Diagnosis From A Dog

If you've ever met someone with an invisible disability one of the first questions you might ask them is "How did you get it?" and then you would want to know "How did you know you had it?"

Today's story is going to focus on Diabetes, which like many invisible disabilities does not have a true cause. Though the stories of discovering how someone had it are as different as fingerprints. From severe illness to early testing, diagnosis is not something anyone wants to have happen to someone they know. Early diagnosis though can prevent the diabetic from going into Diabetic Ketoacidosis and can potentially save their life.

The chocolate alarm has proven herself to be quite the little life saver.
I have a friend who comes over frequently and Hope has alerted to her on multiple times.
We have checked her blood sugar and she has been high & low on several occasions.
I gave her a meter and asked her to do a few days of recording and advised her to see her doctor as soon as she could.
Thanks to Hope, my friend is now under close management with her Physician.
Unfortunately, she has been diagnosed with Diabetes.

Hope is a Diabetic Alert Dog from Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers.

If you or someone you know could benefit from having a Diabetic Alert Dog please Click Here.

To learn more about Service Dogs for invisible disabilities Click Here.

To learn how you can help place service dogs with families in need Click Here.

Allyson & Lennon

Mandy Henry Photography © ~ www.mandyhenry.com

Today we bring you the story of Allyson and Lennon. Lennon is a Diabetic Alert Dog from our program. Diabetic Alert Dogs have become a growing trend among families who fear what will happen when their children go to bed at night.

What happens when those kids grow up and go off to college?

Allyson is a young woman in college, and this is her story:

"I was diagnosed with Type 1 when I was 10, and have lived with this disease for 11 years. I am a junior in college, and live 2 hours away from my family.
For me going away to college was always something that I wanted to do, but was very scary for me because of my diabetes. I have very scary night time lows, that have caused more seizures than I can count...and none of which I can really remember.
From the time I was 12 years old...my parents would get up many times during the night to check my blood sugar and try to prevent the dangerous lows..but still, there were many nights that I woke up to paramedics in my bedroom and a very fuzzy memory.
When I moved away to go to school those night time checks became my biggest responsibility. Having a seizure while I am alone at school is my biggest fear, and some nights I would wake up every hour to check my own blood sugar. 

Now that I have my D.A.D. Lennon, I am no longer so afraid to go to sleep at night wondering if I will wake up in the morning. I have only had Lennon for 3 weeks, and she has already saved my life 2 times...probably more.

The other night She woke me up and I checked, and I was 94...in range with no insulin on board. I treated it as a low, with juice and a snack because it was the middle of the night. Not even 15 minutes later, Lennon woke me up again andthat could have dropped lower and caused the seizures I am so afraid of.

I am so thankful to Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers for giving me Lennon.

Now I sleep at night knowing she is watching over me.

I get to be more independent and more like a normal college student all because of my little Life saver." 

If you or someone you know could benefit from having a Diabetic Alert Dog please Click Here.

To learn more about Service Dogs for invisible disabilities Click Here.

To learn how you can help place service dogs with families in need Click Here.

Doctor Visit

Doctor visits and tests are never what anyone looks forward to. The results you get can lead to a happiness or a feeling of dread. Today we bring you a story from a woman, who has experienced one of the long lasting effects of having a Diabetic Alert Dog.

Baruch HaShem!! Praise the Name of our Lord!!
Today I went to the endocrinologist for a 2 month follow up appt.
They did an A1C blood test, which gives an index value that correlates to one's average blood sugar level over the previous 3 .months - because of Tzaylie's prompts to check & correct out of range sugar's.
My A1C has gone from 8.7 when I got her to 8.0!!!
Now, most of you know, it's got to get quite a bit better than that, but this is the lowest it has been in my life!!
It will only get better the more skills she gains- she won't be fully trained for another year or more! Way to go baby girl!!
Thank you for keeping mama safe! And most of all, all praise to Abba for sending me to Warren Retriever's for this wonderful addition not only to my family but also to my treatment team!! Baruch HaShem!!

A1c's or a Report Card for how a Diabetic's Blood Sugar is doing, go up and down depending on how the Diabetic is managing their Blood Glucose. 

If you or someone you know could benefit from having a Diabetic Alert Dog please Click Here.

To learn more about Service Dogs for invisible disabilities Click Here.

To learn how you can help place service dogs with families in need Click Here.

Always There

Living with an invisible disability is hard on not only the person who has it, but those that care for them as well.

Today we would like to start our day off with a story from a mother whose hardest part of letting go as her daughter grew up wasn't the fear that her daughter might not come home every weekend to visit but that she might not be there for her in the event of a medical emergency.

I remember back in March of last year talking... and crying to Dan on the phone.
You see the day before talking to Dan, Abby was at a friends house spending the night. I called her that morning as always and her friend answered screaming that Abby was having a seizure.
Well 911 was called and she was taken care of but I couldn't stop thinking about the what if's? She was going away to school that fall and that scared me, her father and even Abby.
She was even thinking that she didn't want to go away anymore. Well I couldn't let Abby not live her life!
I wasn't going to let this disease take anything else from her. That's when I called Dan, so glad did!
Abby is back at school with her new guardian angel, Draco. I called her this morning (yes I still do that) and she tells me that Draco woke her up with a bg of 70 and dropping fast.
Ringing her bell, and alerting.
He possibly could have saved my baby girls life this morning!
Well sorry this ran long but I just had so much on my heart this morning and I needed to share how amazing Draco is doing! Thanks Dan for all you and your wonderful staff do for us.

