Goat Scams Part 2: The Advanced Scammer

I want to start this by saying I went into this already knowing the profile was a scammer.

I came across a post in a Facebook group for baby goats for sale. The first thing that caught my attention was the seller’s name. It wasn’t a real name like yours or mine. It was “Pygmy Goats For Sale And Adoption,” and they were listed as an admin in the group. That alone was a red flag, so I clicked through to their profile.

Within a few minutes of scrolling, I was about 95 percent sure they were a scammer. The page was full of random goat photos, generic posts, and activity that didn’t feel like a real farm or a real person. But I kept digging because I wanted confirmation.

Then I found it. A post that looked almost identical to a friend’s recent post of her newborn kids. Same photos. Same setup. Same babies. That was the moment I knew with complete certainty that this was a scammer, and not a small one. This wasn’t the typical new account with a handful of friends and a blank timeline. This was a large, long running operation.

Their profile is active and regularly updated with stolen images, comments, and even memes to make it look legitimate. The account dates back to 2021 and has around four thousand followers. That is not only concerning but dangerous for anyone shopping for goats online.

Even though I already knew they were a scammer, I decided to message them anyway. I wanted to test them, document everything, and break it down for you so you can see exactly how these advanced scammers operate. What to look for, what to ask, and how to protect yourself before you ever send a deposit or step into the market.

These scammers are organized, calm, and very focused on not getting exposed. The money matters to them, but staying undetected matters even more. The good news is that through a series of questions, I caught them in multiple contradictions that clearly prove they are a scam.

Here’s how this post will go:

- First, I’ll show you my friend’s original post and the scammer’s stolen version. 

- Then we’ll look at some of their profile images and the inconsistencies hiding in plain sight. 

- Finally, I’ll walk you through our actual conversation so you can learn to spot these red flags yourself.

If you follow this profile, I strongly recommend unfollowing and blocking them.

My friend’s stolen post

*Thank you to Amber at Rz Acres for allowing me to share this example.

These babies were the very first British Guernseys my friend ever bred, and she sent me their birth photos privately the night they were born. I knew exactly what these kids looked like before anything was ever posted online.

A day or so later, she shared her official announcement on Facebook. Not long after that, the scammer’s page reposted her photos and copied most of her wording to make it look like the kids were born on their fake farm. Seeing her newborns used like that is what pushed me from being 95 percent sure this profile was a scam to being absolutely certain.

This was not an accident. 

This was not a misunderstanding. 

This was intentional theft.

They took her images, copied her excitement, kept the details about the buck and doe weights, and then added a line asking when someone would like to place a reservation. They tried to turn her real, hard earned moment into bait for their scam.

This is exactly how advanced scammers operate. They monitor real breeders, wait for high quality posts, and then repost them as their own. They move quickly, they stay calm, and they rely on buyers not knowing the original source.

This example alone shows how calculated they are and why buyers need to be extremely cautious when shopping online.

The Fake Page: What Their Profile Reveals Before You Even Message Them

Once you look past the stolen post, their entire page starts to unravel. I’ve included multiple screenshots of their content, and when you view them together, the inconsistencies become impossible to miss. This is exactly how advanced scammers operate. They rely on buyers scrolling quickly and not noticing the details. My goal is to help you slow down and see what’s really there.

Real farms have real owners, real family members, and real hands on caretakers. Their photos stay consistent over time. This page shows completely different people in almost every post. Different ages, different genders, different climates, different clothing, different backgrounds. One of the individuals they used is a well known YouTube pack goat personality. That means they are not just stealing goat photos. They are stealing photos of real people to fake legitimacy.

Several of their posts include children holding goats or standing in farm settings. Because I do not know who these kids are, I have blocked their faces in the screenshots to protect them. But the fact remains. This page is using photos of people’s children without permission. No legitimate farm would ever do this.

