# ARGH...Dodgy Dog Sellers!



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

ah i'm getting a little fustrated. This morning i went on gumtree to see if i could find a puppy as i can't find a labrador, dalmatian or a siberian Husky anywhere from a breeder in london (for some reason) so i decided to reply to a few ads...

this is the first reply i got about a blue eyed siberian husky (pic was gorgeous!):



Hello ,
Thanks for your response. I must say that am very happy to meet a
good home for my puppy and i am very convinced that the puppy will be
well taking care of by you.I will like to add some more qualities of
the puppies that was not mention in the previous mail i sent to you.
-they are house Trained .
-they are socialized with kids and other house hold pets
-they get angry when you shout at them, so don't do that.
-they are 11 Weeks old
-they barks when they sees strangers
they will be coming along side with all details of vaccination ,
de-wormed and microchip.Since I have made up our mind to let the baby
into to your home Can you promise me that the puppy will be well look
after and you guys will keep me update with monthly pictures so I can
know how the puppy is doing with you.
I live in Aberdeen Scotland and will be very happy if you can come
for the view but if you guys are not so close to me the I shall
arrange for a Pet courier service and they will get the puppy
delivered at your home address that you will provide to me, i love the
service of a delivery company because they are so fast .After the
registration i will provide you the puppy's registration number ok.The
litter of these puppies were six but i have succeeded in given four of
them for adoption and among those four three of them were delivered to
their new destinations by this courier service so kindly send the
delivery details as soon as possible ok.
Also i shall require all your details to do the change of ownership
papers and the details are as follow.
Full names........
House address.........
City.......................
Postal code.....................
Home number...................
Mobile number...................
E-mail address..................
As soon as i have the details , i shall prepare the change of
ownership papers before taking the puppy to the courier company for
registration and your home delivery . Do get back to me with the
details so i can prepare the change of ownership papers and do the
delivery registration with the Carrier service first thing tomorrow
morning.. Thanks and i shall be waiting to read from you soon..you
will have to pay just £150 and that is directly to the Currier
company..And also I will send all the relevant paper works via the
Currier service so you will be paying directly to them and not to me
because my main objective is for these puppies to have a lovely and
forever family,so be at home at 9 AM Tomorrow morning ok to hear from
the courier service and also to receive the puppy,so the £150 is for
the delivery of one puppy .
Puppies also come with the following papers;
# Health guarantee
# Vaccine record
# KC registration papers
# Microchip Registration
# Pedigree
# Nutrition supplement
# Traveling Crate
Regards and waiting for your kind respond.



so i thought that was odd and very susspecting that i'd buy one as i only asked a few questions.

The next was about a brown lab the first email was ok :

Hello Dear,
Thanks so much for the mail of interest regards the puppies we have ..
We have one male and one female puppies now available and they are 10
weeks old, they have very good temperament with kids and other
pets,very playful love to play around with toys and kids,they are
health guaranteed and KC registered......they are up to date on all
their shots and they will be coming along side with their health papers
and vet records...... First i which to let you know that we are given
these puppies out because my mum just died. She is located in Kirkwall
and all of us are there now ..She was the owner of this cute little
babies. Since she is now late , We can't keep the puppies here in such
condition because each time we see them , we keep thinking of her .So
we want to given them out to a lovely and caring home ,where they can
be treated as such and keep us up dated on monthly progress.These
puppies will be coming from Kirkwall.. But if you would be able to come
over here for the pick up ,we shall be very great full, but if you
can't come , we can arrangement for home delivery with the Uk animals
delivery service and they will get the puppy delivered at your
doorstep.
Below are just some few question we asked.

Where are you located?
Do you have any kids ?
Have you ever own a pet before ?
Have you ever own
this breed of puppy before?
Why are you interested on this breed?
How soon do you need the puppies over?
Which sex are you interested on?

