Hoax - How do rescuers deal with new cases

[marko]

Regularly people call me and email me asking if I can take in their pets...It's so sad.

Some of you may have already heard this 'newer' one.

Some rotten person in Montreal left 6 black lab puppies on the side of the road in a cage.

and some Angel of a person named heather picked them up, bathed them sprayed them for fleas and dewormed them....but she cannot keep them.

other than the SPCA which is the last resort...are there any suggestions for her? Apparently she has tried many rescues and they are all full.

I even feel guilty posting this because I know the reality.

Thanks if anyone can provide some information.

Marko

[Frenchy]

poor pups

The only things to do is to contacts rescues , now these are pups , if the lady brings them to the spca , they will probably ask for foster families for them , and they will get adopted easely because they are puppies. I will pm you Marko.

[fosterpat]

If it's the same one that I'm heaing about..apparently it's a hoax. It is a true story, but it happened last year. It's been going around on all the rescue sites. Most of us (rescues) have received it. Has she contacted you directly or have you just received an email. If it's not the same one and she is in the Montreal region, then she can contact any rescue, Rosie, Animatch or others. I'm a regular foster for puppies and no one has contacted us and we usually do take them. So, you call always tell her to pm me and if it's for real then I'll contact the rescues for her.

[BMDLuver]

I think it's a hoax unless you personally know this person, as was the below quoted that we received in October. Check it out before making any effort to assist.

Scott (my friend) rescued 6 black lab (mix) puppies out of the middle of the
road on Saturday. PLEASE help me find them homes - otherwise, it's Animal
Control - which means they only have 5 days. We've bathed them, sprayed them for
fleas and wormed them....but we can't keep them. They are currently in a kennel
in my basement since I don't have a fence. I've lost count of the number of
rescue groups that I've contacted, only to be turned down due to no room. Please
check with every dog person you know to see if they need a puppy.

[marko]

I too was suspicious. I received a similar email last week and it looked like spam.

But my brother in law passed on the info to me through another party yesterday and it started to look more real. i thought he actually knew this person, and I JUST found out that he did not.

Either way I took it upon myself to call Heather because there was contact info attached...and according to a co-worker it was real and they assured me that all the puppies have been placed in homes. So in this case, without proof to the contrary - that`s what I`m going with.

Even if this IS a scam - spam or some type of wham bam, Thanks so much to the members with big hearts that quickly Pmed me offering to help. It`s this type goodness that makes me proud of our board every single day.

Next time you can be sure i`ll investigate myself BEFORE posting.

Sincerely,

Marko

[BMDLuver]

If you got a live person then it's the marketing scam one again. They log all emails, calls etc for a marketing class. Every year about this time they do it.

[coppperbelle]

Yup, it is a scam. We heard about it last month, last year it was a bunch of golden retriever puppies.
Just like how the phone rings at different times of the day, and when you answer no one is there. It is a company that will then sell the information to solicitors so they will know what is the best time of day to call and get an answer and then try and sell you soemthing.

[white wrabbit]

rescued 6 black lab (mix) puppies out of the middle of the
road on Saturday. PLEASE help me find them homes - otherwise, it's Animal
Control - which means they only have 5 days. We've bathed them, sprayed them for
fleas and wormed them....but we can't keep them. They are currently in a kennel
in my basement since I don't have a fence. I've lost count of the number of
rescue groups that I've contacted, only to be turned down due to no room. Please
check with every dog person you know to see if they need a puppy.

i have gotten one of these and it was a legit.. it also contained a pic of the puppies and a phone number and i did call but the last one went 3 hours before i did... it was also from a police officer who sent the email out..

i do think in those types of emails a phone number is important.. and it is hard to stop an email once it is out when looking for help.. they tend to cycle around for months after or a year or 2... every one trying to help out

[white wrabbit]

Originally Posted by coppperbelle

Yup, it is a scam. We heard about it last month, last year it was a bunch of golden retriever puppies.
Just like how the phone rings at different times of the day, and when you answer no one is there. It is a company that will then sell the information to solicitors so they will know what is the best time of day to call and get an answer and then try and sell you soemthing.

when this happens hit the pound button it confuses it and will drop the number from the list... thinks it is a fax machine

[chico2]

Thank's White Rabbit,I usually just do not answer with caller ID,I'll try the #button next time.
It's really sad though,if people pull a hoax like this,when serious rescuers scramble to help what is assumed to be helpless puppies,sickos

[coppperbelle]

Originally Posted by white wrabbit

when this happens hit the pound button it confuses it and will drop the number from the list... thinks it is a fax machine

I didn't know that, thanks. I will definitely do it nexttime.

