Years ago our 4 year old son was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Thus our journey into the Diabetic Community began.
Initially, we were shocked and somewhat dismayed at the thoughts of a
life with diabetes management playing a central role. However while at Children's Hospital
we quickly realized the fact that our son's disease was manageable.
This was not necessarily the case for many of the boys and girls who
watched prone in their beds as he rode around the halls on the hospital
tricycle. I was struck at the understanding that soon we would be
taking our son home and many of these children would not return to their
earthly homes. This acquiescence began the process of God building
gratefulness in our hearts for our son's condition of insulin dependency
and for the tools used to enhance management. We thank Jesus for the
many tools at our disposal helping overcome the challenges this disease
presents.
The
most unique tool is a K9 monitor, Bailey. Known as a Diabetic Alert
Dog or more accurately a Diabetes Alert Dog. We are proud breeders and
trainers of these wonderful canine assets. You can see more about our Duty Dogs by going to www.dutydogs.com.
Diabetes alert dogs help diabetics by smelling their changes in blood
glucose or blood sugar. The dogs can be trained to alert on highs or
lows. Thus helping to mitigate the extreme swings that are found in
every T1D's life. Lowering the peaks and raising the valleys of these
extremes will help to lower the A1C results, thus lowering the risk of long term complications consistent with the disease.
This can be especially helpful for diabetics who suffer from hypoglycemic unawareness.
This condition causes one to not realize when their blood sugar levels
are dropping dangerously low. Type 1 Diabetics who suffer from this
condition are often found in need of support from the wonderful servants
tied to the 911 services.
We are delighted to train dogs specifically to serve people with this
condition. A diabetes alert dog can help a diabetic return precious
liberty and peace of mind back to their life. These wonderful K9
monitors often allow the trips to the ER to be dramatically reduced for
their diabetic handlers.
For more information on the offerings of DAD dogs visit our Duty Dogs website.