Thank you! I hope you are able to live with a DAD soon as well! They are incredibly helpful for both the physical/a1c aspect, as well as the emotional aspect and being able to cope with this exhausting disease.
I trained an Aussie to help me get off the ground when I fall, pick up things from the floor, and help my balance. He has ALSO undertaken being my diabetic husband's personal trainer! His A1C has been very stable since we got the dog.
So amazing❤️🔥 my grandson was diagnosed type 1 at 5 years old💔 Today at 7 the family is over the shock and has settled into our new life❤️🔥 We NEVER thought a dog could recognize high and low sugars❤️🔥 Can you point me in the direction of starting the process to get an alert dog for my REMINGTON ❤️🔥 Thank you for the life saving work you do! SIMPLY A🙏🏼MAZING ❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥🙏🏼
Wow!!! I have type 1 diabetes and it would be great to have one of these lovely life saving dogs someday!! This video is amazing!! Thanks for sharing! Just last night after a hard day and night of working I woke up in a cold sweat which means dangerously low blood sugar and I would have loved for a wonderful fluffy life saver to tell me I was getting low before it got down to 40.
Same, honestly. My childhood beagle somehow learned to detect both blood sugar drops and sudden mood shifts before they would happen. She was never trained to do that, but she was there when I fell into a coma because of ketoacidosis and freaked out. She never left my side for very long after that. When my sugar would drop she would wedge herself in between me and the nearest arm of the couch (a space that was only a few inches wide). Normally she would plop onto the unoccupied half of the couch so she could stretch out, but she knew when I was about to have a bad time MINUTES before I noticed anything. She was my hero. I miss her dearly.
Cyber, that's very scary. By all means, get a DAD, but that may take a while. TODAY: There are apps to help you track your food and activity so you can manage your blood sugar more easily. Your doc should also make a referral to a diatitian or diabetes management coach.
I know you said you were experimenting at the time, but can you explain why you waited so long to reward when the puppy found the scent in the correct box? He gave up and went to the other boxes and then went back and then you rewarded. To reward perseverance/persistence?
In the very beginning, did you single one puppy out or did you offer the scent to all of them before putting them with their mother to nurse? If you picked one puppy, was there a reason for it? I didn't think you could temperment test at such a young age?
fealubryne No, every puppy in the litter was exposed to the scent and worked with the same amount. Then at 7 weeks old I did formal temperament testing. But by that point, because I had raised the pups myself, I was able to know which puppy would be a good fit to be a DAD.
TEMPERAMENT TESTS FOR ALL SERVICE DOGS include screening for aggression & fearfulness/timidity. Dogs with either of these issues will not pass the public access test, and being with you in public is VERY stressful for the very shy or anxious dog. For more, search You Tube under "SERVICE DOG SELECTION" and "SERVICE DOG TRAINING"
My wife is type 1, and we are getting an Australian Shepherd pup in 2 weeks. Would love to try and train this into him. Do you get a saliva sample from when you get low on blood sugar, and how do you save it? Thanks!
My wife has been a type 1 diabetic ever since she was six years old and just today we got a great pyrenees puppy I really want to learn how to train him for alerting her when her blood sugars are high and low she still uses a machine no sensorso I hope there's some people that can give me some useful information on here I am so excited to see this video and to see how quickly they respond
Hello! That has been an amazing video! Thank you so much for that. I have a couple of questions, but those could be pretty basic or silly questions to ask because I am totally stranger to dog training and want to have a dog just to be alerted on hypoglycemias. How many hours per day or week did you train her? Is there an upper age limit for them to be trained on that? And, as the last question :) are there other trainings before DAD to complete? Thank you so much again and again.
The hours a week would depend on the age, how much your dog wants to engage, how much time you have, etc. Many dogs can learn as adults, but it's often easier to train as puppies. But even then, sometimes it doesn't work out for a number of reasons. Not sure specifically about diabetic alert dogs, but all service dogs need to be potty trained, desensitised to people + public spaces (especially things like kids, busses, trains, maybe being petted without you knowing bc people are rude), they need good leash and off leash behaviour, can't show any signs of agression, task trained to mitigate your disability (so diabetic alert for you) and just be well behaved and such in stores and public places
I was diagnosed when I was 7 and have wanted an alert dog since I found out they exist. I’m 16 now and recently I’ve wanted to try to train my own alert dog my mom is very much against it. She thinks it’s too much work and too expensive. She never has an open mind :(
The reason she thinks it would be too much work is that she probably believes that SHE would have to do all the walking, poop-collecting, brushing, washing, and extra vacuuming. The dog might cost $50 or $5000, but usually around $300-500. Food, toothpaste, poop bags, and vet bills also add up. Old dogs can have expensive medical bills. So, how could you get her to change her mind? You COULD persuade her that the dog would be YOUR responsibility by taking on vacuuming the house each week and volunteering at a local dog rescue or animal shelter. You could develop most of the skills needed to train your service dog at the Rescue or Shelter. They always need people to teach dogs good canine citizen skills, which are also basic training for service dogs. You MIGHT even be GIVEN a dog after you have reliably volunteered several months. Rescues are often focussed on one or two breeds. While recent research has proven that pugs have better sense of smell than some other long nosed dogs, on average the best nose-focused breeds will be scent-hounds and terriers (originally bred to hunt rodents and Badgers by scent.) There are many videos on how to select and train a service dog on You Tube. I recommend the channel, MY DOG AND ME, LLC which is teaching people how to train a service dog FOR FREE.
