Stories

John is the first student to go through CPL’s Diabetes Alert Dog pilot program. He’s had type I diabetes for 60 years, and has lost the ability to recognize when his blood sugar is low (hypoglycemic unawareness). John came to us wanting help to maintain his health and active lifestyle. A former Physical Education and Health teacher he had to help prepare Sheeba for her role as a Diabetes Alert Dog and his partner in advance. He sent saliva samples to CPL on a regular basis prior to Team Training Summer 2014 by chewing on a piece of cotton when his sugar levels dropped to 70. Sheeba’s trainer then taught her to identify that particular scent enabling her to alert John to test and do what he needed to do to stabilize his condition. While learning to recognize these alerts, John and Sheeba also had to learn all the obedience and service skills required of any other service team. They’ve bonded during their morning walks and John even bought an attachment for his bike so that she could run with him. Their affection for each other is clearly evident and they are going to be a wonderful team.