A real farm has a consistent look. The same barn, the same fencing, the same bedding, the same pasture, the same style of photos. This page jumps all over the place. Some babies are on straw with a red barn behind them. Others are on shavings. Others are on bright green grass. Others are indoors. Others are in completely different climates. When you scroll through multiple posts, the differences become extremely obvious. To anyone who has raised goats, these inconsistencies stand out immediately.

They call themselves a “Pygmy Goat” page, yet their posts include Nigerian Dwarfs, mixed breed kids, turkeys, donkeys, spring kids from other farms, sextuplets from someone else’s herd, a disabled goat in a custom cart, and even AI generated animals. They post one batch of each species and then never show them again. It’s a patchwork of stolen content designed to look like a busy, diverse farm.

Real farms show repeat animals, growth updates, seasonal changes, and familiar faces. This page posts a single set of turkeys, a single donkey, a single egg photo, a single fluffy kid, a single “spring looks like this” collage, and then moves on. There is no herd structure, no consistency, no continuity.

Most scam pages are new. This one dates back to 2021 and has around 4,000 followers. That does not make them legitimate. It means they have been stealing content and fooling people for years.

Mixed in with the stolen content are images with obvious AI tells. Warped backgrounds, incorrect anatomy, mismatched lighting, textures that don’t exist in real life. Scammers often use AI to fill gaps when they run out of stolen photos.

Any one of these things on its own might not raise suspicion for a new buyer. But when you put them together, the mismatched people, the stolen children, the inconsistent backgrounds, the random species, the AI images, the old page age, the pattern becomes unmistakable.

Breaking Down the Conversation With the Scammer

Before we get into the messages themselves, I want to remind everyone that I went into this conversation already knowing this page was a scammer. I did this intentionally, and I did it for all of you reading this. My goal is to show you exactly how a scam conversation unfolds, what tactics they use, and how your own knowledge can be used to expose them quickly and safely.

Knowledge is power. The more you understand about goats, their care, their registries, and how real breeders operate, the harder it becomes for scammers to fool you. Please educate yourselves before shopping for goats online. It protects your future animals, and it protects you from ever becoming a victim.

Below, I will walk you through the first part of our conversation step by step. Each section highlights what you are seeing in the screenshots and why it matters.

The Initial Contact: A Simple “I’m Interested”

I start the conversation as my alter ego buyer, sending the most basic message possible. 

“Hi I’m interested in baby goats.”

This is exactly what scammers expect. A simple opener they can latch onto.

Their reply comes hours later and is extremely vague. 

“Where are you located.”

A real breeder usually introduces themselves, their farm name, and asks a few questions to understand what you are looking for. Scammers skip all of that because they do not care who you are. They care about whether you are close enough to believe a fake pickup location or far enough to push shipping.

The Location Trap

I tell them I am in New York and ask where their farm is. Their answer is one word. 

“PA.”

Real breeders never answer like this. They give a town, a region, or at least a county. Scammers keep it vague so they can adjust their story later.

Asking Their Name and Getting the Bare Minimum

I introduce myself as “Karen” and ask who I am speaking with. Their answer. 

“I am James.”

Scammers almost always use extremely common first names. They avoid last names, farm names, or anything traceable. A real breeder would say something like. 

“Hi, I’m Sarah from Maple Ridge Farm.”

The First Price Drop and the First Lie

Without asking a single question about my experience, setup, or goals, they immediately jump to pricing.

“We have both male and females available and we are asking 200 each and 320 for two.”

Anyone familiar with goats in my area would instantly know something is wrong.

In my region, registered goats at those prices are completely unheard of. Even the most basic, unimpressive, entry level registered Nigerian Dwarf kids do not start at 200 dollars. They do not start at 300 dollars either.

Here is the reality for my area.

- Baseline registered kids start around 400 dollars 

- Most registered doelings fall between 450 and 800 dollars 

- Quality doelings from good lines often run 800 to 2000 dollars 

- Registered bucks are almost never below 250 dollars 

- Most registered bucks, even from modest lines, start around 300 dollars 

These scammers are offering “registered” goats for less than half of the lowest realistic price. That alone is a major red flag.