I use a saliva sample from a person who had low blood sugar at the time. It's just a piece of sterile cotton that the Diabetic put in their mouth when they were low
@@libbyrockaway is there education in learning how to connect and create with someone? Or is this something specifically ya'll request professional training for?
Is it possible to start a little late to train a dog like about at 1 years old, because I was thinking of training my dog Because I’m a type one diabetic and I would love to have a DAD. If you could reply I would be so happy! Thanks.!
+Juliet Gonzalez Hi Ms. Gonzalez, yes you can do this with high bg scent as well. But usually it's not necessary because the dogs learn to alert to high bgs on their own. They begin to alert to very high highs - 300's or 400's, just because they've learned to track your blood sugar since they have learned lows, and this one is out of the ordinary. Then if you reward the high alert, they will keep alerting at lower numbers, until you teach them what #s they get rewarded for and which ones they don't.
Absolutely true, However tacking your advertisement onto Libby's work is, directing her viewers to your information, isn't that the definition of ..... tacky.
I just started training a service dog for my boyfriend. We got maggie at 8 weeks. she is 4 months old now and already starting to alert shane when he is low. There is so many videos to help you learn how to train them. If you really want one, make it happen
Sara, I was in a similar situation. Search the internet for SERVICE DOGS + your state and nearby metro areas. There are RESCUES which might give you a pup, but they will want to know that you can care for it and train it. They always need volunteers to help socialize and train their rescued dogs, and if you are a reliable volunteer, and develop your training skills, they might GIVE you one. Many Rescues specialize in one breed. The best breeds for DADs are likely to be scent hounds and terriers, both of which were bred to hunt by scent. Terriers are now preferred dogs for deaf and medical alerts because they are 1) small (cheap to feed and easy to keep with you), 2) persistent (will keep alerting you until you respond), and 3) generally fearless because they were originally bred to fight rats and badgers. Do check out TH-cam videos on selecting service dogs. There's a good You Tube series now on the MY DOG AND ME, LLC channel.
How did you train them to sense high and lows. I saw a video where a dog was train to alert at 80. How can this be done? Any helpful tips or instructions would be greatly appreciated. My daughter is 19 about to be 20. She was diagnosed with type one at 18 months. We have waited so long for a service dog. Lists are just too long. I'm not wanting to wait and am going to train one myself. My daughter went to 27 and by the time the EMS got to her she was 40. She lives 2 hrs away. Its just so freaking scary to think she is sometimes home alone and the lows and seizures come on so fast. She is now checking herself every 2 hours again.
Hi Kimberly, there are a few books on Amazon. When this video was made, I was just starting out and this was to document my journey as I experimented. Over the years I developed my own method which is a bit less time intensive than this video shows, and those can all be found at my nonprofit at mddogs.org. Wish you the best and let me know if you have any questions!
Absolutely! It's unlikely to have a successful service dog if they aren't interacted with from a young age. The pups need frequent interaction with people as well as stimulation and new exposures. Pups from this breeder now actually all go through Puppy Culture protocol which has helped them even more. The only risk with pups this age is if there were strangers interacting with them and bringing in possible diseases, but the breeder doesn't allow others to meet them until they are old enough to have a strong immune system.
Just do lots of research! Make sure you learn everything you can about them and what exact concrete tasks the dog needs to learn to mitigate your disability. Then find a reputable organization/trainer and make sure all along the way that the dog is being trained properly and it's best if you can be a part of the training process too. Wish you the best!
Libby Rockaway, thank you so much! I'm only 13 years old so I'm really nervous about what people would think about seeing a 13 year old girl with a service dog that looks fine. It's a major fear of mine, but hell, I can't even go to school becuase my anxiety is so bad. Thanks again for the tips! :3
Hi, in the United States there is no legitimate certification. The dogs do have to be extensively trained to ensure they are professional and unobtrusive, and perform trained tasks, but there is not a specific form of certification required.
Hi, Im a T1D and I have recently found out about diabetic alert dogs, and I have found a puppy I have wanted to train and was wondering if someone who isn't a certified trainer could do the same thing?
did you temperament test the puppy? a week old seems a little young to start training and too early to temperament test. I'm usually told start training around 4-6 weeks.
Good question - if you watch the video you see that all the puppies are being imprinted. This is not necessarily 'training', this is just exposing the puppies to the scent and creating a positive association. The puppies were raised in my home so I knew each one's personality, then performed temperament tests to determine the best one. For actual training, if getting a puppy from a breeder, puppies shouldn't begin until they are 7 or 8 weeks old as they need to remain with their siblings. But they can begin learning before then, which is why I suggest choosing a puppy from a breeder who does Puppy Culture and extensive handling before the pups every go home.
6 months is not too old. What's important is that they have the drive to do the job and that they are extremely stable. Have a local service dog trainer evaluate your dog for you and they can try to tell you whether your dog would be right for the job or not. Typically though, we recommend waiting until 1 year or so after diagnosis just so that you can figure out diabetes first, then work on figuring out the training of the dog second because it takes a lot of work!
Libby Rockaway my son is 17 yrs old he bought a 7 week old puppy for Christmas for his little sister and brother he told me, mom what if we train the puppy for lows cause today at 2 am I was asleep and she woke me up and felt low she sleeps in his bed or she won't sleep only at night in the day she sleeps in the sofa on her bed I think because when he got her he went to his friend's house to hide the puppy and they both slept on his friend's bed then he came home at 11pm when his siblings were asleep. Any advice to train her she is a terrier maltese and poodle mix thank you in advance for you response.