Sorry for all the question , but we just want to be sure that the puppies is
going to the right home and they will be having all the love and
attention they need .We are given them out for £200
If still interested , contact us back for more details of the puppies
and pictures. you can reach us at 07023057578‏ for more details.

so i replied and everything...did think very low priced both of them though...anyway...they replied with this:

Hello Dear ,
We are very happy to read from you so soon. we are sure you
are going to loves and spoil her with love ,cuddle , attention and
provide her with all she needs . We need her to go into a lovely and
caring and a forever home. firstly let me tell you about her . she is
called Lizzy .she is veterinary checked and vaccinated and have all
health records till date and all papers . So we are giving her to a
good home and for every home . she is very sensitive and possesses the
following qualities:
-she is house Trained and Potty.
-she does not bark a lot.
-she eat 2 times daily .
-she Is socialized with kids and other house hold pets
-she is a portable baby.
-she loves to be carried a lot and be spoiled.
-she loves to be kissed .
-she gets angry when you shout at her, so don't do that.
-she is 10 Weeks old
-she barks when she sees strangers
she will come with all details of vaccination , de-wormed and microchip
Since we have made up our mine to let the baby into to you home Can
you promise us that the puppy will be well look after and you guys
will keep us up dated
with monthly pictures so we can know how the puppy is doing with you .Since you
guys are not so close to us , we shall use the Pet Delivery Carrier and they
will get the puppy delivered at your home address that you will provide to us .
Also we shall require all your details to do the change of ownership papers and
the details is as follow

-Names in Full.......................in other to change the ownership
transfer papers to your name.
-Home address.......................... so the agency can locate your home
-City........................... ....................for the delivery Van
to your direction
-Post code........................... ........... to back up your address
-Phone number........................ ..for direct communication with
the agency of how you will make the payment and how the puppy will be
delivered at your home.so as soon as i have all this information i
will be able to take this

As soon as we have the details , we shall prepare the change of ownership
papers before we do the delivery registration with the Carrier . Do get back to
us with the details so we can prepare the change of ownership papers and do the
delivery registration with the Carrier.. Thanks and we shall be waiting to read
from you soon.you will have to pay just £200 and that is directly to
the Currier company.give me a call right back.and also send all the relevant
papers work via the Currier service.so you will paying directly to
them and not to me because my main objective is for this puppy to have
a lovey family,so you will have to be at home tomorrow at 9 am in the
morning in other to h ear from the delivery service right.
Best Regard



sound familier? does to me! urgh...just why can't people be genuine? :bash: 

sorry for the rant, just a little upset as i thought i was getting somewhere with the choc lab... :banghead:

Nat


----------



## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

you can't scam people if you're being genuine


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

Meko said:


> you can't scam people if you're being genuine


 eh? ah the whole things confused me tbh loool... just seemed odd to get very simular replies, including things written exactly the same from 2 diff people selling 2 diff puppies


----------



## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

They probably aren't two different people?


Tried :: buckholt labradors :: ?


----------



## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

overparanoid said:


> eh? ah the whole things confused me tbh loool... just seemed odd to get very simular replies, including things written exactly the same from 2 diff people selling 2 diff puppies


it's a scam, no puppies; which is why it's always delivered by a pet courier. no matter where you live they'll always be too far away to drive to.


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

LoveForLizards said:


> They probably aren't two different people?
> 
> 
> Tried :: buckholt labradors :: ?


yeah i know thats what i found dodgy about the whole thing...what i don't understand is what they are getting from this? like apparently i'm ment to be paying a "delivery service" if this is true then how do they benefit? i'm being very nieve i know but its just gotten me confused and i'm just being very careful and probs a little paranoid lol


----------



## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

overparanoid said:


> yeah i know thats what i found dodgy about the whole thing...what i don't understand is what they are getting from this? like apparently i'm ment to be paying a "delivery service" if this is true then how do they benefit? i'm being very nieve i know but its just gotten me confused and i'm just being very careful and probs a little paranoid lol



They pretend to be said courier...stupid people pay 100's for the courier and ever get a puppy. Who wins?


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

Meko said:


> it's a scam, no puppies; which is why it's always delivered by a pet courier. no matter where you live they'll always be too far away to drive to.



yeah, thought as much. whole things fustraiting though as i'm genuinly intrested in finding a new member of the family...not looking to loose money on a van that can't deliver an imaginary animal... :banghead:


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

LoveForLizards said:


> They pretend to be said courier...stupid people pay 100's for the courier and ever get a puppy. Who wins?


ah yeah...now i understand how they are getting the money from the courier... ah this whole thing annoys me...guess i'll have to keep looking for a while :2thumb:


----------



## Shell195 (May 31, 2007)

Scammers love Gumtree:whistling2:


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

Shell195 said:


> Scammers love Gumtree:whistling2:


lool, thought bout that when i went on it...spec when i saw the same advert repeated 10 times in a row, naming dog breeds wrong lool...ah well...does anyone know a good place to look then?

thanks


----------



## Shell195 (May 31, 2007)

overparanoid said:


> lool, thought bout that when i went on it...spec when i saw the same advert repeated 10 times in a row, naming dog breeds wrong lool...ah well...does anyone know a good place to look then?
> 
> thanks


Have a look at some of these

dog breeders uk - Google Search


----------



## sundia (May 28, 2009)

omg i got the exact same email as your second one... word by word the same! lol and it was a totally different puppy.


