Ní haon maith a bheith ag caoineadh nuair a bhfuil a imíonn an tsochraid
There’s no good in keening when the funeral has moved off

 

 

 

 

 

Irish Wolfhounds puppies are being sold online from Ireland, the US and other countries.  Recently, internet auction website eBay was forced to remove an auction listing by a Westport, Co. Mayo breeder. eBay forbids live animal auctions. IWSOI members spotted this Westport dealer's listing and complained, successfully, to eBay.

 

The article below relates one person's account from the US. In Ireland, puppies are being sold sight unseen by the buyers and exported. There are no statistics on IW puppy, or any puppy, exports from Ireland currently available, but EU regulations may soon be introduced.

 

In the UK, Trading Standards officers are warning people of websites offering dogs or puppies for sale at knock-down prices.

Officers said customers pay for the pets believing they are in the UK, only to be told they are in a foreign county and that more money is required to release them through customs.

Customers who refuse to pay up are emotionally blackmailed and told their dog will die if the extra cash is not forthcoming.

 

Persons wanting to buy Irish Wolfhound puppies should contact their local breed club. In Ireland, anyone listed on our Contacts Page will provide information and assistance; please call or email with your questions.

 

 

 

Scam Alert: Caught in a Canine Con
Phoney online puppy sales bite the unwary

By Sid Kirchheimer

April 2007


Cynthia Alvarez saved all year to surprise her husband, Julio, with the Christmas gift he always wanted: an English bulldog puppy. "The problem is," says the San Jose, Calif., resident, "a purebred with papers from a breeder around here costs over $2,500."

So last Dec. 20, she turned to the Internet in search of a less expensive pooch. Alvarez thought she'd found one at the now-defunct Worldpupz.com, a website supposedly run by Dr. Don Anderson, a self-described "owner and breeder of English bulldogs."

"Many puppies were available, but I fell in love with Borman, who cost only $1,000," says Alvarez, a customer service rep. "I immediately e-mailed Dr. Anderson."

Within hours, she got an e-mail reply: Borman, 8 weeks 4 days old, was available. He loved kids and other animals. He should be fed high-quality food. He'd be flown on Continental Airlines within 24 hours after payment was wired.

As instructed, Alvarez wired the money to Ashtabula, Ohio. A day later "Anderson" e-mailed for an additional $350 for Borman's flight shipping crate. Two days later, he requested $250 more "to fill out papers at the airport."

Alvarez wired a total of $1,600, but Christmas came and went—with no puppy. "I felt robbed," says Alvarez, who never got her money back.

In the world of puppy swindles, phoney websites are usually taken down after a few months, and new ones go up, sites like 2007puppieshome.com, operated by "Dave G." It contains some of the same photos and text found on the website that deceived Alvarez. Posing as a potential buyer, Scam Alert exchanged numerous e-mails with "Dave," who wrote that "Borman is available" (and apparently still 8 weeks 4 days old). Dave G.'s phone number proved to be false.

These defrauders use stolen credit cards to buy website domains with names like Puppylast.com and Lovelypetz.com and to buy newspaper ads. Sandra Titus, who works for a newspaper chain based in Portsmouth, N.H., says three to five puppy ads are submitted a week. "We spot them as fake because the ads come from across the country, and we keep seeing the same pictures of the same dogs, over and over."

Meanwhile, the real Don Anderson, 73, who breeds only rare Carolina dogs, placed a warning on his kennel's website after Scam Alert notified him that his identity and information on his site had been stolen.

How can you safely buy a dog online?

If you want a certain breed, contact a local breed club for legitimate dealers in your area.

 

Call the seller. Legitimate online breeders post traceable phone numbers and addresses. You can check the information via directories such as www.whitepages.com. Do not accept only mobile telephone numbers.

Have the sellers send a photo of the dog next to a sign with your name and the date on it, to verify that they have the animal they advertised.

 

Never wire money to purchase a puppy—or any other item—on the Internet. Pay by credit card, since most cards have fraud protection policies.

 

Be aware that e-mails sent via yahoo.com or hotmail.com are often used by scammers because they're free and don't require identity verification.

 

If you think you've been bitten in a puppy scam, contact your state attorney general or local Better Business Bureau

Source:  AARP