How exciting! I have a sample training plan here: www.libbyslovingleashes.com/dad-syllabus.html It's not by any means the only way to train - with every dog I train I experiment and tweak it some, but it will give you an idea of what I train when. Also this is an FAQ page I have: www.libbyslovingleashes.com/faq.html It's best if you can find a local trainer that can help guide you along the process and work specifically with you and your dog. I wish you the best!
Very cool to see. I never would have thought to start conditioning a dog to that scent from birth. One question though - what is the exact different between this dog's alert for a low glucose level vs a high level? She put her paws up on the person in each case. Was the difference touching the person's leg vs their abdomen? Thank you for sharing. I'm helping someone train a diabetic alert dog now and this was really helpful.
Circadian Rhythm Hi, thank you for your question! There is no different alert for high and low blood sugars. This is because a dog should never be used instead of medical equipment, the dog should be used in addition to medical equipment. So when the dog alerts, the T1d knows to check his or her blood sugar with a meter and dose appropriately. But we never want someone dosing based on the dog’s alert.
Any breed can be a DAD, but the breeds that will be most likely to succeed are Goldens, Labs, and Poodles. I sometimes work with other breeds, but primarily work with this breed - miniature golden retrievers (Comfort Retrievers)
@@libbyrockaway Oh. I have a very large German Shepherd we adore! And have been thinking about another as my service dog. He's fantastic. He is solid,black from Czech/Eastern German working bloodlines.
@@barbaravance6774 I been wanting a black german shepherd. Luckily my epilepsy is controlled that I don't need one, but they are amazing for people with illnesses that limit their quality of life. Insurence should cover medical alert dogs and animals.
@@spike16965 I'm really glad you have your epilepsy under control! My cousin was epileptic. And sadly took a bath and drowned. Black Shepherds are my absolute favorite! And so agree 100% About 8nsurance covering service dogs. I think the problem is then the government will decide who should be,allowed one and what training they will cover. The reason they lowered the legal restrictions on them is because of a few important things. We were at war and we had many Americans com8ng home injured or with PTSD etc... before that they were white limited. Most of them were for the blind, the hearing impaired and for those with mobility problems. And the group's training these dogs basically had a monopoly on Service Dogs. You had really long waiting lists due to availability and cost. So they lowered the regulations and now we have people faking their pets because they are selfish. But, if we get the government involved I fear we will return to the future issues. It's a blessing and a curse. Sorry I went on a tangent. Hopefully you can get a G.S. anyway. They are amazing animals!
@@barbaravance6774 so sorry to hear about your cousin that's terrible. I understand the government taking care of our soldiers first, and they should come first for their service no doubt. The fake service animals is making it hard for people whom really need service dogs through security customs and public areas. Something should be done about it. Those animals are peoples lifeline between that person and the world around them when it comes to their vulnerability. Appreciate your insight.
Dear Libby, do you train every puppy every day? Or do you give them relax time, like training only every second day. How long is one training (for a 3 and 5 week old puppy example). Thank you!
Hi! I typically train once to twice a day, for small amounts of time each. When they are young puppies the training sessions are just 3-5 minutes each usually for six week pups and up. For younger puppies like the first few clips in this video, it’s all just about exposing them and not necessarily a training session so I work with them for maybe 60 seconds at a time. Then as they mature they can handle much longer sessions and they can be closer to 30 minutes, but even then sometimes with older dogs I will train for a 5 minute session. It really depends on the dog, the day, and what our goals are. All the best!
I’m in middle school and even though i have a Dexcom to monitor my blood sugar, I really want a diabetic alert dog. I can just get one for free and train it at home (i think that’s how it works because i heard some give them to you for free u just have to pay for training but i’ll train at home)
Paying for training can be pretty pricey. You Tube has LOTS of good service dog training vids. Getting a dog for free might happen in a number of ways. First, learn how to train dogs. TH-cam has LOTS of vids for this. Just search "service dog training." I especially like MY DOG AND ME, LLC. You can volunteer at an animal rescue or shelter and practice teaching them good canine citizenship skills. (Basic training for ALL service dogs.) After you've got the skills down, they might even GIVE you a puppy with a good nose and temperament. PLUS, if you get really good at training dogs, you will have a skill you can turn into a part-time job in your community. It's something robots can't do!
I will, if all goes well, be getting an 8 week Collie to train as my Service Dog, since I can't afford the already trained dog (I have been told they go for $30--70,000.00 and insurance doesn't cover it) like I got in Canada in 2006. She passed away just over a year ago, BTW. So how do you get the sample? It is a saliva sample from a high or a low, right? I am scared to deliberately put myself into a low so that I can get the sample. What do you do?
