What And Who To Watch Out For...

Maine Coon Kitten Scammers have been very active recently there have been several scams regarding the sale of Maine Coon kittens.  These kinds of people drive me crazy and make me angry. The biggest draw seems to be on Facebook, I try to stay active on the Maine Coon Forums and help buyers separate truth from reality where sometimes the love of that Coon you just saw on the scammer's FaceBook page or Webpage was too much to resist, it's burning a hole in your heart or worse your child's heart, lately lots of victims on pages and groups that are used for selling "Maine Coon Kittens", many name variations.

Also when you use Google the Ads it presents on the keywords you searched on are typically loaded with fake websites. These are typically the Google Ads, or Websites claiming to have Maine Coon Kittens on Sale or "Buy Now" buttons that get you to pay for a kitten that does not exist. Certainly not Google's fault but none the less they exist, so be careful!

Many times Maine Coon kitten scammers are people who find random photos of cats and kittens from legit websites and then try to sell them as their own. As a legitimate, ethical, and reputable breeder, and from others like us our material gets stolen all the time, I have also heard from several of our clients that have been victims or almost victims of these scams.

There are also other types of Maine Coon Scammers to look out for, these are the "kitten flippers" they usually DO NOT BREED their own cats in a healthy or ethical manner instead they import what amount to usually low quality or sick kittens at a huge discount from bad breeders and backyard breeders in America, Eastern Europe and other places in the world, many devastating stories of crippled and dying kittens from the so-called breeders can be found on many Maine Coon Forums.

I am sure there are many other tricks used by scammers that I have not listed but these are the most popular ones.

Just remember, if its seems to good to be true then it probably is!

Here are a few Red Flags:

• Scammers insist on using Text Only to communicate.
• Scammers won't show the parents, I'm not talking pictures those are easy to fake.
• Scammers won't show pedigrees of the kittens and parents.
• Scammers steal pictures off legitimate websites and put them on their websites.
• Scammers usually want high deposits.
• Scammers encourage the buyer to only communicate on Facebook Private Messaging.
• Scammers can't answer basic questions about the care of these special breeds.
• Scammers can't answer basic health and genetic questions about Maine Coon Kittens
• Never use the Pay Now or Buy Now button to reserve or purchase a kitten without first validating this is a legitimate breeder.
• Scammers use Google Ads to get to the top of search results to draw you in quickly and act on emotions.

How to Validate an Ethical and Reputable Maine Coon Breeder.

• Everything I listed above doesn't happen, early in the process messages do happen but if your a serious buyer that ends and we talk on the phone.
• We will educate you on Maine Coons and the Health risks along with how we at Florida Maine Coons mitigate that risk.
• We will give you verifiable references.
• You can verify our cattery is in good standing with TICA, our cattery is OptiCoons and our registration number is 32814.
• We encourage Cattery visits by appointment when we have kittens, come see how our furry family lives in harmony with our family and pets.
• We will send you as many pictures as you want.
• We will send you videos of the kittens.
• We will volunteer to send you copies of pedigrees - the kittens and the parents.
• We will show you videos of the parents with the kittens.
• We will even do FaceTime Live with you and the kittens.
• We can and will answer every question you and your vet could think of about our bloodlines and cats.
• We will share with you upfront our contract, in fact, it is on our website right here.
• Our deposit is reasonable and is fair. Our prices are set in mind so as many people as possible can afford a Maine Coon, we could charge much more but we want everyone to be able to afford a
  precious Coon.
• Sure we advertise on Facebook, but we don't sell off of FaceBook. We prefer to talk to you in person or on the phone. Messages are OK in the beginning but as people, we need to talk. Messages are way too subjective and only cause problems."It is our best interest to earn your trust and for you to fully understand what you are buying, and when it's all truthful, it's easy."

It upsets me to know that there are people out there that believe this behavior is acceptable and it's okay to scam people. Good quality Maine Coon Kittens are expensive and to a lot of people, it's a big financial leap to own and beautiful Maine Coon kitten.

Here at Florida Maine Coons by OptiCoons, we are very transparent and give our cats and kittens the best care possible. Nothing else is acceptable, we try to exceed our own expectations and more importantly yours.

If you have any Maine Coon related questions or want to report a SCAMMER please feel free to contact us and we will answer them. Follow us on Facebook here

Let the Buyer Beware. PLEASE NOTE - These sites have been reported to us many times as potential scammers, you the buyer should verify this information as true or false, do your own due diligence. We take no responsibility for its accuracy. If you see other sites please let us know, if you see one that is on this list by mistake please let us know and we will correct it after verification. This information has been shared with OptiCoons by various sources around the internet.