But here is something important for new buyers to understand. Real breeders will sometimes give a price early in the conversation. This is not because they do not care where their kids go. It is because breeders get flooded with messages from people looking for bargain goats who disappear the moment they hear a realistic price. Breeders do not want to spend hours answering questions only to be ghosted when the buyer realizes quality goats are not cheap.

So yes, a real breeder may give you a price early. 

But a real breeder will also ask questions. 

They will want to know what you are looking for. 

They will want to know your goals. 

They will want to know your setup. 

They will want to know your experience level. 

They will want to know whether their goats are a good fit for you.

A real breeder cares where their kids go or at the very least wants to understand what the buyer is looking for. Many breeders, especially those breeding for show or dairy, appreciate updates on udder development, show results, and how their bloodlines mature. They want to know their animals are safe, healthy, and properly cared for.

Scammers do not ask any of these things. 

They do not care about your goals. 

They do not care about your setup. 

They do not care about your experience. 

They do not care about the animals. 

They care only about getting money.

And sometimes, scammers will fake caring. I have had scammers in the past say things like, “Please just tell me you will be a loving home for these babies, I love them so much.” This is not real concern. It is a tactic. It is emotional manipulation designed to make you trust them quickly.

Real concern comes with real questions. 

Fake concern comes with emotional lines meant to push you into paying quickly.

The Photos They Send Do Not Match Their Page

They send a batch of baby goat photos that do not match the goats shown on their page. Different backgrounds. Different bedding. Different lighting. Different animals entirely.

This is one of the biggest giveaways. Scammers pull random photos from anywhere they can find them. Nothing matches because none of it is theirs.

The Fake Registry Test: DGA

This is where I intentionally tested them.

I asked which registry they use and mentioned something called DGA, the Dairy Goats Association.

This registry does not exist. I made it up on purpose.

A real breeder would have responded with something like.

- “Do you mean ADGA” 

- “There is no DGA” 

- “Pygmy goats are not registered through dairy registries” 

- “We use NPGA for pygmies”

Instead, they immediately replied.

“Yes it is DGA.”

They will agree to anything that sounds official if they think it will get them closer to a sale. They do not care about accuracy, breed standards, or registries. They care about money.

A real breeder would never risk their reputation by pretending to use a fake registry.

The Polled and Eye Color Test

Next, I asked about polled genetics and eye color. These are two topics that instantly reveal whether someone actually knows goats. They are also extremely easy for scammers to fail, because they do not know the animals in the photos and they do not understand basic goat traits.

I asked.

- Do any of them have green eyes 

- Do any have blue eyes 

- Which one is polled

Their answers.

- “No they do not” 

- “One is polled” 

- “The black girl” 

- “None have blue eyes”

At first glance, it might look like they passed the green eyes question. They did not. Any real breeder would have immediately corrected me. Green eyes do not exist in goats.

Instead, they simply said “No they do not” and moved on.

Then came the blue eyes question. They confidently told me none had blue eyes. But in the very photos they themselves sent me, one of the gold kids clearly had blue eyes.

This entire exchange showed two things.

1. They do not know basic goat traits. 

2. They do not know the goats in the photos well enough to answer correctly.

The Photo Confirmation Trap and the Price Test

After their answers about eye color and polled status, I set up a second, very specific test. I sent them four of the baby goat photos they had previously shared with me.

- The gold kid with obvious blue eyes 

- The clearly disbudded black pygmy doe 

- A random white kid 

- A random brown kid 

I wanted to force them to identify the “polled black doe” they claimed existed.

I asked.

“Is this the black girl you meant that’s polled”

They replied.

“yes”

That one word told me everything.

They were forced to call a disbudded pygmy “polled.” 

They still did not notice the blue eyed gold kid. 

They did not ask which black goat I meant, even though they had sent multiple. 

They did not clarify breed, horn status, or anything else. 

They simply agreed.