I'm sorry, I didn't get a notification of your comment! Training your own DAD can be a great method! When your blood sugar is in the range you'd like your dog to alert at, and you haven't treated the low, you take a piece of clean gauze and without touching it place it in your mouth. Saturate it completely with your saliva and put it in a small pill bag. Write the bg number and the date it was taken, and place that in a mason jar. Store the samples in the freezer. Have two mason jars - one for low samples and one for highs. Don't deliberately make yourself low! If there is a certain time that you think you tend to go low, chart it and then check yourself more often around that time. Then whenever you catch yourself in a low, but safe range, make multiple samples in order to maximize that low. Then go treat your low! :)
A lot of the time when I'm low.... it's hard to remember your own name let alone the testing and sampling so get that stuff all in one place (kitchen for me) So that I can get 1-3 samples. I get possession of my fur baby (passed finally all puppy tests)
A lot of the time when I'm low.... it's hard to remember your own name let alone the testing and sampling so get that stuff all in one place (kitchen for me) So that I can get 1-3 samples. I get possession of my fur baby (passed finally all puppy tests) T1D pump
A lot of the time when I'm low.... I'm in a brain fog, and have stared at my test kit or nodded off. the testing and sampling can be a challenge if your brittle. So I've found it helpful to get all your gear in one place including your magic marker baggies, cotton, tweezers all in one place (kitchen for me) So that I can get 1-3 samples. and then treat the low before anything gets worse. BTW, those going low and on a pump remember to get basal down to min 1st thing. Libby your video is fantastic! I get possession of my fur baby (passed finally all puppy tests) T1D novalog Tslim pump, Hoping the dog will make my nights more safe and restful.... and DESERT TRAVEL POSSIBLE.
ARI, Dogs don't feel that way about most of us. They love us. (Remember Dog spelled backwards is God.) For 15-30,000 years dogs evolved to understand us, to join our packs, and to help however they can. Of course, some people DON'T deserve dogs, just like some parents don't deserve kids. Still, kids can't make it without parents, even imperfect parents are loved by their kids, and kids are better off with imperfect parents than fending for themselves. Pet dogs live 3-5 times longer than feral dogs. We two species have depended on each other for survival for a very long time. I just hope to be as good a person as my dog thinks I am.
Hi, Thanks for your comment. Actually it does not ruin the sample. In normal daily life, the scent of low blood sugar is contaminated as well because the diabetic has touched many things throughout the day, maybe just eaten something, etc. Dogs have impeccable scenting abilities so it does not confuse them - an example is rather than a dog smelling chili like we do, they smell the individual ingredients - beans, the meat, the tomato sauce, etc. So while it is not necessary to touch it with your hands, it does not ruin the sample because they are able to distinguish between the different scents. The key is that you have to make sure that you don't use the same contamination every time - make sure you haven't just washed your hands with a certain type of soap because then they will begin to pair the soap with the blood sugar scent. As long as you ensure you aren't accidentally pairing another scent with the low blood sugar sample over many sessions, it won't affect the dog.
I don't know why this is just so beautiful to me. I hope to live with a D.A.D. in a few years. And this is just so amazing.
Thank you! I hope you are able to live with a DAD soon as well! They are incredibly helpful for both the physical/a1c aspect, as well as the emotional aspect and being able to cope with this exhausting disease.
I trained an Aussie to help me get off the ground when I fall, pick up things from the floor, and help my balance. He has ALSO undertaken being my diabetic husband's personal trainer! His A1C has been very stable since we got the dog.
So amazing❤️🔥 my grandson was diagnosed type 1 at 5 years old💔
Today at 7 the family is over the shock and has settled into our new life❤️🔥
We NEVER thought a dog could recognize high and low sugars❤️🔥
Can you point me in the direction of starting the process to get an alert dog for my REMINGTON ❤️🔥
Thank you for the life saving work you do!
SIMPLY A🙏🏼MAZING
❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥🙏🏼
Wow!!! I have type 1 diabetes and it would be great to have one of these lovely life saving dogs someday!! This video is amazing!! Thanks for sharing! Just last night after a hard day and night of working I woke up in a cold sweat which means dangerously low blood sugar and I would have loved for a wonderful fluffy life saver to tell me I was getting low before it got down to 40.
OMG! I was just in that same situation!!! I have a prob. with not feeling symptoms until they are super low or super high.
Same, honestly. My childhood beagle somehow learned to detect both blood sugar drops and sudden mood shifts before they would happen. She was never trained to do that, but she was there when I fell into a coma because of ketoacidosis and freaked out. She never left my side for very long after that. When my sugar would drop she would wedge herself in between me and the nearest arm of the couch (a space that was only a few inches wide). Normally she would plop onto the unoccupied half of the couch so she could stretch out, but she knew when I was about to have a bad time MINUTES before I noticed anything. She was my hero. I miss her dearly.
Cyber, that's very scary.
By all means, get a DAD, but that may take a while.
TODAY: There are apps to help you track your food and activity so you can manage your blood sugar more easily. Your doc should also make a referral to a diatitian or diabetes management coach.
Same here I want one it would make stuff easier
I would like to say Thank You..From a Diabetic of 20+ years. Thank You !
Amazing can baby be trained type 2
What a charmer this pup is!
Please make a video on how to train from 8+ weeks. Would very much appreciate it. This is so lovely. Thank you!
I ?vve a7yr old,I need to train for heart rate /diabetes any suggestions>
Whats in the cups and the floor and stuff plzz tell me someone I have type 1 im only 9 and I have a dog I wanna train
Thanks for sharing this I now need to teach my service dog this task. You made it look simple by the playful play. Thank you
AMAZING job (no words for it) and thank you so much for sharing
Thanks so much for showing this!! It's an incredible resource to see how this begins and is put together! 🙏
I have hypoglycemia and POTS and I am in training with my pup
Dogs are so smart
I know you said you were experimenting at the time, but can you explain why you waited so long to reward when the puppy found the scent in the correct box? He gave up and went to the other boxes and then went back and then you rewarded. To reward perseverance/persistence?
