How to Identify a Scam

Tagrenine said:

I want to put together a thread or post to help people coming to this forum recognize what a scam looks like. I want to first say that what I'll be referring to as scams are websites set up to look like they are breeders, but everything about it is fake and it is a system designed to take your money.

The websites have gotten somewhat clever with their names, but every single one follows the same basic format.

View attachment 880577

They always sound good until you really start paying attention.

This description sounds good at a cursory glance. But it is a bit odd and seems to be missing a lot of crucial elements. Who are these people? Their goals and descriptions are extremely vague.

View attachment 880578
View attachment 880579

Looks familiar right?

View attachment 880580

Here's another!

View attachment 880581

And another!

View attachment 880582

Here is a final of another type for good measure. If you start to notice how good sound on the surface but realize that this "About" is missing a lot of vital information. Who are they? In my above example, if you google any part of the about, you will find the original breeder that that came from.

Further, if you click on their "Shipping Page", it is almost always bizarre because there are few breeders they can steal that from. Here is an example:

View attachment 880583

That format is very odd and different from the "About" in both formatting and tone.

Now, perhaps the most telling part of a scam in every case is how they present their sale puppies. No matter how elaborate the website looks or how convincing (I have seen some scam sites add names/GRCA logo/etc) this will always be the dead giveaway.

View attachment 880584

Not a single one of these puppies look the same. The backgrounds aren't the same and the prices are LOW. These are designed to look like a good deal, since the going price for pretty much any Golden is twice that or more.

View attachment 880585

Here is another example.

View attachment 880586

This one is even funnier because "Adult Weight: 3.5 to 5 lbs".

This brings me to another point: Nearly all of these websites have a "Buy Now" or "Contact Us" option right under the puppy. They like to advertise that puppies are on sale, that they are only "X" price for this week, etc.

I've been meaning to make a post like this because I see people getting scammed weekly. This post doesn't just apply to Goldens, it applies to any breed you want to buy. They prey on people who don't want to pay the market price for puppies. The truth is: all of these images are stolen and your puppy does not exist. You will never get whatever money they con you into putting into this fake dog back. I'm going to add the breeders I used for this post and I will add more to the list as I come across them.

If anybody else wants to add, feel free.

Danny's Golden Retriever Puppies
Family Golden Retriever Puppies
Harmony Retriever Puppies
Goldie Breeders
Vintage Retrievers (added Feb 14, 2021)
Star Belly Golden Retrievers (added Feb 26, 2021)
Amanda Golden Retrievers (added Feb 26, 2021)
Adorable Dogs and Puppies for Adoption on Facebook (added Mar 8, 2021)
Socialized Golden Retriever Puppies (FB Page: Golden Retriever puppies For Sale in North Carolina) (added Mar 15, 2021)
Great Golden Retriever Pets (added Aug 17, 2021)
Grace House Golden Retriever Puppies (added Aug 17, 2021)
Good Home Retrievers (added Sep 3, 2021)
Golden and Labrador Retriever puppies for sale (added Sep 3, 2021)
Harbs Golden Retrievers (added Sep 25, 2021)
Arel Goldens (added Jan 2, 2022)
Michael French Golden Retrievers (added Feb 14, 2022)

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Fritzenheimer said:

I have been so disgusted by some of the scams I have seen on FB, attracting people with cute pictures of puppies lifted off the internet, and taking advantage of people. I've reported two of these sites dozens of times but FB does nothing. Yesterday, I wrote FB a letter asking them to do something about two of the sites. For the life of me I do not understand how FB can abet the crimes that are being perpetrated under its banner. I've taken to monitoring these sites and messaging people on my own to beware.

Here are two of them that are particularly egregious. One is a private group and the other a public group. I suspect they both may be operated by the same person.

Golden Retriever Puppies For Adoption | Facebook

Adorable Golden Retriever and Labrador puppies for Adoption Scammers please stay away ❌❌ Pm only the Group admin if interested in any puppy 🐶။

www.facebook.com

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming၊ Denver, Colorado .နှစ်သက်သူ ၁၃၅ ဦး . Offers shipping and delivery to all states in US

www.facebook.com

I had a conversation with the person who claims to be a breeder running the latter site to try and get some more information I could share with FB. I've posted it below. It's hard to believe people could get sucked in by this, but I have seen several on FB who have been.

Me: Can you tell me how this works if I want a puppy?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: And where are you located?