----------



## biohazard156 (Nov 11, 2007)

Here is a list of all the Kennel Club accredited breeders in London, no lab breeders there, but a few dalmatian and husky ones...

Accredited Breeders in London ? The Kennel Club


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

sundia said:


> omg i got the exact same email as your second one... word by word the same! lol and it was a totally different puppy.


not very smart are they :lol2: not being funny but if i was going to seriously scam someone, i'd at least make each email completely different and make it sound less dodgy!

glad they are so stupid though :2thumb:


----------



## gibby (Oct 24, 2007)

hey there, I'm in Aberdeen if you want me to investigate :whistling2:

pm me the add and i will see if he says hes somwhere else, bet he says its in london lol


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

The dreadful English grammar made me think "scam" before i was halfway through the first e-mail. Just didn't believe any of it!


----------



## overparanoid (Mar 5, 2010)

feorag said:


> The dreadful English grammar made me think "scam" before i was halfway through the first e-mail. Just didn't believe any of it!


yeah it is bad isn't it. and i thought i was terrible at english! ah well...just hope people don't actually fall for these too often


----------



## CrawlingRuby (Dec 28, 2009)

hi why dont you try this site ?
very good 
Dogs & Puppies - Cats & Kittens - Pets for Sale at Pets4Homes UK

CR: victory:


----------



## pigglywiggly (Jul 19, 2008)

report the adverts to gumtree, they are finally starting to clamp down on the scammers.


----------



## Jaxsin (Oct 18, 2009)

This is why I rarely even look at Gumtree most of the adverts do seem to be scammers and even if the seller seems genuine I still get very paranoid


----------



## sundia (May 28, 2009)

overparanoid said:


> not very smart are they :lol2: not being funny but if i was going to seriously scam someone, i'd at least make each email completely different and make it sound less dodgy!
> 
> glad they are so stupid though :2thumb:


the funny thing was i only had messaged people in the london area and yet for some reason all of the scammers were in Kirkwall for some reason lol


----------



## minky345 (Sep 1, 2007)

i emailed 3 so called pomeranian breeders online and had all 3 emailed return like this!! They are offer to deliver the puppies and all had a sob story about somebody dieing in their family. Some even said that the puppies were free and all you had to pay for was the courier costs???


----------



## snakewhisperer (Nov 13, 2009)

They don't appear to have English as their first language, I wonder whether it's even from this country. I did laugh when I read the puppies were potty trained, now THAT IS clever!! I came across a similar scam from someone from Wales claiming to be emmigrating to Australia and wanting to re-home an assortment of expensive snakes, free BUT they needed money sent to them for the courier. The advert was in good English but when I got the first e-mail I immediately realised it was a scam due to the grammer/wording being very wrong! I offered to pick them up but got all sorts of excuses why that wasn't possible. I can't tell you what I told them but I didn't hear from them again!


----------



## fenwoman (Apr 15, 2008)

If you are reading an ad for a puppy and it is way cheaper than puppies of that breed usually are, then it'll be a scam. If the normal price of a pom puppy is £800 and you see advert's offering them for £250 or even free, it's a scam. And yes, people still get caught by them. Some peolple really do believe that a breeder would sell puppies for a fraction of what they could get for them, or even breed a litter of puppies and then offer them for free (just pay for the courier).I'm afraid I have nosympathy for anyone who is so gullible, that they will send money off to a stranger for an unseen puppy and are happy to buy a puppy without first seeing it in any case. The old saying says it all "a fool and his money are easily parted"


----------



## Sziren (Mar 25, 2008)

I too replied to an ad on Gumtree :lol2:

But I did know this was a scammer, but as I was bored, I thought - what the heck, why not wind them up a bit and see if they 'bite'.... lol

Here is the e-mail chain - about Siberian Huskies (picked this one, as OH always wanted a husky - but believe you me, there were tonnes of scammer ads to choose from.... )

--------------------------
My initial contact with the 'seller' was via gumtree, asking more about the pups as what affix they were under as seller stated KC reg.

