BARRIE -- A Barrie woman is distraught after nearly being robbed by two men in broad daylight Wednesday afternoon trying to sell her Maltese poodle puppy.

York Regional Police Sergeant Andy Pattenden says she advertised the puppies on Kijiji and met up with the potential buyers to make the sale.

"So she met up with one person, sold one of the puppies, and that person had left," said Pattenden.

The woman was selling the puppies for $3,500 apiece. After the first buyer left, two South Asian men in their 20s in an older model, white Honda Civic showed up, and that sale went sideways.

According to York Regional Police, the deal was supposed to go down at a commuter lot just off Highway 400 and Highway 9. The woman says she was hit and fought back, and that's when the puppy was taken.

She says she chased the two men, and the puppy was tossed while in its crate, out the window.

About an hour later in Mississauga, a man - who didn't want to be identified - says he was trying to sell one of his two puppies.

"When I was about to exchange the documents and some of the food, they pulled out a gun and as soon as I saw the gun, I ran, and they took off with the puppy."

His toy size 9-week-old puppy is gone, but the Barrie woman in her 50s fought back and rescued hers.

"We definitely don't encourage people to fight back; they can land themselves in even more danger," says Pattenden. "This victim did fight back, and thankfully she got her dog back and didn't get injured in the process."

Police suggest anyone trying to complete an online deal in person should do so at a police station to ensure it is safe, where there is video surveillance, and if the other person doesn't show up, take the deal off the table.