What is the one place you can't be with someone you care for? Would you feel safer knowing they are being watched over?

If you or someone you know could benefit from having a Diabetic Alert Dog please Click Here.

To learn more about Service Dogs for invisible disabilities Click Here.

To learn how you can help place service dogs with families in need Click Here.

Skittle Saves

What does it mean when a diabetic goes low?

Sugar breaks down into energy, so it is like a battery to keep the body running. Non-diabetics have the ability to keep their body running right without doing anything. Diabetics though need outside help. Since their blood sugar is regulated by people, instead of their bodies issues arise. One such issue is a low blood sugar.

Low blood sugar or hypoglycemia can result in seizures, coma, and death. "Lows" are something that Diabetics and their families battle daily.

Warren Retriever families do not have to battle them alone.

Today we bring you a story about Skittles and a low that he kept from becoming dangerous.

ALERT...
Nose to my leg.....
Em's bg was 70 with 2.4 units on board!!
It would have been a TERRIBLE low but because of Skittles's awesome nose, Em never has miss a beat.
Drinking some coke and watching Princess Diaries 2!!
Warren Retrievers, you ROCK!!!!

If you or someone you know could benefit from having a Diabetic Alert Dog please Click Here.

To learn more about Service Dogs for invisible disabilities Click Here.

To learn how you can help place service dogs with families in need Click Here.

Stability

Reading stories about a dog who saves a person's life is exciting, what about the stories that aren't as dramatic. The ones that show the stability our dogs have brought into the lives of others. Service Dogs from our programs help bring back a stability that people with invisible disabilities don't often experience.

Today we bring you a story that shows Tzaylie a Diabetic Alert Dog who works hard to keep her owner's blood sugar's stable each and every day.

Night time lows scare me the most because I am a hard-sleeper & it's hard for me to wake up to alarms during the night to check. Tzaylie has only been with me for three months, but several times she has really come through for me. Last week, she got me up 3 times in one night for more insulin and then warned me that next morning that my sugar was falling, even though it was in range when we checked- it wouldn't have stayed in range for. Long! Later that same day she alerted to a 94 with 1.25 units of active insulin in my system! Again, I wouldn't have stayed. At a good level!
On New Year's Evw, I met my husband in town for dinner & a movie when I got off work at 3 PM. Tzaylie went to the bathroom before we went into the restaurant, so she didn't need to before we went into the theatre. She was restless about 45 minutes into the movie, so I took her out to pee, but it took her a while. I checked my sugar when we again took our seats, and I was in range but still had a little active insulin in my system, so I turned off the basal rate on my pump for 30 minutes. A little while later, she was frantic and stretched up to lick my face. I knew my sugar should still have been good, so outside we went again. Nothing, except Tzaylie straining to go back inside. I stopped at the candy counter & picked up some Butterfinger Bites. She was calmer. As soon as we sat down again & I opened that box, she went to sleep! I rechecked when the movie was over & my sugar was perfect
I just love this dog & all the support I get from everyone at Warren Retrievers!!

If you or someone you know could benefit from having a Diabetic Alert Dog please Click Here.

To learn more about Service Dogs for invisible disabilities Click Here.

To learn how you can help place service dogs with families in need Click Here.

A New Year

Another year has come and gone, we hope each and everyone of you enjoyed ringing in the New Year. We would like to start this year off with a story from one of our Families who enjoyed the New Years Eve Festivities with the help of one of our Service Dogs.

New Years Eve was not the easiest day for me. To close out 2012 with a cold never is. Delta was wonderful though. He woke me up at almost 3 am to start the day with a low alert. Now Eric was in range but 85 overnight is not something I like to see, and Delta was insistent that Eric was going low.
I trusted Delta because he is always right. So Eric had a 22 carb treat which was a little more than we are supposed to do and I went to lay down for 15 minutes before retesting him. My cold must have gotten the better of me because around 17 minutes later Delta came and woke me up again. Very Frantic, and insisting low once more.
Eric's blood sugars were in the 70s a true low as well as showing that Delta knew Eric was dropping when he did the first alert. So I gave Eric 30 carbs this time in the form of a soda. Then I made sure there was no way for me to fall back asleep. 
15 minutes later Delta was resting, not at all interested in going to retest Eric, I knew he would be good. and sure enough with a blood sugar of 140, both Eric and myself were able to get a little more rest before having to wake up to start the day.
I wish I could say my kids were in perfect range the rest of the day, but that isn't how Type 1 works. We went to a New Years Eve Party were us adults played games and had fun. It was easy for the kids to forget to check their blood sugars with all the tasting cupcakes and snack trays laying around, but our Delta didn't forget. He came out to the adults to tell me when my kids were out of range.
Thanks to our little Warren Retriever we had great time without having to worry too much about what our kids were up to. He truly is a blessing.

Delta is a Diabetic Alert Dog from our program, if you r someone you know could benefit from one of these dogs please Click Here.

To learn about our other Invisible Disability Service Dog Click Here.

To help place a Service Dog with a family in need by making a Donation, Click Here.

Our Offices will re-open from Holiday Break January 2nd 2013.
May you all have a HAPPY NEW YEAR!