Can I take dog kennel to small claims court over death of our dog?

I boarded our family dog for the first time to take a trip week long trip. Two days into the trip, the kennel calls to ask what she prefers to eat because she has not been eating. Wife says she is not a picky eater but try putting broth over her food. Wife calls back next day and inquires about our dog. She is told that she is fine. Return from our trip and I pick up the dog. Boarder tells me how loveable she was, but she would not eat and even vomited. We later were told she vomited several times that week. As soon as she gets home, I place water down for her. She drinks from the dish but soon after vomits a small portion of water up. Later, we notice that she is not eating her food. Around midnight, she vomits and it contains blood and blood clots. Wife takes her to emergency animal hospital. She is told that she is severely dehydrated and they must admit her to give her fluids and blood work. We were called the following morning with blood work results and told there was trauma to her liver. Her organs appeared to be shutting down. 24hrs after picking her up from the boarding kennel, we had to put her to sleep. The wife and kids were devastated. She was just given a clean bill of health from our vet 1 week prior to being boarded. I feel the kennel was negligent. I payed them $200 for the week and the next day paid @ $756.00 in emergency vet bills. I would like some reimbursement for the bills.