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Michaela Basham hasn't added a story.
I have been diabetic since I was a child, more than half of my life now, and I no longer feel when my blood sugar begins to drop. I didn't even realize the change until Christmas of 2012 when I passed out at work. I woke up in the ER and spent much of Christmas Eve in the hospital and confused about what had even happened. I still don't remember the details of that night, and frankly it terrifies me that such a large chunk of my life is just missing from my memory.
After much thought and worry, I decided that I need more help to control my diabetes. It simply isn't feasible to be checking my blood sugar every half-hour when I'm working, traveling, or out with a friend. So, I found a company called Freedom Paws that is currently training a Diabetic Alert Dog for me.
A DAD is trained to scent certain chemical changes in their owner's chemistry that occur when their blood sugar rises or falls. The dog alerts the owner when it detects a high or low blood sugar and is trained to be persistent until the owner takes steps to remedy the problem. Studies show that Diabetic Alert Dogs are able to alert as much as half-an-hour before a low blood sugar will even register on a glucometer!
My DAD will be public access trained, so it will be able to accompany me to work, the store, out to dinner, or anywhere else I go. I will have a companion who is constantly on guard for me. DADs have even been known to wake up and alert their owners if their blood sugar starts to drop in the middle of the night!
While a fully-trained DAD can cost upwards of $25,000, Freedom Paws works with a network of volunteers to help reduce costs and I will be able to get a dog from them for only $10,000.
I appreciate any and all help I can get in raising this money. While I need donations, even just helping me to spread the word is a huge help! I am also always open to any ideas/suggestions/advice about other fundraising projects.
If you would like to learn more about Freedom Paws, you can visit their website at www.freedompaws.org.
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