And then came the price test.

Their original prices were.

- 200 for one 

- 320 for two 

I intentionally repeated it back incorrectly as.

- 350 for girls 

- 250 for boys 

A real breeder would have corrected me immediately. 

They did not. 

They agreed to the higher numbers without blinking.

They were not tracking prices. 

They were not tracking goats. 

They were not tracking traits. 

They were not tracking anything.

They were agreeing to whatever they thought would get me to send money.

The Parent Information and Udder Photo Test

After confirming which black doe they were pretending was polled, I asked the next set of questions that every real breeder expects.

“What are the parent goats’ registered names 

Do you happen to have any udder photos of the moms”

A real breeder would have responded with.

- Registered names 

- Sire and dam lineage 

- Photos of udders 

- Photos of the parents 

- Or at least an explanation if they did not have udder photos yet

Instead, they ignored the entire message.

Scammers cannot provide parent information because they do not know the goats in the photos. They cannot provide udder photos because they do not have access to the animals. They cannot provide lineage because they do not know it.

Silence is their only option.

The Farm Visit Test and the Shift Change

I told them.

“I’d really love to come see the parents, babies, and the living setup before pickup. 

When would be a good time for a farm visit”

A real breeder would respond with.

- A day 

- A time 

- A location 

- Or at least a conversation about scheduling

Instead, they ignored the question completely.

I asked again. 

And again.

They continued to avoid answering because scammers cannot allow farm visits. 

There is no farm. 

There are no goats. 

There is no setup. 

There are no parents. 

There is no location.

Hours later, a different person took over the account. This is extremely common with scam pages. Multiple people run the same fake farm.

Their new message.

“Yes you can get them to come along and we would also need a refundable down deposit of them so they can be registered as yours then get them ready for pickup”

They still did not provide an address. 

They still did not schedule a farm visit. 

They suddenly demanded a deposit. 

They used the word “refundable” to make it sound safe. 

They claimed the deposit was needed “so they can be registered as yours,” which is not how registration works at all.

When they cannot answer your questions, they pivot to money.

The Script Reset, the Fake “James,” and the Deposit Push

The next morning, I picked up the conversation exactly where I left off. I already knew a shift change had happened the night before, and I wanted to see whether the new person running the page had access to any real information or if they were simply following a script.

So I tested them.

At 6:56 AM, I wrote.

“Oh my goodness, I just realized I never even asked your name! I’m so sorry about that. And what’s the address for pickup next week”

I had already asked their name earlier in the conversation. 

They had already told me “James.”

If this were a real breeder, they would have said.

“You already asked yesterday.”

Instead, at 8:14 AM, they replied.

“My name is James would you be able to place a deposit”

This confirmed two things.

“James” is not a real person. 

He is a scripted identity used by multiple admins.

And the new admin jumped straight back into money talk. No greeting. No address. No farm visit. Just.

“Would you be able to place a deposit”

This is the moment the scammer shifts into their final phase. This admin’s job is not to answer questions. Their job is to close the sale and get paid.

At 8:39 AM, I agreed to the deposit but immediately added another test.

“Did they already get CDT and CDR and rubella”

This was intentional.

- CDT is a real goat vaccine some herds use and some do not. 

- CDR is something I completely made up. 

- Rubella is a human only vaccine and not something goats are vaccinated for.

Their responses at 8:46 AM.

“They already got CDT” 

“They’re already vaccinated”

They grabbed the one real vaccine name and then covered the rest with a vague “already vaccinated.”

A real breeder might say.

- “We do or do not give CDT, here is our schedule.” 

- “I have never heard of CDR, what is that supposed to be” 

- “Rubella is a human vaccine, goats do not get that.”

Instead, they did not question anything. They did not correct anything. They did not even react to the obviously wrong parts.

This is why knowledge matters. You do not have to be a vet to spot a scammer. Sometimes all it takes is one made up vaccine and one human only vaccine to see who is actually paying attention.

At 9:25 AM, I tested them again with a very specific goal in mind.

I already knew a new admin had taken over. I could tell by the writing style, the pacing, and the sudden shift in tone. So I wanted to see whether this new person had even bothered to scroll up and read the earlier messages.

I wrote.

“I’d be getting the spotted buckling and the four does, right? The two blue eyed polled girls and the two brown eyed horned girls”

This was intentional, because.

- They had already told me none of the goats had blue eyes. 

- They had already claimed only one goat was polled. 

- One of the black does was a disbudded pygmy, not a polled Nigerian Dwarf. 

- None of the combinations I listed actually existed. 

This was a trap designed to expose whether the new admin knew the goats, knew the traits, knew the earlier answers, or had even read the conversation at all.

Their reply at 9:39 AM.

“Yes those are what you will be reserving and getting”

This confirmed everything.

The new admin never scrolled up. They had no idea what the previous person said. They were not checking details. They were not verifying traits. They were not looking at photos.

They were willing to confirm traits they had already denied. They had previously said none had blue eyes. Now suddenly there were “two blue eyed polled girls.”

They were not identifying goats. They were agreeing to whatever I said. This is not how a breeder talks. This is how a scammer talks when they are trying to keep a sale alive.

This was the moment the script became obvious. Each admin only knows the script in front of them. None of them know the goats. None of them know the traits. None of them know the earlier answers. They just say “yes” to anything that sounds like money.

This test proved that the person messaging me was not a breeder, not a farm owner, and not even the same person from the night before. They were simply the next scammer on shift, reading from the same script.

At 9:46 AM, I tested them again, but this time, I used an extreme test on purpose. I wanted to see whether they would blindly agree to something that would actually kill a goat.

I wrote.

“I saw a few people say goats need a copper bolus every week and selenium paste every day. Is that what you do with yours”

This was not just wrong. This was dangerously wrong.

- Copper bolus is given every 6 months, not weekly. 

- Selenium paste is given monthly or seasonally, not daily. 

- Giving either of these at the frequency I described would severely overdose a goat and could kill them quickly.

Any real breeder, even a brand new one, would have stopped dead in their tracks and said something like.

- “No, absolutely not.” 

- “That would overdose them.” 

- “Where did you hear that” 

- “Let me explain the correct schedule.”

Most breeders genuinely care about the animals they produce. They want new owners to succeed. They want their kids to live long, healthy lives. They would never let a new owner walk into a deadly mistake.

But the scammer?

Their answer at 9:50 AM.

“yes I do”

This one sentence proves everything.

They know absolutely nothing about goat care. Not even the basics. Not even the life or death stuff.

They will agree to anything if they think it keeps the sale alive. Even if it would kill the animals they claim to be selling.

They are not reading, thinking, or evaluating. They are just saying “yes” to whatever they think you want to hear.

This is the clearest sign of all that the goats are not real. Because no one who has ever owned a goat, even once, would agree to this.

This was the moment the scammer proved beyond any doubt that they are not breeders, they have never owned goats, they have no idea what proper care looks like, and they are willing to endanger animals if it means getting a deposit.

And this is exactly why knowledge matters. You do not have to be an expert to expose a scammer. Sometimes all it takes is one question that any real breeder would immediately correct.

At 9:56 AM, I changed the prices again.

“So just to make sure I have the total right… it would be 400 each for the four does and 300 for the buckling, so 1900 total, right”

This was the third time I changed the prices.

Their original prices were.

- 200 for one 

- 320 for two 

I had already changed them once. Now I changed them again.

Their reply at 10:05 AM.

“Yes you’re right”

This proves they are not tracking goats, they are not tracking prices, they are not tracking anything. They will agree to any number if it means money is coming.

Then they added.

“The deposit is 500 dollars and we can get the remaining 1400 dollars cash”

This is the first time they invented a structured payment plan. It is also the first time they used round numbers, which scammers love because they are easy to remember.

At 10:10 AM, I asked.

