09:21 AM CDT on Thursday, June 8, 2006

Associated Press

AUSTIN — Annette Escamilla left Jesse’s Pet Shop in McAllen thinking her new golden retriever puppy would soon be bouncing around her townhome and taking walks with her for years to come.

Candy had a runny nose and was a little thin, but a shop worker

assured her the puppy just had a cold. Within just a few hours,

Candy started vomiting. By the next day Candy had bloody diarrhea.Within a week, the puppy was dead of an infection of canine parvovirus.

“It was horrible,” Escamilla said. “This is a heartbreaking experience. I had already bonded with her.”

Now shop owner Jesus Vazquez is facing a lawsuit from Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, accusing him of selling dozens of dying puppies without telling customers they were ill.

According to Abbott’s office, about 20 people complained that within days of buying puppies at Jesse’s Pet Shop, the animals became seriously ill and several died from canine parvovirus and other illness.

“Using a family’s love for a new pet as a ploy to defraud consumers is reprehensible,” Abbott said.

Vazquez did not immediately return a telephone message left at the store Wednesday. An employee said Vazquez was out of town.

According to Abbott’s office, Vazquez and his employees told customers the puppies were healthy and up to date on their vaccinations. In Escamilla’s case, she said a shop worker showed her documentation of shots.

But according to Abbott’s office, “the majority of animals cited in consumer complaints died agonizing deaths or had to be euthanized within days.”

Several people who bought the puppies ran up expensive veterinary bills trying to save them. Escamilla bought Candy for $250 and spent more than $500 more on vet bills trying to keep her alive.

The lawsuit filed Monday in Hidalgo County accuses Vazquez of deliberately misleading customers into thinking the puppies were healthy. State deceptive trade laws carry fines of $20,000 per violation.

Abbott is also seeking to force Vazquez to reimburse customers the cost of buying the dogs and any vet bills.

Canine parvovirus is a highly contagious disease that attacks the intestinal track, white blood cells, and the heart muscle.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, the disease is spread by dog-to-dog contact where animals congregate such as kennels and pet shops.

Some dogs may show mild symptoms and recover, but others may have repeated vomiting and projectile and bloody diarrhea until they die. Most deaths occur within three days of showing symptoms.  Puppies can suffer from shock-like deaths.

According to the lawsuit, when upset customers complained, Vazquez blamed them for failing to take care of the puppies and refused refunds. Several customers accepted replacement puppies who also died.

Escamilla said after Candy died, she tried to warn the shop of a possible parvovirus outbreak and to ask for her money back but was ignored. She then filed a complaint with the McAllen police.

“There were signs I should have taken more seriously,” Escamilla said. “She was not as playful as the other puppies and perhaps I was blinded the fact I immediately fell in love with here. I thought I could fix all her problems.”