notified of the scam, they investigated the issue and the fundraiser was taken down. The donors were refunded, including Radoslav.  Welwyn Hatfield Times: The scam fundraiser that was taken down once reported.The scam fundraiser that was taken down once reported. (Image: Radoslav Petrov)

GoFundMe said: "All donors to this fund have been refunded under the GoFundMe guarantee.

"Fundraisers with misuse are very rare, and we take all complaints very seriously.  

"If a misuse of funds takes place on GoFundMe, donors are protected, and their donations are refunded. Our team works with the police to report issues and assists them in investigations."

Radoslav was happy with the refund and how his own fundraiser turned out, and now plans on donating some of the excess money to the Royal Veterinary College.  

He said: "Well, my fundraising did very well. Thanks to all the good people that donated and shared it online.

"There are a few new donations and some expenses that I need to take into account, but I plan on donating around £1,200 to the RVC."

Molly is recovering well from her ordeal and today (Friday, January 6) she will be getting her stitches taken out at the vets.