An influencer claims she was scammed out of thousands of dollars by fake dog breeders who advertised a purebred puppy that did not seem to exist.
Hawaii native Kouvr Annon, 23, sobbed as she laid bare her plight in a three-minute video uploaded to TikTok.
She said that the Australian Shepherd breeder she had found online had ‘looked really legit’ – a judgement she made after she ‘reverse-image searched’ photos of the puppy she had decided to buy on impulse.
It comes as countless adoptable dogs continue to languish in kill centers across the United States – with an estimated 400,000 being euthanized every year, according to the ASPCA.
Hawaii native Kouvr Annon, 23, sobbed as she laid bare her plight in a three-minute video uploaded to TikTok
She said that the Australian Shepard breeder she had found online had ‘looked really legit’ – a judgement she made after she ‘reverse-image searched’ photos of the puppy she had decided to buy on impulse
In the clip, which has been viewed more than 1.4 million times, Kouvr sat in her car with tears rolling down her cheeks as she laid out the situation.
The influencer, who already has three dogs, began: ‘So I’m pretty sure I just got scammed, literally so sad.
‘Two days ago I literally fell in love with this puppy. He’s so adorable!’
She said that she had found him at Royal Australian Shepherd Creek before making an inquiry.
In a screenshot Kouvr shared of the Royal Australian Shepherd Creek website – which has since been taken down – above the site’s banner appeared an email address attached to a different domain: info@royalakuitascreek.com.
The associated website of RoyalAkitasCreek.com is riddled with typos, spelling errors and awkwardly constructed, rambling sentences.
For instance, a ‘guarantee’ blurb on that homepage reads as follows: ‘Every one of our doggies have a 1 wellbeing ensure. They likewise accompany every one of their papers.
‘From our name Exquisite Akitas, we assist you with getting the ideal dream doggy for your children and family. We ensure everybody embracing a doggy from us, get the best and ideal individual from their loved ones.’
In the clip, which has been viewed more than 1.4 million times, Kouvr sat in her car with tears rolling down her cheeks as she set out the situation
She said that she had found him at Royal Australian Shepherd Creek before making an inquiry about him
Kouvr claimed: ‘They told me he was available, and asked me all the right questions. They said I was the perfect match.
‘Keep in mind I have three dogs, so I know what it’s like to buy a puppy.
‘I was a little skeptical about this breeder because I have never heard about them before so I took every single photo on their website, reverse-image searched it and found nothing, so they looked really legit.’
Using a reverse-image search tool allows internet sleuths to track whether an image has been published elsewhere online and means it is possible to trace its origins.
But this is not a foolproof system as snapshots can also be pulled off platforms such as TikTok – where search engines are not able to scrape them and thereby making this verification method futile.
Nonetheless Kouvr claimed that she sent over a deposit for the dog and the next morning ‘woke up to a tracking number for his shipment, and I was so unbelievably excited, you have no idea.’
‘But that excitement was gone when, two hours later, they said they put him on hold because there was a problem, as he was getting shipped from Colorado, they said he needed an upgraded crate,’ she alleged.
‘I thought “valid” so I paid the upgraded crate fee.’
The domain of an email address visible in a screengrab Kouvr shared of the original site was associated with a separate website advertising Akita puppies
The associated website of RoyalAkitasCreek.com is riddled with typos, spelling errors and awkwardly constructed, rambling sentences
But she said she then received yet another invoice because she paid the fee ‘too late’ and so was required to fork out another $500.
‘Maybe I’m just stupid or I see the good in everyone,’ she added.
Then, 10 minutes later, the so-called breeders send another email requesting $1000 for a ‘vaccination fee,’ Kouvr claimed.
It was then that she insisted she was done sending money until she had the puppy ‘physically in my hands’ and only then would she ‘reimburse’ them for the vaccination.
She claimed that the party corresponding with her wrote: ‘This is the last payment we have to make. Unfortunately I only get my pay check on Monday so we can wait till Monday.
‘The is nothing I can do now. Our daughter has cancer so we have a lot we are dealing with too.
‘Please just get this handled so they can proceed with the delivery and refunds.’
By that point, it dawned on the influencer that she was ‘probably getting scammed’ and resolved not to send any further funds.
Even so, she added: ‘The littlest part of me thinks that this puppy is still out there,’ so she sent them an email asking for ‘proof’ he is at the shipping center.
She then received texts from the so-called shipping company, ‘Freight Expertise,’ with images of the puppy, called Milo, claiming he was getting ‘weak’ after being there ‘for hours.’
And other social media users urged her not to send any more money after already shelling out thousands
Kouvr vented: ‘I’m sorry but this just does not look like a weak puppy to me….
‘I don’t know what to do because I feel like I’m getting scammed. But there’s also a little part of me that wants this puppy so badly.
‘Do you guys think I’m getting scammed?’ she implored of her more than 14 million followers.
She concluded: ‘Do I send them the $1,000 for the vaccine or do I cut my losses and just walk away?’
And other social media users urged her not to send any more money.
‘Girl you’re 100 per cent getting scammed. This how they talk – with urgency and playing to your feelings,’ one wrote.
Another echoed: ‘No do not pay anymore money. The EXACT like EXACT same thing happened with me and my mom with a kitten and never got her.’
A separate commenter chimed in with entirely separate, down-to-earth advice: ‘Adopt don’t shop.’
There have been plenty of warnings about fake dog breeders circulating in recent months with experts urging potential pet owners to adopt through sites such as Petfinder instead.
It lists nearly 200,000 dogs across America in need of homes, many of which can be adopted for free or a nominal single payment.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk