Yorkie, English Bulldog puppy scams continue

How many red flags do you spot in this email? I received it a short time ago.

Hello, My name is Charles Hoyt,co-manager of the _______ We currently have adorable Teacup Yorke,English Bulldog puppies, birds and kitten in our shelter looking to be adopted into a forever loving homes.Our mission is to provide temporary care and shelter for stray,abandoned and relinquished animals,and to place as many as possible into responsible and caring homes. The _______ also works to create awareness and support for the humane treatment of all animals and to end animal over-population through education and the promotion of spaying and neutering.Send me an e-mail:charleshoyte12@)xxxxxxx, if you are interested so i can send you their pictures and informations.

During the years that I taught college English I taught foreign students from many different countries. One year I was assigned to conduct a one-week workshop with a group of men from a country which will remain nameless to avoid an international incident.

Early in the workshop, they decided that since I was not only a mere woman, but a small, blonde, and young mere woman at that, I obviously did not have enough brains to teach the superior minds of the men from this unnamed country. Very patiently so my tiny female brain could follow, they would explain the logic behind some of their non-English constructions which they insisted were correct.

For a while in frustration I tried to reason with them, but my department chairman assured me that it was not worth my effort to argue with them. One of their big problems was with plurals. Their language, like many others, does not have a plural.

If you think about it, a plural form is not necessary. You can have a dog, two dog, many dog, a hundred dog, several dog, etc. Adding the –s is not necessary to indicate two or more. Even though the plural form is not necessary, using a plural is internalized in English speaking people. We don’t even think about it when we talk or write.

But those whose language is without a plural have problems mastering the concept. Even foreigners fluent in English have problems with plurals. Often they rely on logic and the English language is often illogical. For example, we say we comb our hair even though logically we are combing our hairs.

When I get an email like the above, I think about that long ago class. I wonder if they got jobs teaching young minds how to use English plurals incorrectly.

In the email above there are four incorrect uses of plurals, indicating that Charles Hoyt may not be what he seems. It is the last word, informations, that is the reddest flag. I have never met a native English speaker, no matter how illiterate, who would make information plural even though it may seem “logical.” If we can send pictures, why can’t we send informations?

The scam involving English Bulldogs and Teacup Yorkies continues.

Comments

[jackiesue]

some people really piss me off

[Saint Lover]

These emails have become a huge problem in the UK. There's a large group of people that are targeting dog owners/rescuers to donate large sums of money for dogs that don't exist.

[Gerald]

Haha I can imagine those men trying to teach you the correct forms of English. That you allowed them to live is the bigger mystery.

[Denny]

This is the very good and interesting posts. We need to see more of thems. Peoples making the scams very bad. They should had good teacher likes you.

[Matt]

Thats a lousy writer for an English teacher. Usually the more someone writes, the more they are lying.

[Sling]

It amazes me that scams like this still hook the suckers in.

[schnoodlepooh]

the email is obviously not a native english speaker. i don't know about the scams though??

[jan]

When I wrote for further informations, he sent pictures of Bulldogs and Yorkies, at VERY reasonable prices, but I needed to write for more informations.

[Laura]

Well, English is definitely not his first language. That one is obvious. I agree that this may be a scam, though. You've already written once for more informations. Why have you write again for more informations unless he's trying to reel you in and then do the old baits and switchs.

[Lindsay]

Yeah, seriously, who is falling for these emails? And when would Yorkie pups and English bulldog pups ever end up in a shelter for more than a few days?

[Coll]

Delete, delete, delete. I am so tired of all these scams and spams.

[cubecube]

You GO girl! I love it.

[K9 Amiga]

jan you grammar gum shoe!

[Chandira]

That's one of the most annoying things about junk emails, their appalling grammar and spelling.. I get a ton of them that say 'Congratulation'. I always want to reply and say, "There's an S on the end of that!!"
Junk emails bring out my own inner English teacher. ;-)

[Tony]

I have to say that in comparison to some of the tortured spelling, grammar and syntax that I get in my email at work on a daily basis, this is a masterpiece of clarity.

I've never received any about puppies. Usually it is someone who is willing to share millions of dollars with me if I help them reclaim their rightful inheritance, help them disburse their vast fortune to worthy causes, continue their education (which was interrupted by cruel fate when both parents were murdered by cossacks or met some equally melodramatic and improbable end).

I usually read the "better" ones to my office mates. I know a lot of people find them very upsetting, but I just try and get a little entertainment value out of it.

[Maayan Gordon]

I have loved dogs my entire life. I now own a black labrador/aussie mix and i am training a guide dog puppy who is a lab. I have worked in two vet clinics and i loved beeing able to help animals in need. I have also previously raised and trained a guide dog named Garth who I now miss very much. Because of my love of dogs I decided to start a store for dogs so I can continue to help them.