“How do you usually take the 500 dollar deposit”

Their answer at 10:11 AM.

“Chime”

Then.

“Download and create a chime account”

This is not normal. Most breeders use.

- PayPal 

- Venmo 

- Zelle 

- Cash 

- Check 

- Or cash on pickup or if they live close enough before pickup

Chime is a red flag because scammers use it to receive instant, irreversible transfers.

Then came the biggest red flag of all.

When I asked about a contract, they said.

“I will issue an invoice after the deposit” 

“You’re safe and covered”

Safe how. Covered by what. Their word.

Then, when I paused for one minute, they sent.

“?”

This is the classic scammer panic. They think the sale is slipping away.

So I pushed harder.

At 10:20 AM, I wrote.

“I can bring the 500 dollars cash in hand today. I’m only an hour away. What’s the address”

Their reply at 10:21 AM.

“We only accept deposits through chime or cards”

Then.

“Can you grab a gift card at any Walmart or CVS”

This is the final, undeniable proof.

No real breeder on earth asks for.

- Chime 

- Gift cards 

- Prepaid cards 

- Store cards 

This is the scammer’s last resort.

I pushed again.

“I’m already in the car with the cash. What’s the address”

They refused.

Then I added pressure by mentioning another adult.

“My daughter said not to buy gift cards”

This is when scammers panic because another adult means another brain, another opinion, another person who might say “this is a scam.”

Their reply.

“Sorry then if you can’t buy the card then we can’t work”

I pushed one last time with a bigger bait.

“Well since they’ll be ready in just a week, I might as well just grab the full 1900 dollars while I’m out and pay everything off today so I don’t have to go back to the bank next week. I’m already on the road. What’s the address”

They disappeared for over an hour.

At 11:48 AM, they returned with.

“If you want to come you have to buy the card”

And that was the end. They logged off for the night. They quit trying.

Because the goats were never real. The farm was never real. The address was never real. The admins were never real. “James” was never real. The entire page was a rotating team of scammers reading from a script.

In Closing: What To Do When You Encounter a Scammer

Now that you’ve seen exactly how this unfolded, the question becomes what to do when you come across a scammer like this.

Reporting to Facebook is like shouting “Mom, make him stop hitting me.” It does nothing. Facebook does not verify livestock. Facebook does not check photos. Facebook does not confirm registries. Facebook does not investigate scams unless they violate ad policies. And posting warnings in groups only sends the scammer into hiding so they can pop back up under one of their many backup profiles.

So what actually works?

Start by reporting them to the correct agencies. These are the channels that trigger real investigations.

- FTC Federal Trade Commission for online fraud 

- IC3 Internet Crime Complaint Center for internet based scams 

- Your state’s Attorney General for consumer fraud 

- Your local sheriff’s office especially if money was exchanged 

- USPS Inspector General if they ever mention shipping goats 

- Your state’s Department of Agriculture for livestock related fraud 

These agencies have investigators, subpoena power, jurisdiction, and the ability to shut down accounts and prosecute. Facebook does not.

Breeders, we also need to stop supplying scammers. And I include myself in this because I have been guilty of it too. We make it incredibly easy for them by not watermarking, by participating in follow for follow pages, by falling for the innocent looking “share your cutest goat picture” posts, by asking for help identifying newborn colors and posting dams and sires in the same thread, none of which are watermarked. They are in all the same groups we are in. They know how to take from us. And it is not just from private chats and posts.

Breeders also need to start looking at the profiles of the people messaging them. See if their page looks real or fake. See if the information they are giving you matches their profile. We have to stop assuming everyone is who they say they are.

This entire experience made me really question something.

Is the market actually flooded these last few years with too many goats, or is it really just that six out of ten sellers are scams?

In conclusion, I really hope someone learns something from this. I hope people, especially new buyers, take the time to really learn about goats and traits and care so they can ask their own variety of questions that will snag a scam before ever dropping a dime.

Knowledge is power. And in the goat world, knowledge is protection.