Hi,
I just graduated college and moved out to Colorado to be a whitewater raft guide. I've been wanting to get a dog for several years now. I've had family dogs my whole life and want one to call my own. I had been trying to decide between a golden retriever (the dogs I grew up with), a black lab, or a husky. After doing a lot of research (i've been reading everything on this forum for 2 or 3 hours every day the past few days haha) I really liked how smart, hard working, and unique the siberian husky is and am getting one in the next few days.

I found someone who is giving away sibes in Seattle, WA and all you have to pay is the shipping costs. I've been emailing the guy and I almost feel like it's too good to be true, and that it may be a scam or something. I found his add on the colorado springs oodle page (my first time using it) and was wondering if most the stuff on there is reputable. I'm afraid that it might be a scam to just get the delivery fee.

Thanks,
Brian

Sounds like a scam to me. I wouldn't do it. Sounds way too sketchy. How are they wanting you to pay?
I'd post your emails with him here, it's really easy to tell from how someone types and everything if it is a scam.
The truth is- if it's too good to be true, it probably isn't. Even if it was true, I wouldn't get a dog from someone who is doing this approach. Also.. if the dogs were free, Seattle has a population who would jump on that offer like no other, they wouldn't need to look out of state. I'd bet money that they are scammers. Sounds like the usual pitch. My husband's grandma and mom were both scammed and then my mom nearly was, so red alerts stick out like crazy to me.

If you're wanting to adopt a husky, we have 2 rescues here in CO that have a ton of gorgeous dogs, young and old, who would love homes.

Hi and welcome to the forum! I agree that it very much sounds like a scam.

Shout out to Mile High Husky Rescue (who just received a $155 donation from the forum's shirt sale!) and Polaris Husky Rescue, both from Colorado! Both are run by some fantastic people and you have a HUGE Colorado following of this forum that would be more than happy to help you find a husky and raise one.

Go for rescue. Especially having a husky be your first dog, I would suggest one past the age of 2 years old. Unless you have 8 hours a day to dedicate to your pup's well-being and training, I would advise against a puppy and would CERTAINLY advise against a teenage husky (age 1-2) for a new sibe owner Nothing personal, but this is not generally a first-time-owner breed, so I'd start with baby steps if you intend on calling this breed your own for life (Besides, I'm biased... both mine were rescues )

Welcome again and kudos to you for doing your research!

Don't forget to keep an eye on Craigslist.com, they come and go quite often on there.

Biko, is a Craigslist pooch.

I volunteer for Polaris Husky Rescue, and I adopted both of mine; Ginger from Polaris and Storm from Mile High Husky Rescue (I also know the person on a personal level who runs Mile High Husky Rescue). Ginger was adopted around 3.5 years a year ago, and Storm was adopted a month before he turned 6. They are both my first dog, ever. And I have to admit - I didn't have to go through any of the puppy training, digging or chewing destruction, or hyper energy.

I completely agree with the advice you've received so far - unless you have most of your day to training and exercise, adopt a husky past the age of 2. You'd be surprised how many huskies both rescues get in - a lot of owner surrenders that simply cannot keep their husky because of one reason or another, and these huskies are GREAT - house trained, basic commands, leash trained.

The ad you found for WA huskies free for shipping cost only definitely sounds like a scam, and even if you do get a husky from that place, sounds like a puppy mill which could result in a lot of health issues which means a lot of money in vet bills.

If you have any questions regarding the rescues here in Colorado, please don't hesitate to ask. Both rescues have a lot of GREAT huskies in need of a good home, and they also come up to date on their shots, spayed/neutered, and micro chipped.

Yeah, I definitely think this is a scam. It went from Seattle and Denver being the only two things involved to somehow Cameroon??? being involved. The guy who I've been contacting had a very fishy way of typing (no offense) in that he seemed foreign to me bc he used terrible grammar.

As far as the rescue goes, I have no problem about that and will look into it. I DO however want to get a puppy. I understand the commitment it takes and am up for/excited for it. While this will be the first puppy that is completely mine, my family has had a cocker spaniel, 3 golden retrievers, and we bred our first golden.

Thanks for all the advice.

Thanks again for the help again. I looked into Polaris and High Mountain, but would love a puppy. Because I'm a rafting guide I only work for 3 to 6 hours a day, if that (don't worry, I know we're broke but I have money saved up and am ready for the financial commitment as well). Every other minute of the day I can dedicate to my dog. Plus, my friends can help when I'm working, and there are plenty of dogs around for the puppy to play with.