*1st reply -* (from [email protected])
Hello,
The qualities of Shelly and Cindy are as stated below:
Name: Shelly and Cindy 
Breed: Siberian husky 
Sex: Male and Female
AGE:Both 18 Weeks old 
Bloodline: Champion bloodline
Socialization:The puppies are well socialized with kids and other home pets.
Temperament: The puppies have a good temperament.
Health:Veterinary checked and comes with all papers.
What's included: The baby puppies are registered/registrable,current vaccinations, veterinarian examination,health certificate, health guarantee,pedigree.
Shelly and Cindy are an adorable puppies 
Personality: The perfect mix of playful and mellow they love to be held and snuggled but also likes to chew on their bones and play with their toys.
Shelly and Cindy are a real sweetheart!
Structure: Very nice coloring and very cute looking great head and nice shoulders.
They are nice puppies .
I love Shelly and Cindy so much and can't watch them suffer. 
I am giving the puppies out because my research study takes almost all my time and i have very little time to spend with Shelly and Cindy at home.
At times i travel out of town leaving the puppies all alone in the house with their food and toys.
I hate to see Shelly and Cindy lonely and sad. 
Shelly and Cindy will be offered for free but before we proceed, i will like to have the answers to the question below because the answers will give you the guarantee to re-home the puppies . 
I don't want Shelly and Cindy to suffer in their new home and will need a guarantee from the answers of the questions before the puppies are sent to your home.
1)Where are you located?
2)Have you had a puppy before?
3)Can you promise to take very good care of Shelly and Cindy when they gets to your home?
4)Do you have other pets at home, and would they be friendly to Shelly and Cindy ?
5)Do you need the puppies for yourself or as a gift to a stranger?
6)Do you have children and are they familiar with puppies ?
I look forward to read from you.
Regards+

*My response -* 
Hiya Sarah,

Thank you for your speedy reply,

You say they are off championship lines, but omitted to confirm the affix and what kennels are in their breeding.... could you please confirm this to me?

Below are the answers to your questions;
1)Where are you located? Monifieth
2)Have you had a puppy before? Yes, many
3)Can you promise to take very good care of Shelly and Cindy when they gets to your home? Absolutely
4)Do you have other pets at home, and would they be friendly to Shelly and Cindy ? Loads! Dogs, snakes and lizards, who would not be in touch with the pups tho, but my dogs are fine and would take good care of Shelly and Cindy.
5)Do you need the puppies for yourself or as a gift to a stranger? They would stay with me. Want a dog I can show.
6)Do you have children and are they familiar with puppies ? No children.

I look forward to your reply, and please let me know when we can come and look at them.

Ta,
Jenny

*2nd Reply -* 

Hello,
I was very impress with your response.
Shelly and Cindy are kc registered. They will be offered for free and they will be coming along with all their health/registration papers,free crate, a bag
of feed,and pet toys.
I am presently at my new apartment at Bristol where i am doing my research studies.
*Nina and Dela* are current in all their shots and they are micro chipped....... 
Since you have promised to take very good
care of Shelly and Cindy , they will go for free and i will register the puppies for
delivery to your home once you provide me with your full contact
details as listed below:

1)Your full name.
2)Your complete home address.
3)Your contact phone number..
4)Your city and postal code.
Once i receive the details,Shelly and Cindy will be registered for delivery at your home ok!.
Shelly and Cindy will be offered for free since you have promised to take very good care of the puppies and you will have to pay only for the delivery of Shelly AND Cindy at your home. 
From inquires, the delivery of the Shelly and CINDY at your home will
cost you 150 pounds .
I always take Shelly and Cindy out during week ends for a walk around the street and more often we go to the beach and gardens where they can have some fun.
Shelly and Cindy are a real sweetheart!! They like to be carried in the hand and also loves to play with children and other friendly home trained pets.
I love Shelly and Cindy but i want you to love them more than i do.
Waiting your response with your full details so that i can send Shelly and Cindy to your home tomorrow morning.
Thanks 

*So I replied* - 

Hi again Sarah,

Now the plot thickens.......

