*This is the story of just ONE puppy from there. Please sign this petition and help the rest* Consumer Advocate: Warwick family spends thousands on sick dog By EMILY VOLZ, NBC 10 NEWS |Friday, March 25th 2016 Kristen Gabrys says her family spent thousands of dollars on vet care for Stella. (WJAR) WARWICK, R.I. — It's hard not to fall in love with Stella. The moment Kristen Gabrys laid eyes on her at the Perfect Puppy in West Warwick, she said she had to take her home. But within a few hours of purchasing Stella, it became clear the young West Highland terrier was sick. "We only had her for less than 24 hours and then she started to cough and then we took her down to the vet and that's when they diagnosed her with kennel cough, and then her kennel cough turned to pneumonia, and then to bronchitis and she's still very sick," said Gabrys. Since purchasing Stella on Jan. 3, the Gabrys family says it has spent about $3,500 on vet bills. Gabrys researched Rhode Island's puppy lemon law and learned she was entitled to reimbursement for vet fees, up to the price she paid for Stella: $1,350. So the Gabrys family returned to the Perfect Puppy to ask for that refund. "We explained to them they sold us a sick puppy, we're spending all this money on vet visits. We told them the situation, and no one ever called us back," Gabrys said. After waiting several weeks for a response, Gabrys reached out to the NBC 10 I-Team. We went to the Perfect Puppy in West Warwick, where we were told there was no manager in the store. NBC 10 also went to the store's Scituate shop, where there was no one available to speak on camera. Soon after leaving, NBC 10 received a call from manager Carlos Munoz, who said he had no record of Gabrys asking for reimbursement, but he'd be willing to review her bills and refund her up to what she paid for Stella. Gabrys said she's thrilled to at least get some money back, but she's still concerned for other puppies sold at the store. "I don't want to see anyone else get a sick puppy from there and be in the same boat that we are in," Gabrys said. A representative from the Perfect Puppy said the store does not vaccinate for kennel cough, which isn't unusual for a pet store. But kennel cough is very contagious among young puppies. If you're buying a dog from a store filled with puppies, instead a shelter with mostly older dogs, the chances of purchasing a pet with kennel cough goes up.