Also, they want me to pay with Western Union. My grandma actually just got scammed last semester by them. Some people called her pretending to be me and saying that I was in Montreal and had been arrested. They claimed I needed 2,500 dollars for bail, and when she paid it they said I needed another 2.5k for a lawyer. My grandma, being the loving woman that she is, thought I was in trouble and paid the first amount without thinking. The person (pretending to be me) begged for her not to tell my parents bc I would get in trouble. Luckily I happened to call her that day just to see how she was and we were able to catch the 2nd payment, but due to that I don't trust anything involving Western Union. There are too many other legit ways to pay.

Update...I sent several emails out in regards to "free" siberian huskies with a payment of the shipping fee. I got another reply and it was almost the exact same email. This is the email and I figured I'd put it on here as sort of a warning for people looking to get a pup. I was so excited about getting one that I almost fell for it.

Hello,

Thanks for your interest in regard of my lovely cuties.These
are the ones which are available,I have gotten three males and two
females,They are 12 weeks old ,They are by names Mack the male Kelcy the
female Kimmi the male,Della the female,and Cindy the female,They are home raised, potty
trained,A KC registered,updated on shots, well domesticated and well
socialized. they can get along perfectly with children and other pets
.they loves to be carried around , cuddled and full of caressing and
kisses and will come along with a 1 year health guarantee.They have been neutered and De-wormed, they are
coming alongside with the following:

A year health guarantee
AKC registration papers
Pedigree papers
A delivery crate
Vet record Food samples
Puppies toys
1 year health guarantee

I am giving them out for free adoption because of my newly acquired
Job and beside i just lost my wife she was the only person taking care of them .and my newly acquire job which demands a lot of my time and entails a lot of traveling and i
work 16 hours a day as such, i have little or no time to spend with the
puppies, So i have decided to give them out to a good and caring
home,But before i assume that you are going to have any of them ,You
need to promise to send me updated pictures for me to know how my puppy
is doing,So i am given them out for free adoption,And all you will be
paying is just the delivery fee to your home because i have been
relocated from your location ok,So right now i am in Seattle,WA,So if you need any of them you will be paying just the delivery charge,Which one will cost you just $220 for one and if interested in both of them it will cost you $350 since as it will b moderate ,So just get back to me with answers to this few questions please:

Do You Have A Good Yard
were the puppy can play?
Do you intend breeding ??
What is your name??
Where are you located??
Are you sure to take good care of the puppies??
When do you need the puppies to be deliver??
Do you have other pets??
Have you ever lived with a puppy before or any other pets?
Are you aware of the love and attention that puppies need?
will every one in your home be fully
committed to the bringing in of a new pet?Any vet in your area?
Do you promise to send me updated pictures when you have any of them?
And also do get back to me with the name of the one you need?Thanks so
much and Waiting for a quick respond from you.

My Regard

Most definitely a scam.

yeah...i feel like an idiot for even coming close to falling for it. i was overtaken with husky excitement.

If you look at some of misuse of words, you can actually tell that something like Google translator was used and that (among other things) tells me its a complete scam. The money is probably going right out of the country. My breeder told me within the past year she has had more and more people come to her with scam horror stories involving people looking for a husky. She actually emailed me something written on them, and what to look for. I'm going to try to find it and see if there's any good info to share from it. Good luck though, they are great dogs. You will find one right for you. Listen to your gut always though, if something doesn't seem right, it probably isn't.

Welcome Brian and I'm glad you came here before buying into that horrible scam.

I can certainly understand peoples' desire for a puppy to raise. Nothing wrong with that at all. I've always wanted to raise a puppy of my own but my own principles keep getting in my way. Every single time I get close to buying a puppy I get a guilt trip knowing how many adult dogs are in shelters across the country and how many of them are dying there. It's for this reason that as much as I want a puppy (and believe me, you have no idea how long I've yearned for a puppy!) that all my dogs are adult rescues.

I did want to point out that sibe puppies do find their way into shelters too. You may have to wait for a little to land in a shelter or rescue close to you but it does happen and that would allow you to adopt and still get the puppy that you want. And please don't let the idea of a wait put you off of adopting, most truly good, reputable breeders do not have litters sitting around waiting for buyers to come along so even if you go the reputable breeder route you may still have a little wait ahead of you.