Hello you ever use bells on the collar to alert the patience
So Awesome! Love this video! Thanks for creating. I'm diabetic.
Narration would be really helpful. What is the "scent" that is used?
A type 1 diabetics low or high blood sugar sample
Such a young start! 🤯
Beautiful vid. I am diabetic & one of my biggest fears is my sugar going too low while i sleep.
The 3 dislikes are from people who like to pet service dogs.
Without asking!😉
Barbara Vance 😂😂
you don't know that. just stop.
@@watchgoose it’s a joke…
😂
i just wanted to know where did you get the thing that has smell on it.im very curious i wanted to train my dog
I'm doing training now with my pup he is 4 weeks old I have type 1 diabetes so I find this good to try out just for more safety 😊
Where do you obtain the scent used for training?
my dog is still about 5 months is it too late to start training him?
In the very beginning, did you single one puppy out or did you offer the scent to all of them before putting them with their mother to nurse? If you picked one puppy, was there a reason for it? I didn't think you could temperment test at such a young age?
fealubryne No, every puppy in the litter was exposed to the scent and worked with the same amount. Then at 7 weeks old I did formal temperament testing. But by that point, because I had raised the pups myself, I was able to know which puppy would be a good fit to be a DAD.
Perfect, thank you for replying, and so quickly!
TEMPERAMENT TESTS FOR ALL SERVICE DOGS include screening for aggression & fearfulness/timidity.
Dogs with either of these issues will not pass the public access test, and being with you in public is VERY stressful for the very shy or anxious dog.
For more, search You Tube under "SERVICE DOG SELECTION" and "SERVICE DOG TRAINING"
@@libbyrockaway so you supply these service dogs to diabetics??linked to a healthcare service?
What scent??
In order to be a registered Diabetic Alert Dog, does the dog have to be certified and/or go to an accredited dog training school?
My wife is type 1, and we are getting an Australian Shepherd pup in 2 weeks. Would love to try and train this into him. Do you get a saliva sample from when you get low on blood sugar, and how do you save it? Thanks!
what would you suggest for amount on cotton swabs for training, highs and lows
My wife has been a type 1 diabetic ever since she was six years old and just today we got a great pyrenees puppy I really want to learn how to train him for alerting her when her blood sugars are high and low she still uses a machine no sensorso I hope there's some people that can give me some useful information on here I am so excited to see this video and to see how quickly they respond
My Dog and Me. LLC
How old is too old to start training a dog
Can you make a updated version?
How much do you sell the dogs for after they complete the training?
Hello! That has been an amazing video! Thank you so much for that. I have a couple of questions, but those could be pretty basic or silly questions to ask because I am totally stranger to dog training and want to have a dog just to be alerted on hypoglycemias. How many hours per day or week did you train her? Is there an upper age limit for them to be trained on that? And, as the last question :) are there other trainings before DAD to complete? Thank you so much again and again.
The hours a week would depend on the age, how much your dog wants to engage, how much time you have, etc. Many dogs can learn as adults, but it's often easier to train as puppies. But even then, sometimes it doesn't work out for a number of reasons.
Not sure specifically about diabetic alert dogs, but all service dogs need to be potty trained, desensitised to people + public spaces (especially things like kids, busses, trains, maybe being petted without you knowing bc people are rude), they need good leash and off leash behaviour, can't show any signs of agression, task trained to mitigate your disability (so diabetic alert for you) and just be well behaved and such in stores and public places
I was diagnosed when I was 7 and have wanted an alert dog since I found out they exist. I’m 16 now and recently I’ve wanted to try to train my own alert dog my mom is very much against it. She thinks it’s too much work and too expensive. She never has an open mind :(
The reason she thinks it would be too much work is that she probably believes that SHE would have to do all the walking, poop-collecting, brushing, washing, and extra vacuuming.
The dog might cost $50 or $5000, but usually around $300-500. Food, toothpaste, poop bags, and vet bills also add up. Old dogs can have expensive medical bills.
So, how could you get her to change her mind?
You COULD persuade her that the dog would be YOUR responsibility by taking on vacuuming the house each week and volunteering at a local dog rescue or animal shelter. You could develop most of the skills needed to train your service dog at the Rescue or Shelter. They always need people to teach dogs good canine citizen skills, which are also basic training for service dogs. You MIGHT even be GIVEN a dog after you have reliably volunteered several months.
Rescues are often focussed on one or two breeds. While recent research has proven that pugs have better sense of smell than some other long nosed dogs, on average the best nose-focused breeds will be scent-hounds and terriers (originally bred to hunt rodents and Badgers by scent.)
There are many videos on how to select and train a service dog on You Tube. I recommend the channel, MY DOG AND ME, LLC which is teaching people how to train a service dog FOR FREE.
This is neat to watch
Hi, my name is Dee Dee. I have Type1 Diabetes and my dream is to one day have a Diabetes Dogs.
My wish is for your dream to com true.
dee dee's Diabetes Dog I'm type 1 diabetic too , and my dream is to have one too :)
My daughter is type one and she is t even 2 years old. I’m writing a blog with my learning as type one parent. All my failures and successes.
dee dee's Diabetes Dog lol I see u everywhere
what exactly is in the "scent" that you use to train the puppies?
