Complaint / Review
The Shire Farms, Mike And Kathryn SmithThe Shire Farms, Mike And Kathryn Smith, Ellen Or George Smit
The Shire Farms, Mike And Kathryn Smith, Ellen Or George Smith, Blue Ridge Outfitters, Shire Farms, The Shire Farms, Trail Masters Ripoff, scam artists, auction horses, liars, fraud Vale

I bought a "quarter horse" from Ellen and George Smith aka Mike and Kathryn Smith in October to pony my 12 yr old daughter and her new horse. I purchased this horse to tow my 6 yr old daughter on as well.

Ellen Smith told me I could ride this horse anywhere because she was as dead broke as they get. Ellen had owned this horse for 4 1/2 years. She told me that my mother in law could ride this horse. That I could put her on the yellow line in the highway with traffic on both sides and this horses would not blink.

Mrs. Smith was meeting with the unemployment agency (she and her husband had been laid off from a furniture company in Hickory, which later was discovered to be a lie) and couldn't meet with me the morning I picked the horse up. She told me she had a coggins for me but when I picked the horse up Walt Smith told me the horse didn't have a coggins. I never did receive the coggins.

Three days after I bought the mare I rode her and she was NOTHING like what I was supposed to have bought. She was a HOT horse, she was nothing that she was supposed to be. I'm thankful my daughter wasn't on with me.

I knew that I had been taken and I tried to contact them immediately to let them know I could not have this horse around my children. They didn't return my phone calls until I left a message that I had reported them to the FBI, IFCC, State Attorney Generals office, Charlotte Better Business Bureau, and The NC State Veternary Division. They would NOT give me my money back.

Finally when I found out who I was dealing with I reported my dealings on several websites ie. Dreamhorse.com and nchorsenews.com. Both websites had great responses with several others coming forward that had been scammed by these people as well. I have met probably 20 people who have been scammed and I cannot get any agency to pursue these people.

Meanwhile they have filed bankruptcy to avoid this lawsuit against them and continue to sell horses. They are making a small fortune selling horses to people out of state and to people who are just starting out riding. The latest was to a woman who had an 8 yr old handicapped son, the horse was sold to her as child safe and a therapy horse. It was not child safe.

The Smiths have been sued for this very same thing before and the person suing got her money back. Another woman and myself are determined to see this through and stop these people from their corrupt dealings. Since this lawsuit we have received death threats and harassments through the mail and through the internet. They have used the our email addresses to sign us up to less than desirable websites. Just shows how low they will go.

*Update: Both of the Smiths have since filed bankruptcies to avoid lawsuits pending against them for selling insane horses as kid safe bomb proof horses. Both lawsuits were dismissed!

*Be careful! These pests will seek revenge and become a major nuisance ie. Mail tons of unwanted catalogs to you signed by them! (and yes I have proof through fingerprints from the cards sent to the catalog companies and a postmaster willing to testify against them) and sign your email address up to less than desirable websites.