The OEB is a high-priced bulldog breed with growing demand. That's exactly the market scammers target. Most attempts are unsophisticated, but they keep working because most buyers don't know what to look for. Here are the five scams we see in the OEB market and how to spot each one.
The single best defense. Only buy from breeders you can verify on a registry's official website. Pay with a method that gives you recourse (credit card, PayPal Goods & Services). Never wire money. Never send gift cards.
1. The deposit scam
How it works: A "breeder" advertises puppies on a slick-looking website or Facebook page. They send photos, answer questions, and ask for a non-refundable deposit to "hold" a puppy. After payment, communication slows, then stops. The puppy never existed.
How to spot it:
- The website was registered recently (check at whois lookup tools).
- Photos are reverse-image-searchable on other sites.
- The breeder is unwilling to do a video call or live walk-through.
- Payment is requested via wire, Zelle, Cash App, gift cards, or "Friends & Family" PayPal.
- The kennel doesn't appear in any registry's directory.
2. The pet flipper
How it works: Someone buys a real puppy from a real breeder, then resells it within weeks at a markup, usually with a fabricated backstory ("we got her but our landlord said no"). Sometimes the dog is sold three or four times in a chain, each seller marking up.
How to spot it:
- "Urgent rehoming" listings for purebred OEB puppies under 4 months old.
- Seller doesn't have the original registration paperwork or won't give it.
- Vague answers about parents.
- Below-market price with sob-story explanation.
A real OEB breeder isn't selling 10-week-old puppies on Facebook Marketplace. If the seller claims to be "rehoming" rather than "selling," they should still be able to point you back to the original breeder.
3. The mislabeled mutt
How it works: A breeder advertises "OEB" or "OEB-type" puppies that are actually crosses between an English Bulldog and an American Bulldog, or some other bulldog cross. The buyer pays full purebred price for a mixed-breed dog that can never be registered.
How to spot it:
- Words like "OEB-type," "Olde-style Bulldog," or "Old English Bulldog" without registration papers.
- The breeder won't or can't give registration numbers for the parents.
- The "registry" cited is one nobody else has heard of, or doesn't have a public website.
- Photos of parents look noticeably more like English Bulldogs (very short muzzle) or American Bulldogs (taller, leaner) than OEBs.
4. Fake health certificates and forged records
How it works: The breeder shows you a vet exam record or hip screening result that looks legitimate but is fabricated, photocopied from another dog, or from a parent that isn't actually this puppy's parent.
How to spot it:
- Records have no clinic letterhead, no signature, or look hand-edited.
- OFA records that don't appear in OFA's public database (offa.org) when you search the registration number.
- Vet won't confirm the records when you call directly.
Always call the vet directly to verify any health record before you finalize a sale. Real breeders welcome this.
5. Disguised puppy mills
How it works: Commercial breeding operation that produces 20+ litters a year across multiple breeds. They register dogs through a registry that doesn't enforce welfare standards, build a clean website, and sell direct to consumers using artisanal language ("family-raised," "loved like our own").
How to spot it:
- The same breeder lists puppies of multiple bulldog breeds (OEB, English, American, French) at the same time.
- Always has puppies available - no waitlists, no waiting periods.
- Refuses on-site visits ("for biosecurity reasons").
- Many simultaneous active litters in the same week.
- USDA license search returns multiple complaints (search "USDA APHIS" + breeder's location).
Real breeders typically produce 1–4 litters per year, focus on one breed or sometimes two, have wait lists, and welcome on-site visits.
If you got scammed
- Dispute the charge with your credit card or PayPal immediately.
- Report the listing to whatever platform hosted it.
- Report the kennel to OBBA and any other registry it claims to be with.
- File a complaint with the IC3 (FBI internet crime), your state attorney general, or your local police.
- Post a warning publicly so other buyers find it before they search.