I use a saliva sample from a person who had low blood sugar at the time. It's just a piece of sterile cotton that the Diabetic put in their mouth when they were low
bleep bleep how old can that sample be?
Libby Rockaway how old can that sample be?
Libby Rockaway how old can the sample be to be effective?
bleep bleep saliva
Where can we purchase the scent
DAD scents are created by someone with hypoglycemia or diabetes or just low blood sugar.
@@libbyrockaway is there education in learning how to connect and create with someone? Or is this something specifically ya'll request professional training for?
@@libbyrockaway so do u take a sample when checking blood sugar for the smell??
Is it possible to start a little late to train a dog like about at 1 years old, because I was thinking of training my dog Because I’m a type one diabetic and I would love to have a DAD. If you could reply I would be so happy! Thanks.!
So I was wondering, I don’t have diabetes but I have hypoglycemia would I qualify for a service dog?
@@laelafarmer9208 I actually don’t know but I feel like it should because like diabetes if you go to low it could be bad so I think you could qualify
But how does the dog progress from smelling sugar solution in open containers to smelling blood glucose levels in our body?
With enough practice and the right kinds of repetition and confidence building the dogs transition to live alerts for their handler.
Please explain us how to imitate the low sugar level scent.
What kind od scent have you given to your dog?
Liliana This is purely a saliva sample of low blood sugar
Do you change the scent or keep the same one.?
The samples last about 3 days if kept in the fridge, so I will use the same sample for those 3 days, and will then use a new one.
+Libby Rockaway thank you for replying. 😀 also can you do this with a scent using a high bg.?
+Juliet Gonzalez Hi Ms. Gonzalez, yes you can do this with high bg scent as well. But usually it's not necessary because the dogs learn to alert to high bgs on their own. They begin to alert to very high highs - 300's or 400's, just because they've learned to track your blood sugar since they have learned lows, and this one is out of the ordinary. Then if you reward the high alert, they will keep alerting at lower numbers, until you teach them what #s they get rewarded for and which ones they don't.
Absolutely true, However tacking your advertisement onto Libby's work is, directing her viewers to your information, isn't that the definition of ..... tacky.
I need a service dog for diabetes cause I run in 600s but we cant pay for training cause it is to expensive :(
I just started training a service dog for my boyfriend. We got maggie at 8 weeks. she is 4 months old now and already starting to alert shane when he is low. There is so many videos to help you learn how to train them. If you really want one, make it happen
Sara, I was in a similar situation. Search the internet for SERVICE DOGS + your state and nearby metro areas. There are RESCUES which might give you a pup, but they will want to know that you can care for it and train it. They always need volunteers to help socialize and train their rescued dogs, and if you are a reliable volunteer, and develop your training skills, they might GIVE you one.
Many Rescues specialize in one breed. The best breeds for DADs are likely to be scent hounds and terriers, both of which were bred to hunt by scent. Terriers are now preferred dogs for deaf and medical alerts because they are
1) small (cheap to feed and easy to keep with you), 2) persistent (will keep alerting you until you respond), and 3) generally fearless because they were originally bred to fight rats and badgers.
Do check out TH-cam videos on selecting service dogs. There's a good You Tube series now on the MY DOG AND ME, LLC channel.
How did you train them to sense high and lows. I saw a video where a dog was train to alert at 80. How can this be done? Any helpful tips or instructions would be greatly appreciated. My daughter is 19 about to be 20. She was diagnosed with type one at 18 months. We have waited so long for a service dog. Lists are just too long. I'm not wanting to wait and am going to train one myself. My daughter went to 27 and by the time the EMS got to her she was 40. She lives 2 hrs away. Its just so freaking scary to think she is sometimes home alone and the lows and seizures come on so fast. She is now checking herself every 2 hours again.
Hi Kimberly, there are a few books on Amazon. When this video was made, I was just starting out and this was to document my journey as I experimented. Over the years I developed my own method which is a bit less time intensive than this video shows, and those can all be found at my nonprofit at mddogs.org. Wish you the best and let me know if you have any questions!
Such fitting music :)
Can you tell me how you create the scent?
All instructions have now been written at mddogs.org. Wish you the best!
Is it safe to interact with them that much at that age?
Absolutely! It's unlikely to have a successful service dog if they aren't interacted with from a young age. The pups need frequent interaction with people as well as stimulation and new exposures. Pups from this breeder now actually all go through Puppy Culture protocol which has helped them even more. The only risk with pups this age is if there were strangers interacting with them and bringing in possible diseases, but the breeder doesn't allow others to meet them until they are old enough to have a strong immune system.
Libby Rockaway, okay, thanks! And I'm planning to get a service dog for my anxiety, can you give me some tips to help me please?
Just do lots of research! Make sure you learn everything you can about them and what exact concrete tasks the dog needs to learn to mitigate your disability. Then find a reputable organization/trainer and make sure all along the way that the dog is being trained properly and it's best if you can be a part of the training process too. Wish you the best!
Libby Rockaway, thank you so much! I'm only 13 years old so I'm really nervous about what people would think about seeing a 13 year old girl with a service dog that looks fine. It's a major fear of mine, but hell, I can't even go to school becuase my anxiety is so bad. Thanks again for the tips! :3
Im trying to understand, please help me! what exactly is the dog sniffing?
But would it be certified?