[growler~GateKeeper]

I also got that EXACT SAME email with picture attached from my sister that had circulated through her work. I was suspicious as well so I didn't respond to it just passed some rescue links to my sister

[marsupial mama]

I usually check with www.snopes.com when I get e-mails that sound as if they might be genuine. (The obviously spammy ones get deleted and if they really tick me off I let the "friend" who sent them know what I think too!)

Apparently the "6 black lab puppies" thing started as a Craigslist posting and have all been adopted. Article with cute pic here:
http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/puppies.asp

Extra kudos to the Snopes folks for urging people to think of adopting pets from local shelters.

[NoahGrey]

Yeah....we got ALOT of calls at our shelter about these pups...All a hoax.


ACO22

[erykah1310]

So... if it is a scam (and I got the email a while back too) my only question is... why?
They werent asking for money were they?
I dont get it

[Frenchy]

Originally Posted by erykah1310

So... if it is a scam (and I got the email a while back too) my only question is... why?
They werent asking for money were they?
I dont get it

Some people just have too much time on their hands .... we do get this e-mail every year around x-mas , picture of a female golden and her pups , it says if no one take the pups , they will be put down. Every year , same e-mail , same pictures , and our rescue receive lots of messages from concerned people. It's very sad. But you have to be careful , sometimes it's just not a hoax.

[marko]

This does seem to be a hoax by marketing students from the Mcgill department of Management.
They track emails and calls to see if this test 'campaign' is effective.

I didn't want to post the exact email I got because more people will just call and waste time - but the number at the bottom of the email that I saw had a Mcgill number from the Department of management.

Personally I'm disgusted in them. McGill is 'supposed' to have a better reputation than that. Puppies are not the same as a class project on Jiffy peanut butter.

It's tactics like this that give marketers a terrible reputation.

I have edited the thread title to reflect that this case in particular is a hoax.

[Chris21711]

I would forward a copy of the e-mail to the department head, maybe they could throw in a bit of education on what is ethical.

[CyberKitten]

My sister teaches at McGill - is an Associate Dean - not in Management - but she suggested contacting not only the Dept head but the Principal's office and the pr department. McGill does have a good reputation and whoever teaches this class and is permitting this is NOT helping the university!!

What a horrible hoax to pull!

Jere are the emails"

susy.ricciardelli@mcgill.ca EA to Principal
lisa.vandusen@mcgill.ca Director, Media Relations
PETER.TODD@MCGILL.CA Dean, Management Faculty

[Writing4Fun]

I guess this just goes to show that an education doesn't necessarily make you smart.

[want4rain]

Originally Posted by marsupial mama

I usually check with www.snopes.com when I get e-mails that sound as if they might be genuine. (The obviously spammy ones get deleted and if they really tick me off I let the "friend" who sent them know what I think too!)

Apparently the "6 black lab puppies" thing started as a Craigslist posting and have all been adopted. Article with cute pic here:
http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/puppies.asp

Extra kudos to the Snopes folks for urging people to think of adopting pets from local shelters.

yep, i SNOPES EVERYTHING!! and if its not legit, i wont hesitate to give my friend a piece of my mind... i mean come on folks, verify somethign before you spread it around. you only look silly if anyone finds out. baa baa

-ash

[Stacer]

I got this email from a co worker 2 weeks ago. She said it came from a friend of her sister's. The wording is exactly the same, the contact name is different, and it was in Toronto. The dogs were black lab/border collie crosses.