'Copycat' eBay auctions use photo of local dog

When Cape Girardeau artist Rochelle Steffen first posted a series of Michael Vick trading cards that her dogs had chewed, she received some hate mail from angry Vick fans threatening her dog, Monte.

Now, 13 days after Steffen listed the cards on eBay, as a response to Vick's arrest in connection with bankrolling dogfights, she discovered people are stealing Monte's likeness from her eBay profile and posting similar auctions without her permission, Steffen said.

Steffen alerted eBay to these "copycat" auctions when she realized they'd just cut and pasted her picture, title and caption.

While Steffen intends the proceeds from her auction to benefit the buyer's choice or Safe Harbor and the Humane Society in Cape Girardeau, none of the "copycat" auctions mentioned charitable donations.

"This is all for the dogs, so I want them to get everything," Steffen said.

EBay removed the cards for violations of the rules governing charity auctions Aug. 24. The bidding had reached $1,500.

Steffen amended her approach by not declaring where the money would go but simply saying she promised to "do good things" with it, and relisted the cards the same day.

As of 10 p.m. Tuesday, bidding had reached $7,400.

The bidding ends today, and Steffen said she's excited about the last few minutes, as the bidding usually starts to get more heated.

Her decision to give all of her Vick trading cards to Monte and Roxie, her Great Dane puppy, to gnaw on then and sell the remains on eBay was something she hopes has inspired people to donate to local charities, she said.

The auction earned Steffen several interviews with radio stations, including one with a station in Montreal. She also talked to TMLX in St. Louis.

Tuesday morning, she did a phone interview with Fox News.

"Everyone keeps telling me to wait for that call from Ellen [DeGeneres], and if that happens I'll probably pass out," Steffen said.

As for Monte, the 6-year-old Weimaraner has thus far declined interviews, but may be getting his own clothing line.

Steffen has received more than a hundred requests for T-shirts featuring Monte holding the cards in his mouth, she said.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

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