Me: Georgia. How does it work?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Am located in Alabama so it will be much more easier for the puppy to be delivered to you at your doorstep. Are you interested in a male or female? And how soon do you need the puppy?

Me: Where in Alabama are you located?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Tyler Alabama. Are you interested in a male puppy or female puppy? And how soon do you need the puppy?

Me: Not in a hurry. There are a lot of scammers out there. How can I be sure you are legitimate?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: I do understand what you are trying to say but I believe in honesty and diligence, respect for you as a person and most importantly, respect as a human being. you haven’t done me or my family any harm so why would i want to fraud you of your money? i even don’t want any ill luck that will bring me down and my family or my next generation.It is certain that the world is a wicked place but there are still good people with a difference, I am not trying to rip you of your cash sir, I can give you my trust then I expect that too from you

Me: How does it work? How much is a puppy? When and how do I pay you? What assurances do I have of the health of your puppies? Do you have references?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: All of our puppies come from the healthiest bloodlines. We give each puppy for $800 (females) and $750 (males) and an extra delivery fee of $150 We accept local pickups and visits, we use a delivery service for the safety of your puppy.

The cost of your puppy includes;

• 1 Year health guarantee
• Health certificate
• Shots & Vaccines
• Rabies Vaccine
• Flea treatment
• Vet check, stamp and signed by the vet
• Puppy diet plan plus sample food
• A few Chew toys

-An educational packet

Those are some of our available puppies one male one female, the first pup is the female and the second is the male, the two pictures below are other pictures of them. Nola and Mic

Me: Where do the puppies come from? Are you the breeder?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Yes sir

Me: Are the parents AKC registered?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Yes sir including all our young puppies

Me: Can you provide me with the parents AKC registration numbers?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Okay sir hold on

Me: Thank you.

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Omg am so sorry my wife went out of town with documents

Me: Can you get it to me when she returns?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: Okay for sure no problem with that though

Me: Would you message me back? When will the puppies be ready to go home? When were they born?

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: They where born Sunday December, 29th, 2021

Me: when can I get the AKC numbers of the parents? Let me know when you have the AKC numbers. Then I will be ready.

Golden Retriever Puppies Ready For ReHoming: I just texted my wife and she says you can't be asking for an AKC registration number when we don’t even know if you’re legit for real cause we don’t know if you wana use it for something else

Me: All I want to do is look up the parents registration and determine is you are on the up and up. I can’t imagine what you think I would do with the number. You know my name. I don’t even know yours.

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MomLovesFurryFamily said:

I would like to provide an update that it appears "Country Hills Big Paws," in Sacramento, formerly "Grand Legacy Acres," now appears to be called "Golden Ridges" in "Elk Grove, California." They have a new AKC Marketplace page with the same "19 Different Champion Dogs in their Pedigree!!" lingo and inexpensive litters ongoing. They sell golden retrievers and rhodesian ridgebacks.

Perhaps anyone researching buying a golden retriever can do their own investigation into Tom Westwood and Jennifer Westwood. I personally find it scary and concerning that they appear to just change names and numbers when they get outed. Mostly I worry about what conditions the dogs and puppies are in. I wonder do they ever provide a home address for their breeding operation because I think the proper authorities should be summoned to investigate and make sure they are adhering to laws designed to protect animals and consumers.

To anyone new reading, please spend a lot of time on this forum researching every breeder and recruiting the help of the many experts here. It is worth it to take much more time to make sure you are not going to get scammed or support any kind of puppymill or bad breeder. Good luck to anyone out there seeking to add a golden to your family, be careful.

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mckenzieb said:

Hello, I was wondering if anyone could help me figure out, if this place is a scam. My husband and I are looking into getting a golden retriever and we’ve been emailing back and fourth with someone, and something just doesn’t seem right. Any help?

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mckenzieb said:

Thank you so much! Do you know any good sites that are for sure a good idea? We’re just looking to add to our furr family.

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pawsnpaca said:

There is no one site that I could recommend as a place to find a Golden puppy from a reputable breeder. Even places like the AKC Marketplace and Gooddog have more poor/unethical breeders than good ones. Read through the Code of Ethics to understand what a reputable breeder of Golden Retrievers should be doing, then check out the two links I've provided below. And again... Do a bunch of reading here on the Forum - use the search box to look for particular topics. For example, if you type in "breeder" and your state, it should bring up some existing threads where we may have already recommended (or warned against) breeders in your area.

