Was looking at conures and came across a scam :/

Ladox

Member
Jan 4, 2022
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28
Australia
Parrots
June, Rose-crowned Conure, 31st October 2019
Thought of posting this in general parrot info or something but I’m not sure if it qualifies. Ok the story: I was looking at breeders, adoptions and birds for sale in general and stumbled upon a website caled birdbreeders.com or something like that, anyway, it was basically you click the species, age you want and gender you want and they claim to ship them to you. Few things I noticed off the bat: they have very cheep prices for golden conures and blue crowns (probably other ones too but I didn’t look to deep into it), they don’t have payments like MasterCard or PayPal… instead they have something called Zelle? Zealle? Something like that. They are from the USA, Florida but apparently ship to my country, Australia, which, in case you don’t know it’s illegal to ship or import birds to Australia because of our tight invasive laws, my local vet did confirm this. So I googled to see whether they were legit, and i found a website called scampulse with a bunch of reviews of the place and how it was a scam. So yeah, luckily didn’t pay anything, (I wasn’t getting a bird just looking but if I was I still wouldn’t have payed because it was a pretty clear scam), but I did see someone else in my country had bought a bird and I feel pretty bad for them :(

somethings I plan do when getting a bird (you can take some advice and leave it as you choose):
-Try looking at adoptions first off, if not a breeder you know or have used before
-Make sure its near me so I can meet it, make sure it’s real before paying anything. Try not to hold them because those often cannot be refunded
-Ask questions you already know about the bird (my dad taught me that you ask questions you know the answer to to someone you don’t know, to see if they lie or not (maybe like: a species specific question, or if they are desexed, if they say yes to that it’s very likely to be a lie), if they lie then they are most likely not trust worthy), then if they aren’t lying, start asking questions you don’t know the answer to, things like: is the bird dna sexed? is it male or female? What have you fed it? (I suggest looking for reputable handraising formulas like neocare, and not seeds as they don’t carry the proper amount of nutritional requirements a baby needs) is it handraised? If not what did you feed the parents? Did or do you plan to clip it’s wings? (I suggest not getting a birds wings clipped as it doesnt stop them from flying, just makes it harder. if it does stop them from flying they most likely have been cut too far)
-Ask to see the condition of the parents, babies and even other birds, some breeders may not be upfront or honest about conditions of the mum & dad, or some might and it might be a very bad living condition that they don’t know is bad
 

ZoeyBear

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Jul 27, 2021
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Zoey (GCC) R.I.P
R.I.P Skittles (GCC)
I was looking on craigslist for conures (my normal routine when I have spare time) and I found a scam on craigslist about a turquoise GCC they had the exact same post in Florida as they did in Washington I flagged the post so hopefully, someone deletes it before someone gets scammed.

These are the links to the posts
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/pet/d/seattle-turquoise-green-cheek-conure-200/7440712657.html


https://orlando.craigslist.org/pet/d/orlando-turquoise-green-cheek-conure-200/7440457254.html
 

Scott

Supporting Member
Aug 21, 2010
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San Diego, California USA, Earth, Milky Way Galaxy
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Goffins: Gabby, Abby, Squeaky, Peanut, Popcorn / Citron: Alice / Eclectus: Angel /Timneh Grey: ET / Blue Fronted Amazon: Gonzo /

RIP Gandalf and Big Bird, you are missed.
Kudos for highlighting hallmarks of scammers! Sadly they are profligate and prey on the innocent, unaware of sage sleuthing tactics. Some offer "fertile" eggs for shipping, most post file internet images easily reverse-Googled for authenticity. As with most facets of life, "if too good to be true...."
 

ZoeyBear

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Jul 27, 2021
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Zoey (GCC) R.I.P
R.I.P Skittles (GCC)
Kudos for highlighting hallmarks of scammers! Sadly they are profligate and prey on the innocent, unaware of sage sleuthing tactics. Some offer "fertile" eggs for shipping, most post file internet images easily reverse-Googled for authenticity. As with most facets of life, "if too good to be true...."
If I was looking for a conure right now I probably would have responded to the post because I want a turquoise if I get another bird, and if I didn't love looking at parrots for sale I never would have realized that the ads were the same I just hope someone doesn't get scammed.
 

Niteldy

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Oct 26, 2021
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1 Alexandrine & 5 cockatiels
I was looking on craigslist for conures (my normal routine when I have spare time) and I found a scam on craigslist about a turquoise GCC they had the exact same post in Florida as they did in Washington I flagged the post so hopefully, someone deletes it before someone gets scammed.

These are the links to the posts
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/pet/d/seattle-turquoise-green-cheek-conure-200/7440712657.html


https://orlando.craigslist.org/pet/d/orlando-turquoise-green-cheek-conure-200/7440457254.html
Oh man! Is this the same one on another site???? https://macawparroteggsforsale.com/product/baby-african-grey-congo-parrot/
I hate these scammers and thieves!
 

Doscar

Member
Aug 18, 2021
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36
Kentucky
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Oscar a 14-year-old blue gold macaw.
Coco a 22-year-old Congo African grey.
Oscar was a rescue I am his 3rd home and hopefully last.
Coco is from an older couple, I'm his 2nd home.

Kuke5150

New member
Feb 4, 2022
3
4
Parrots
Green Cheek Conure
I was looking on craigslist for conures (my normal routine when I have spare time) and I found a scam on craigslist about a turquoise GCC they had the exact same post in Florida as they did in Washington I flagged the post so hopefully, someone deletes it before someone gets scammed.

These are the links to the posts
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/pet/d/seattle-turquoise-green-cheek-conure-200/7440712657.html


https://orlando.craigslist.org/pet/d/orlando-turquoise-green-cheek-conure-200/7440457254.html
Same in Chicago. I was about to e-mail him yesterday...
Text from post:
Turquoise green cheek conure. Male. 1.5 years old. He’s a little shy/scared, but is a loving bird when he opens up to you. $450 firm. Message me if interested.

I will not reply to people asking for codes
 

Scott

Supporting Member
Aug 21, 2010
32,673
9,789
San Diego, California USA, Earth, Milky Way Galaxy
Parrots
Goffins: Gabby, Abby, Squeaky, Peanut, Popcorn / Citron: Alice / Eclectus: Angel /Timneh Grey: ET / Blue Fronted Amazon: Gonzo /

RIP Gandalf and Big Bird, you are missed.
I believe macaw parrot eggs to be a scam as well I emailed them a list of questions a few years ago and they never responded.
Total scam, no legit breeder would ever ship a fertile egg. No way to keep safe and incubated!
 

Flboy

Well-known member
Dec 28, 2014
12,598
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Greater Orlando area, Florida
Parrots
JoJo, 'Special' GCC, Bongo, Cinnamon GCC(wife's)
Same in Chicago. I was about to e-mail him yesterday...
Text from post:
Turquoise green cheek conure. Male. 1.5 years old. He’s a little shy/scared, but is a loving bird when he opens up to you. $450 firm. Message me if interested.

I will not reply to people asking for codes
The statement about codes is a legitimate statement! That is used to set up a phone number based off your identity! They the use this number in scam sites!
 

ZoeyBear

Active member
Jul 27, 2021
204
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209
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Zoey (GCC) R.I.P
R.I.P Skittles (GCC)
what if everyone that is posting on this thread flagged the posts that people think are scams (the ones on craigslist) that way they might get enough flags to get deleted? (it takes multiple flags for them to delete a post and because the posts are so far away from each other not many people will realize they are scams and flag them)
 

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