Staff Report:
Janet Scoggins has been a resident of White Rock since 1966. She is a type one brittle diabetic in need of a specially trained dog to help her manage her illness.
Brittle diabetes is a term used to describe particularly difficult to control type 1 diabetes. People who have brittle diabetes will experience frequent, extreme swings in blood glucose levels, causing hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia.
“I am writing to reach out to my community to help me acquire a diabetic alert dog that can help save my life,” Scoggins said. “Because of my brittleness, I go into ICU every couple of months with Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) and dehydration. DKA is a life threatening complication of diabetes. To help me avoid this complication, I need a diabetic alert dog to help alert me of my low/high blood sugars.”
Scoggins explained that a diabetic alert dog could recognize her low blood sugars and highs and alert her while she is still able to act.
A Diabetic Alert Dog will begin training as a puppy. The puppy will learn how to be a good service dog who can alert Scoggins to high and low blood sugars. Like the other puppies in its litter, it will been imprinted from birth with the scent of low and high blood sugars. It will go everywhere with her to help save her life.
“We will hopefully be able to pick my alert puppy this March so it can begin its two-year training. My alert dog will sleep by my side and wake me up at night during highs and lows,” she said. “It will ride in the car and stop me from driving if my sugars are getting low or high, not only saving my life but the lives of others. It will watch over me and keep me safe. ”
Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disease. With diabetes, the pancreas stops producing insulin, the chemical that is responsible for processing the body’s blood sugar. Without insulin, blood sugars will spike out of control, ultimately causing coma and death. Scoggins has created a fundraiser on GO FUND ME and GIVE FORWARD. The name of her fundraiser on both sites is Janet’s Diabetic Alert Dog Fund.
