Influencer sheds tears after getting SCAMMED by fake dog breeders

An influencer claims she was scammed out of thousands of dollars by fake dog breeders who advertised a purebred puppy that didn’t seem to exist.

Kouvr Annon, 23, who was born in Hawaii, sobbed as she exposed her plight in a three-minute video uploaded to TikTok.

She said the Australian Shepherd breeder she found online “looked really legit” — a judgment she made after “reverse-searching” photos of the puppy she’d decided to buy on a whim.

It’s because countless adoptable dogs continue to languish in homicide centers across the United States — it’s estimated 400,000 are euthanized every year, according to the ASPCA.

In the clip, which has been viewed more than 1.4 million times, Kouvr sat in her car with tears streaming down her cheeks as she explained the situation.

The influencer, who already has three dogs, began: “So I’m pretty sure I just got conned, literally so pathetic.

“Two days ago I literally fell in love with this puppy. He’s so adorable!’

She said she found him at Royal Australian Shepherd Creek before conducting an investigation.

In a screenshot Kouvr shared of the Royal Australian Shepherd Creek website — which has since been taken down — an email address associated with a different domain appeared above the site’s banner: info@royalakuitacreek.com.

The accompanying RoyalAkitasCreek.com website is riddled with typos, spelling errors, and clumsily constructed, incoherent sentences.

For example, a “guarantee” blurb on that homepage reads: “Each of our doggies has 1 welfare guarantee. They also accompany all their papers.

‘From our name Exquisite Akitas we help you to obtain the ideal dream dog for your children and family. We make sure that everyone who hugs a doggie from us gets the best and ideal individual from their loved ones.”

Kouvr claimed, “They told me he was available and asked me 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’d never heard of them, so I took every photo on their website, reverse-image searched and found nothing, so they really looked legit.”

By using a reverse image search, internet sleuths can track if an image has been published elsewhere online and it is possible to trace its origin.

But this is not a foolproof system, as snapshots can also be pulled from platforms like TikTok – where search engines can’t scrape them, making this method of verification pointless.

Nevertheless, Kouvr claimed she put down a deposit for the dog and “woke up the next morning with a tracking number for his shipment, and I was so incredibly 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, when he shipped from Colorado they said he needed an upgraded case,” she claimed.

“I thought ‘valid’ so I paid the upgraded crate fee.”

But she said she received another bill after that because she paid the fee “late” and thus had to pay another $500.

“Maybe I’m just stupid or I see the good in everyone,” she added.

Then, 10 minutes later, the would-be breeders send another email asking for $1,000 for a “vaccination fee,” Kouvr claimed.

At that point, she insisted she was done sending money until she had the puppy “physically in my hands” and only then would she “pay them back” for the vaccination.

She claimed that the party corresponding to her wrote: ‘This is the last payment we have to make. Unfortunately I don’t get my salary until Monday so we can wait until Monday.

“It’s nothing I can do right now. Our daughter has cancer so we have a lot to deal with as well.

“Please just let this be dealt with so they can proceed with the delivery and refunds.”

It was then that it dawned on the influencer that she was “probably scammed” and decided not to send any more money.

Still, she added, “The tiniest part of me thinks this puppy is still out there,” so she emailed them asking for “proof” that he’s in the shipping center.

She then received text messages from the so-called “Freight Expertise” shipping company with images of the puppy, named Milo, claiming he became “weak” after being there for “hours.”

Kouvr vented, “I’m sorry, but this just doesn’t seem like a weak puppy to me….

“I don’t know what to do because I feel like I’ve been scammed. But there is also a small part of me that wants this puppy so badly.

“Do you think I’m being scammed?” she begged her more than 14 million followers.

She concluded, “Do I send them the $1,000 for the vaccine or cut my losses and just walk away?”

And other social media users urged her to stop sending money.

“Girl, you are 100 percent ripped off. This is how they talk – with urgency and playing with your feelings,” one wrote.

Another repeated, “No, don’t pay any more money. EXACTLY like EXACTLY the same thing happened to me and my mom with a kitten and never got her.”

A separate commenter agreed with an entirely different, down-to-earth piece of advice: “Don’t adopt shopping.”

There have been numerous warnings about fake dog breeders in recent months, with experts urging potential pet owners to adopt through sites like Petfinder instead.

It lists nearly 200,000 dogs across America in need of homes, many of which can be adopted for free or for a nominal one-time fee.