Please, please, please do more research on finding a reputable breeder before making any more moves for a puppy. This scam close-call situation clearly shows that you have much more homework and learning to do. Please don't take that as a negative comment or dig at you, we all want to see you succeed and get the dog you want, but done the right way. There are so many breeders out there and even people who have a good idea of what to look for in a breeder can get duped. Truly good breeders breed to better the breed and most breed to improve and add to their own lines, show and/or working prospects, and breeding program. With that said, because they are breeding for themselves they usually have long waiting lists and few puppies available to pet homes each year as they do not breed their females each cycle and each breeding is carefully planned out well in advance. It breaks my heart to see people be impatient and support less desirable breeding practices because they don't want to put up the money or wait for a quality puppy. In essence, that what leads to the pet overpopulation and overcrowded shelter/rescue problem we have today.

We would be more than happy to help you if you find a potential breeder and would like our feedback on said breeder. I won't name names but we do have several members who can offer you valuable assistance in that area.

Didn't mean to jump off the deep end right away, just want to see you get off to a good start!

Again, welcome aboard!

Thanks a lot. Charleston is one of my favorite cities btw.

Have you just visited Charleston or actually lived here?

I think Charleston is a fantastic place to visit, I hate living here though. We moved here 10 months ago and we'll be moving out of SC as soon as we can!

I've only visited. I can imagine the humidity would be miserable to live in.

It's no worse as far as humidity than FL which is where we lived before SC. Although it does get considerably hotter in the summer in Charleston than FL. We prefer living in WA state and hope to move back there in the near future, we prefer cold and rainy over hot and sunny any day. Actually we adopted our husky in WA state when we lived there. I looked at a lot of the shelters around the Seattle area, we adopted ours from a shelter about 30 miles north of Seattle.

I looked into some of the reputable breeders here in Colorado. None of them were close to Denver, and the 2 that I found had waiting lists that will put you 2 litters out. You would still have to put a 50% deposit down to get on a waiting list. And if you have specific characteristics you specifically want, (e.g. blue eyes, color, gender), your wait can be even longer. One of the breeders I looked into said my wait time for a male, gray and white with blue eyes would have been at minimum 3 litters out. And to guarantee I get that pick, $350 deposit (50% of the cost) would need to be sent and received before I got on the waiting list. They encouraged me to come down to meet the sire and bitch, before sending the deposit, so that would mean 4-5 hour drive on top of that.

In any case, that's what you might want to expect if you going the way of puppy from a reputable breeder in Colorado.

Like Val said, we do also end up with a puppy on occasion, but the approved adoption applicants will have first pick. So I would encourage you to at least fill out an adoption application to Polaris Husky Rescue and Mile High Husky Rescue so that you'd already be approved should we get a puppy in.

Also, Mile High Husky Rescue works with Thunder Puppy Rescue and University, who will also get in Huskies, and on occasion a Husky puppy. I believe an approved adoption app with Mile High Husky Rescue will qualify you to adopt from Thunder Puppy as well (please confirm, but I do believe that would be true).

Good luck! You'll find the right puppy, whether from a breeder or rescue!

Down here in Florida, there are Husky puppies in shelters probably about once a month or every other month. Craigslist is an option as well, there are some people who are trying to sell their dogs but there are also legitimate people who got a pup and simply cannot care for it any longer. Keep looking, keep reading and learning, and eventually something will just happen. Fill out applications with the rescues, contact breeders... whatever you want to do.

We went through a lot of failed adoptions before Cheyenne quite literally dropped into our lives and I was really on the verge of giving up before she came around. Everything in time

Hi, and welcome! =)

It took me 6 months after deciding to get a second husky before running into Kody! He's absolutely beautiful, smart, and the sweetest dog ever! Totally worth the wait. When i went to see him my husband was like "he's the one" and our hearts were his from that moment. Trust me, it can get frustrating though. I was about to pull my hair out because I wanted a another so bad!

I would have LOVED to adopt an adult dog, but unfortunately my 5yr old female would not have allowed a grown dog in the house.

Good Luck!!!

Whether from a rescue or a breeder you can expect to wait about 6 months to find a dog or a puppy. It took us about that long to find Koda who was our first, and then Hailey when we decided we were ready for a second. I would have gladly waited longer for both... they are the perfect pair for us and we love them more than words can say.

Don't get discouraged. You're already on your way! Keep searching. And if you decide to go the breeder route, check out the thread: How to Find a Reputable Breeder That should help you with your search!

i dont really have much to add except welcome and glad to see another Roanoker on here!!