A Diabetic Alert Dog (DAD) for Maddy
Donation protected
As some of you know by now my daughter Maddy was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes on March 5th, 2019. After some testing Maddys A1C (which measures an average glucose for a 3 month period) was 814 (normal is between 80-120). What that means is that her blood glucose had been on average in the 300’s and her pancreas stopped making insulin sometime between the end of December 2018 and March and she is now insulin dependent. Maddy lost 10lbs in a matter of 2 days and presented with symptoms similar to the flu. After going to the emergency room, we were transported by pediatric transport to the children’s hospital about 30 minutes away from home and were admitted there for 2 days.
At the time we knew very little about T1D but the staff was amazing and taught us everything we needed to know until our follow up appointment with the pediatric endocrinologist. We have had up’s and down’s but for the most part are managing fairly well. Insurance approved Maddy for a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) early on in this endeavor (Thank God!); a CGM is a device that adheres to a person’s body with a little sensor wire embedded under the skin to read glucose levels in real time. With that being said, it is an electronic device that can unfortunately fail at any time. We are lucky to have it but have had issues with sensors that cause us to revert back to finger pokes around the clock.
Today (July 17, 2019) Maddy had her first low (61) and did not feel it coming on. She did not even feel it until after we had already began correcting it. Up until this point she has been very good at feeling her lows before her CGM alerts her but typically never feels her highs. They say over time the ability to feel those lows disappears which can be extremely dangerous but I did not anticipate it this soon in our journey.
I have been doing research on DAD’s (Diabetic Alert Dogs) since the night Maddy was admitted to the Bronson Children’s Hospital. These dogs go through extensive training to be able to alert if Maddy’s sugar were to be out of range. A lot of times the dogs will alert quicker than a CGM so it makes it easier to stay ahead of the highs and lows. The dog can alert in the middle of the night if her numbers are out of range, which can be a huge burden that would be relieved for me as her parent. The reality is, nighttime can be very scary and there have been children that have passed away, even while wearing a CGM, because of a critical low. It would be life saving to add a pup to our toolbox and be along side Maddy in this journey as she approaches her teenage and college years.
A DAD can cost anywhere from 8k-20k. The funds that we raise will pay for purchasing the dog, as well as all of the training that the dog will need to become a trained and licensed service animal. Any amount of money helps and gets us one step closer.
I humbly ask that you please take a stand with me in supporting Maddy in this dreaded disease that she didn’t ask for. Thank you for your support and please give this a share.
At the time we knew very little about T1D but the staff was amazing and taught us everything we needed to know until our follow up appointment with the pediatric endocrinologist. We have had up’s and down’s but for the most part are managing fairly well. Insurance approved Maddy for a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) early on in this endeavor (Thank God!); a CGM is a device that adheres to a person’s body with a little sensor wire embedded under the skin to read glucose levels in real time. With that being said, it is an electronic device that can unfortunately fail at any time. We are lucky to have it but have had issues with sensors that cause us to revert back to finger pokes around the clock.
Today (July 17, 2019) Maddy had her first low (61) and did not feel it coming on. She did not even feel it until after we had already began correcting it. Up until this point she has been very good at feeling her lows before her CGM alerts her but typically never feels her highs. They say over time the ability to feel those lows disappears which can be extremely dangerous but I did not anticipate it this soon in our journey.
I have been doing research on DAD’s (Diabetic Alert Dogs) since the night Maddy was admitted to the Bronson Children’s Hospital. These dogs go through extensive training to be able to alert if Maddy’s sugar were to be out of range. A lot of times the dogs will alert quicker than a CGM so it makes it easier to stay ahead of the highs and lows. The dog can alert in the middle of the night if her numbers are out of range, which can be a huge burden that would be relieved for me as her parent. The reality is, nighttime can be very scary and there have been children that have passed away, even while wearing a CGM, because of a critical low. It would be life saving to add a pup to our toolbox and be along side Maddy in this journey as she approaches her teenage and college years.
A DAD can cost anywhere from 8k-20k. The funds that we raise will pay for purchasing the dog, as well as all of the training that the dog will need to become a trained and licensed service animal. Any amount of money helps and gets us one step closer.
I humbly ask that you please take a stand with me in supporting Maddy in this dreaded disease that she didn’t ask for. Thank you for your support and please give this a share.
Organizer
Shara Williams
Organizer
Battle Creek, MI