Hi, in the United States there is no legitimate certification. The dogs do have to be extensively trained to ensure they are professional and unobtrusive, and perform trained tasks, but there is not a specific form of certification required.
What do you use for the scent? Like is it Spit ?
Yes, you take a guaze pad when your low or high and soak it and freeze it for training
Hi, Im a T1D and I have recently found out about diabetic alert dogs, and I have found a puppy I have wanted to train and was wondering if someone who isn't a certified trainer could do the same thing?
I have done it. watch lots of videos. take good samples, and decide how you want your dog to alert. and work with them every day
There is no such thing as a certified trainer no matter what anyone tells you.
did you temperament test the puppy? a week old seems a little young to start training and too early to temperament test. I'm usually told start training around 4-6 weeks.
Good question - if you watch the video you see that all the puppies are being imprinted. This is not necessarily 'training', this is just exposing the puppies to the scent and creating a positive association. The puppies were raised in my home so I knew each one's personality, then performed temperament tests to determine the best one. For actual training, if getting a puppy from a breeder, puppies shouldn't begin until they are 7 or 8 weeks old as they need to remain with their siblings. But they can begin learning before then, which is why I suggest choosing a puppy from a breeder who does Puppy Culture and extensive handling before the pups every go home.
+Libby Rockaway cool, thanks for clearing that up!!
I’m training my DAD at home it’s quite difficult lol
TH-cam has AMAZING VIDEOS on how to train your own service dog. A good place to start is the channel, MY DOG AND ME, LLC
Is it too ale to start at 6 months I was just diagnosed
6 months is not too old. What's important is that they have the drive to do the job and that they are extremely stable. Have a local service dog trainer evaluate your dog for you and they can try to tell you whether your dog would be right for the job or not. Typically though, we recommend waiting until 1 year or so after diagnosis just so that you can figure out diabetes first, then work on figuring out the training of the dog second because it takes a lot of work!
Libby Rockaway my son is 17 yrs old he bought a 7 week old puppy for Christmas for his little sister and brother he told me, mom what if we train the puppy for lows cause today at 2 am I was asleep and she woke me up and felt low she sleeps in his bed or she won't sleep only at night in the day she sleeps in the sofa on her bed I think because when he got her he went to his friend's house to hide the puppy and they both slept on his friend's bed then he came home at 11pm when his siblings were asleep. Any advice to train her she is a terrier maltese and poodle mix thank you in advance for you response.
How exciting! I have a sample training plan here: www.libbyslovingleashes.com/dad-syllabus.html It's not by any means the only way to train - with every dog I train I experiment and tweak it some, but it will give you an idea of what I train when. Also this is an FAQ page I have: www.libbyslovingleashes.com/faq.html It's best if you can find a local trainer that can help guide you along the process and work specifically with you and your dog. I wish you the best!
Very cool to see. I never would have thought to start conditioning a dog to that scent from birth. One question though - what is the exact different between this dog's alert for a low glucose level vs a high level? She put her paws up on the person in each case. Was the difference touching the person's leg vs their abdomen? Thank you for sharing. I'm helping someone train a diabetic alert dog now and this was really helpful.
Circadian Rhythm Hi, thank you for your question! There is no different alert for high and low blood sugars. This is because a dog should never be used instead of medical equipment, the dog should be used in addition to medical equipment. So when the dog alerts, the T1d knows to check his or her blood sugar with a meter and dose appropriately. But we never want someone dosing based on the dog’s alert.
Do you work with any other breeds?
Any breed can be a DAD, but the breeds that will be most likely to succeed are Goldens, Labs, and Poodles. I sometimes work with other breeds, but primarily work with this breed - miniature golden retrievers (Comfort Retrievers)
@@libbyrockaway Oh. I have a very large German Shepherd we adore! And have been thinking about another as my service dog. He's fantastic. He is solid,black from Czech/Eastern German working bloodlines.
@@barbaravance6774 I been wanting a black german shepherd. Luckily my epilepsy is controlled that I don't need one, but they are amazing for people with illnesses that limit their quality of life. Insurence should cover medical alert dogs and animals.
@@spike16965 I'm really glad you have your epilepsy under control! My cousin was epileptic. And sadly took a bath and drowned. Black Shepherds are my absolute favorite! And so agree 100% About 8nsurance covering service dogs. I think the problem is then the government will decide who should be,allowed one and what training they will cover. The reason they lowered the legal restrictions on them is because of a few important things. We were at war and we had many Americans com8ng home injured or with PTSD etc... before that they were white limited. Most of them were for the blind, the hearing impaired and for those with mobility problems. And the group's training these dogs basically had a monopoly on Service Dogs. You had really long waiting lists due to availability and cost. So they lowered the regulations and now we have people faking their pets because they are selfish. But, if we get the government involved I fear we will return to the future issues. It's a blessing and a curse. Sorry I went on a tangent. Hopefully you can get a G.S. anyway. They are amazing animals!
@@barbaravance6774 so sorry to hear about your cousin that's terrible. I understand the government taking care of our soldiers first, and they should come first for their service no doubt. The fake service animals is making it hard for people whom really need service dogs through security customs and public areas. Something should be done about it. Those animals are peoples lifeline between that person and the world around them when it comes to their vulnerability. Appreciate your insight.
Dear Libby, do you train every puppy every day? Or do you give them relax time, like training only every second day. How long is one training (for a 3 and 5 week old puppy example). Thank you!