Home - The Canine Chasm (see especially the posts on how to recognize ethical breeders)

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CherryCoke said:

Hi Folks,

I am brand-spanking new to this forum.

All I wanted to do was get a healthy Golden Retriever pup. A friend warned me to be careful of a particular scam. She was right. My first two contacts were scams. The third has been taken to task on this forum for being unethical. At this juncture, I have zero trust.

I am now at a loss as to how to proceed. This form is good at calling out problematic breeders/sellers/scam artists. Are there any suggestions for a healthy Golden Retriever pup in the San Francisco Bay Area?

Chris

Click to expand...

Southern California Breeders List

Here, I'm starting a list of breeders in SoCal, from the Mexican border to the Central Valley and Central Coast. I'll add to it as I go. Most will be what I believe to be good and reputable breeders, but there may be a few cautionary tales listed here, too. Feel free to add to my list. A "*"...

www.goldenretrieverforum.com

pawsnpaca said:

Post #10 in this thread has a list of breeders in No. CA you can investigate. You can also search on “Northern California breeders” and other threads may come up.

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Tagrenine said:

I want to put together a thread or post to help people coming to this forum recognize what a scam looks like. I want to first say that what I'll be referring to as scams are websites set up to look like they are breeders, but everything about it is fake and it is a system designed to take your money.

The websites have gotten somewhat clever with their names, but every single one follows the same basic format.

View attachment 880577

They always sound good until you really start paying attention.

This description sounds good at a cursory glance. But it is a bit odd and seems to be missing a lot of crucial elements. Who are these people? Their goals and descriptions are extremely vague.

View attachment 880578
View attachment 880579

Looks familiar right?

View attachment 880580

Here's another!

View attachment 880581

And another!

View attachment 880582

Here is a final of another type for good measure. If you start to notice how good sound on the surface but realize that this "About" is missing a lot of vital information. Who are they? In my above example, if you google any part of the about, you will find the original breeder that that came from.

Further, if you click on their "Shipping Page", it is almost always bizarre because there are few breeders they can steal that from. Here is an example:

View attachment 880583

That format is very odd and different from the "About" in both formatting and tone.

Now, perhaps the most telling part of a scam in every case is how they present their sale puppies. No matter how elaborate the website looks or how convincing (I have seen some scam sites add names/GRCA logo/etc) this will always be the dead giveaway.

View attachment 880584

Not a single one of these puppies look the same. The backgrounds aren't the same and the prices are LOW. These are designed to look like a good deal, since the going price for pretty much any Golden is twice that or more.

View attachment 880585

Here is another example.

View attachment 880586

This one is even funnier because "Adult Weight: 3.5 to 5 lbs".

This brings me to another point: Nearly all of these websites have a "Buy Now" or "Contact Us" option right under the puppy. They like to advertise that puppies are on sale, that they are only "X" price for this week, etc.

I've been meaning to make a post like this because I see people getting scammed weekly. This post doesn't just apply to Goldens, it applies to any breed you want to buy. They prey on people who don't want to pay the market price for puppies. The truth is: all of these images are stolen and your puppy does not exist. You will never get whatever money they con you into putting into this fake dog back. I'm going to add the breeders I used for this post and I will add more to the list as I come across them.

If anybody else wants to add, feel free.

Danny's Golden Retriever Puppies
Family Golden Retriever Puppies
Harmony Retriever Puppies
Goldie Breeders
Vintage Retrievers (added Feb 14, 2021)
Star Belly Golden Retrievers (added Feb 26, 2021)
Amanda Golden Retrievers (added Feb 26, 2021)
Adorable Dogs and Puppies for Adoption on Facebook (added Mar 8, 2021)
Socialized Golden Retriever Puppies (FB Page: Golden Retriever puppies For Sale in North Carolina) (added Mar 15, 2021)
Great Golden Retriever Pets (added Aug 17, 2021)
Grace House Golden Retriever Puppies (added Aug 17, 2021)
Good Home Retrievers (added Sep 3, 2021)
Golden and Labrador Retriever puppies for sale (added Sep 3, 2021)
Harbs Golden Retrievers (added Sep 25, 2021)
Arel Goldens (added Jan 2, 2022)
Michael French Golden Retrievers (added Feb 14, 2022)
Pryor Golden Retriever Puppies (added Mar 18, 2022)

Click to expand...