You originally stated that you were in Dundee, but now you say you're in Bristol.
The pups were called Shelly and Cindy, but now you also call them Nina and Dela.

So let me guess.... You are not really called Sarah Moore, you do NOT have 2 pups needing new loving homes. All this is about is to scam me or someone with less of a brain out of a minimum £150. Guess there would be a problem with the courier at the last minute too, meaning I would have to send more money.... and I bet the money would be paid via Western Union or some dodgy Paypal account??

So all, in all, no thanks for the offer. I rather keep my money and go and buy a puppy where I can actually see them, and the parents, and that all the questions I have asked are answered.

Thanks for giving me a good laugh though.
Jenny

---------------------------------

She/he/them never replied..... might just go and see if I can annoy another one..... keeps me amused...:lol2:


----------



## pippainnit (Feb 20, 2009)

Heh, brilliant. I may join in. Stuff like this amuses me, albeit adding to my procrastination skills.


----------



## STORMWALKER (Feb 18, 2010)

*Its a major scam*

I know because i enjoy ringing them up and taunting them!
They are usually based in the cameroon in africa and do it all on internet 
you will always be too far from them
find and use only a defra animal courier you hire yourself and never ever give them money or details and its obvious you have the same person doing it

also reppers please be aware this also happens to reps and snakes parrots etc anything or high value or desire!
Also occurs in sun local
loot
bargain papers etc
avoid!
They will often use they same odd email to advertise several diff animals

i always report to police when i find one!
And if they are daft enough to give a number then they get some abuse too!

And the old line is the only one 
go see it with its mum!!


----------



## rosie75 (Oct 8, 2009)

When I was looking for a puppy for my daughter, I sent out emails in response to ads, and had very similar responses, I am in Wales and was searching the wales area, but the email would state they are in Aberdeen and mother was ill etc
After the second obviously scam email I had a right rant about them wasting my time, etc
Then my daughter said, "Why didn't you email them and say uncle Dave would go pick one up for you, when he comes down from Scotland"
Damn, it would have been interesting to see the response, if any, to that
Thankfully, we were lucky enough to have Toby off Reptile Lover, and I am thankful to the scammers, as it convinced me to travel further to get the perfect little dog for my daughter and I got to meet a lovely lady and her son in the process


----------



## Shell195 (May 31, 2007)

rosie75 said:


> When I was looking for a puppy for my daughter, I sent out emails in response to ads, and had very similar responses, I am in Wales and was searching the wales area, but the email would state they are in Aberdeen and mother was ill etc
> After the second obviously scam email I had a right rant about them wasting my time, etc
> Then my daughter said, *"Why didn't you email them and say uncle Dave would go pick one up for you, when he comes down from Scotland"*
> Damn, it would have been interesting to see the response, if any, to that
> Thankfully, we were lucky enough to have Toby off Reptile Lover, and I am thankful to the scammers, as it convinced me to travel further to get the perfect little dog for my daughter and I got to meet a lovely lady and her son in the process


 

I tried this and got told that due to unforseen circumstances the pup had to be moved to another destination:lol2:


----------



## rosie75 (Oct 8, 2009)

Thats ok, you could make up an imaginary animal train out of the oh so kind members.
Would give them the round around a bit, and get them thinking LOL


----------



## Pimperella (Sep 26, 2006)

fenwoman said:


> If you are reading an ad for a puppy and it is way cheaper than puppies of that breed usually are, then it'll be a scam. If the normal price of a pom puppy is £800 and you see advert's offering them for £250 or even free, it's a scam. And yes, people still get caught by them. Some peolple really do believe that a breeder would sell puppies for a fraction of what they could get for them, or even breed a litter of puppies and then offer them for free (just pay for the courier).I'm afraid I have nosympathy for anyone who is so gullible, that they will send money off to a stranger for an unseen puppy and are happy to buy a puppy without first seeing it in any case. The old saying says it all "a fool and his money are easily parted"


I have to agree. I don't have any sympathy for those conned by scams like this. Or the lotto win ones were complete idiots, out of pure greed, send some scammer thousands and thousands of pounds thinking they have won some spanish lotto.



rosie75 said:


> Thats ok, you could make up an imaginary animal train out of the oh so kind members.
> Would give them the round around a bit, and get them thinking LOL


 Say your dad owns a haulage Yard and they go ALL over.


----------

