Couple scammed out of $1200 trying to buy 2 Maine Coon kittens online

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This is an example of an online scammer who set up a website which gave the impression that he or she sold Maine Coon cats and kittens. A metro Detroit couple were fooled by what they thought was a legitimate website. 

They had sadly experienced the death of two Maine Coon cats not long ago and because they were very attached, they wanted their family to be "whole again," said Richard Cockrum. Richard wanted to do something nice for his girlfriend Nancy and search for a Christmas present for her.

They looked online for Maine Coon kittens. It was a tough year for them because Richard had contracted Covid-19 and was hospitalised for several days. He's been on furlough and he wanted to end the year positively. He found this scammer website which she thought was genuine which you can see in the images below. The site cannot be accessed at the moment probably because the scammer has pulled it off the internet after this story broke but he will be back with another scam no doubt.

They picked out two kittens and sadly, without taking precautions transferred US$1200 through Zelle. I've not heard of that company but the money was received by the scammer and as is usual they heard nothing from them afterwards. They tried calling on the Better Business Bureau website but without success. He left a message but no response.



According to BBB the business is rated F. So Mr Cockrum has lost $1200 and he feels bad about it and it is another hard knock to a hard year but he says that he won't fall for this sort of scam again. It was a "punch in the gut" for him in the family he said.



They said that they will wait and save some money to try and purchase kittens a second time. But next time they are going to meet either the breeder in person or visit local shelters.

The basic method for purchasing a cat from a breeder is to visit the breeder and ask questions. You must do this and you must ask pertinent and sometimes quite tough questions. You can then visit the cats and let one or two of them select you, which is the best way. You can inspect the breeder's facilities and make your own judgement as to her integrally and authenticity. Be critical, be tough because this is an adoption for the lifetime of the cat. That is a high responsibility in addition to the financial expense.

Get all the papers such as vaccination documents, pedigree documents, a proper contract which you read from top to bottom. Take your time because you have a lifetime, your cat's lifetime, ahead of you which could be a good 15+ years.
Location: Detroit, MI, USA

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