Hi! I typically train once to twice a day, for small amounts of time each. When they are young puppies the training sessions are just 3-5 minutes each usually for six week pups and up. For younger puppies like the first few clips in this video, it’s all just about exposing them and not necessarily a training session so I work with them for maybe 60 seconds at a time. Then as they mature they can handle much longer sessions and they can be closer to 30 minutes, but even then sometimes with older dogs I will train for a 5 minute session. It really depends on the dog, the day, and what our goals are. All the best!
I’m in middle school and even though i have a Dexcom to monitor my blood sugar, I really want a diabetic alert dog. I can just get one for free and train it at home (i think that’s how it works because i heard some give them to you for free u just have to pay for training but i’ll train at home)
Paying for training can be pretty pricey. You Tube has LOTS of good service dog training vids. Getting a dog for free might happen in a number of ways.
First, learn how to train dogs. TH-cam has LOTS of vids for this. Just search "service dog training." I especially like MY DOG AND ME, LLC.
You can volunteer at an animal rescue or shelter and practice teaching them good canine citizenship skills. (Basic training for ALL service dogs.) After you've got the skills down, they might even GIVE you a puppy with a good nose and temperament. PLUS, if you get really good at training dogs, you will have a skill you can turn into a part-time job in your community. It's something robots can't do!
I LOVE HIM!!!! 😁
I couldn't do this.... I would be the one getting distracted with floof, puppy breath and playing with the puppies.
I will, if all goes well, be getting an 8 week Collie to train as my Service Dog, since I can't afford the already trained dog (I have been told they go for $30--70,000.00 and insurance doesn't cover it) like I got in Canada in 2006. She passed away just over a year ago, BTW. So how do you get the sample? It is a saliva sample from a high or a low, right? I am scared to deliberately put myself into a low so that I can get the sample. What do you do?
I'm sorry, I didn't get a notification of your comment! Training your own DAD can be a great method! When your blood sugar is in the range you'd like your dog to alert at, and you haven't treated the low, you take a piece of clean gauze and without touching it place it in your mouth. Saturate it completely with your saliva and put it in a small pill bag. Write the bg number and the date it was taken, and place that in a mason jar. Store the samples in the freezer. Have two mason jars - one for low samples and one for highs.
Don't deliberately make yourself low! If there is a certain time that you think you tend to go low, chart it and then check yourself more often around that time. Then whenever you catch yourself in a low, but safe range, make multiple samples in order to maximize that low. Then go treat your low! :)
Libby Rockaway such great advice !
A lot of the time when I'm low.... it's hard to remember your own name let alone the testing and sampling so get that stuff all in one place (kitchen for me) So that I can get 1-3 samples. I get possession of my fur baby (passed finally all puppy tests)
A lot of the time when I'm low.... it's hard to remember your own name let alone the testing and sampling so get that stuff all in one place (kitchen for me) So that I can get 1-3 samples. I get possession of my fur baby (passed finally all puppy tests) T1D pump
A lot of the time when I'm low.... I'm in a brain fog, and have stared at my test kit or nodded off. the testing and sampling can be a challenge if your brittle. So I've found it helpful to get all your gear in one place including your magic marker baggies, cotton, tweezers all in one place (kitchen for me) So that I can get 1-3 samples. and then treat the low before anything gets worse. BTW, those going low and on a pump remember to get basal down to min 1st thing. Libby your video is fantastic! I get possession of my fur baby (passed finally all puppy tests) T1D novalog Tslim pump, Hoping the dog will make my nights more safe and restful.... and DESERT TRAVEL POSSIBLE.
I need a diabetes dog in my life! Nighttimes are worse for me and I occasionally have pretty severe lows while awake.
think your diabetes care is responsible for assisting you in this.you do realise that you have to be diabetic low unaware to get access to dogs
I wish I can have a diabetes dog like this. ❤
My name is Libby!!!
😍.
We don't deserve dogs 😭 they are so smart and pure.
ARI, Dogs don't feel that way about most of us. They love us. (Remember Dog spelled backwards is God.)
For 15-30,000 years dogs evolved to understand us, to join our packs, and to help however they can.
Of course, some people DON'T deserve dogs, just like some parents don't deserve kids. Still, kids can't make it without parents, even imperfect parents are loved by their kids, and kids are better off with imperfect parents than fending for themselves. Pet dogs live 3-5 times longer than feral dogs.
We two species have depended on each other for survival for a very long time. I just hope to be as good a person as my dog thinks I am.
@@christal2641 Well, that was beautiful
Hey omg
Its what am looking for 👋
Touching the sample with your hands ruins the sample. You need to either not touch it or have it in a container
Hi, Thanks for your comment. Actually it does not ruin the sample. In normal daily life, the scent of low blood sugar is contaminated as well because the diabetic has touched many things throughout the day, maybe just eaten something, etc. Dogs have impeccable scenting abilities so it does not confuse them - an example is rather than a dog smelling chili like we do, they smell the individual ingredients - beans, the meat, the tomato sauce, etc. So while it is not necessary to touch it with your hands, it does not ruin the sample because they are able to distinguish between the different scents. The key is that you have to make sure that you don't use the same contamination every time - make sure you haven't just washed your hands with a certain type of soap because then they will begin to pair the soap with the blood sugar scent. As long as you ensure you aren't accidentally pairing another scent with the low blood sugar sample over many sessions, it won't affect the dog.
Best video !