Diabetic Dog for Baby Abey

As many of you know, my nephew, Abram Mieling was recently diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, an autoimmune disease that causes his immune system to attack cells that produce insulin. His body can no longer produce insulin on its own which means that without proper monitoring and treatment he can go into hypoglycemia that can cause seizures and unconsciousness and hyperglycemia that causes brain swelling that can lead to coma and death. While diabetes is a diagnosis that wouldn’t be easy for anyone, it is especially dangerous to Abram as he is only one year old and cannot verbalize when he feels his glucose levels going too high or too low. While Matt and Jess are closely monitoring his glucose levels during the day and throughout the night, their biggest fear is Abram’s levels dropping too fast in the night while sleeping and when he is in the care of others as diabetic children under three have the highest incidence of severe hypoglycemia. Constant care, a lack of sleep, and fear from highs and lows are all realities they are facing daily. To ensure Abram has additional support and care and to relieve some of their fears, Matt and Jess have applied to several agencies in hopes of acquiring a Diabetic Alert Dog. These service dogs are able to detect high and low glucose levels 20-45 minutes prior to them becoming dangerous, retrieve support from a caregiver when Abram needs it, and retrieve medication in case of emergency.  A diabetic service dog will not only provide a sense of security for Matt and Jess since Abram can’t communicate for himself, but it will also provide Abram with more freedom to participate in the same activities as his peers as he grows older.Diabetic Alert Dogs are $20,000 and are not covered by insurance. The high cost is due to the intense training the dog goes through – it will be trained to Abram’s specific blood scents. I am setting a fundraising goal of $25,000 to cover the cost of a service dog as well as the dog’s health and life insurances. Any additional funds will go towards Abram’s prescription costs.

Thank you for all your love and support during this difficult time!