So...I posted this up and then went back and deleted it. Now I'm posting it again...although I dare say I think no one really cares to respond. But here goes...in terms of supporters, has anyone ever had a feline or canine companion who sensed that s/he was low and acted as an aid? I have, several times. I know of one other type 1 (well, I actually don't know any other type 1's except a distant relative--but this one person) who had similar experiences being low and having a beloved cat 'wake' her enough so that she could treat it. Has anyone else out there had a similar experience with a species other than human? I don't think the beasts who love type 1's ever get any real acknowledgement or thanks for their love.
There is actually a group in california that trains dogs to be able to do this. It's incredible the ability that dogs and cats have. I think they are able to sense extreme changes in sweat (notice how you start sweating more when you get low or high?). My family is working to get me one for when I graduate from college (and possibly start living alone) but at this point you must live in california cuz the group comes to check up on the dogs every 6 months.
Holy COW! That is the most exciting news I have heard in quite a while! Now I am plotting...I can sneak my part Pitt mix beloved Golden Lab Heinz 57 dog into that program, and no one can ever say she isn't able to stay where we live...
Wow...I have wondered if I could train this dog and somehow get her certified...the cats and the dog already have decided to help me in this capacity...
Thanks for what you've shared, very much.
my dog always stays close by when my blood sugar is low. he gets kind of protective. i do remember when i was have problems with my tubing on my pump he sensed my blood sugar was high and started licking me one morning trying to get me to wake up. i woke up tested my blood and found out i was high.
I find this stuff absolutely facinating. Here's an article from 2001:
http://www.diabeteshealth.com/read/2001/03/01/2153.html
We have a dog and a cat but haven't noticed any difference in their behaviour when Beemer's high or low. ...might start paying attention more closely now...
My dog was actually bred to be a seeing-eye dog, so she is very friendly and sticks very close to her masters. Although no one in my family needs a seeing-eye dog, she's a great pet and does well with everything now that I come to think of it. I haven't paid very close attention to it lately, but I bet there's been a point where my dog's changed in behavior when I'm low/high. I'll have to pay closer attention next time and post back.
My dog was actually bred to be a seeing-eye dog, so she is very friendly and sticks very close to her masters. Although no one in my family needs a seeing-eye dog, she's a great pet and does well with everything now that I come to think of it. I haven't paid very close attention to it lately, but I bet there's been a point where my dog's changed in behavior when I'm low/high. I'll have to pay closer attention next time and post back.
my cat doesnt seem to do much. she is spoiled and self centered(who knew a cat could have such a personality?) my cat only really helped me once befor I was diagnosed when I was really upset but all she did was curl up beside me and purr for hours and hours.
You aren't the only one whose pet alerts them. There's a non-profit organization called Dogs 4 Diabetics that trains dogs to alert their owner of hypoglycemia. I, personally, do not have any pets, but if this organization exists, then there must be plenty of people out there with those wonderful dogs!!!!
Oh yeah.
My sheltie alerted my mom to a sez I was having in my room with the door closed. He started throwing himself at the door and barking and running about.
He got the name hero dog for like half a year.
He now will give me that look, like "I know you know that I know." And I have to or else he wont stop running in circles and barking.
I love that stupid dog.
<3Sara
Must... train... cats. But, even untrained I still consider them top-notch furry compatriots.
Here they are, by the way. I love them (Olive = Black) (Maggie = Striped).
What cute kitties! I've had four dogs since I was diagnosed and none have ever really noticed when I was low. But the Shih Tzu I have now, Maggie, will come running when I open a pack of glucose tablets. The dog loves them.
Did you guys know that there are sites that have trained diabetes alert dogs?
Our family is in the process of looking for and training a diabetic alert dog for our daughter. She is 4 and most services that give you a trained dog will not work with anyone under 12. These are service dogs and can accompany you anywhere and everywhere legally just like any other service animal. Dogs 4 diabetics is a great service if you are in their area and among the few lucky to get accepted. Its takes about 2 years and $20,000 to train a service animal. I believe in this so strongly I hope to become more involved in making this service more open to those who need and want this help. Not to mention the companionship of a dog (or cat!) is healing to all. Be careful when researching there are a lot of issues and scams on this. Heaven Scent is currently being sued for supplying animals that do not produce the service needed--again just be aware!! This is a real ability and these type of service animals are becoming more well known, they are so needed! Today we came into contact with a wonderful training service who will help us train our own dog, it's so exciting!
I totally believe it. I have a cat (Jack) that was waking me up in the middle of the night, drove me nuts. But then I began to realize that every night that he woke me up....that following morning my bloodsugars were either really low or sky high.
So I started doing a bloodsugar everytime he woke me up....darn cat! Every blood sugar I have done when that cat wakes me up has been below 60!!!!!!
My cat knew I was going low and was trying to wake me up....since then I have naturally corrected this issue....but I now do a bloodsugar everytime he wakes me up.
The whole time I thought I just had another annoying animal, and he was just trying to help me out.
Yes animals can sense things....and my Jack-Jack is a perfect example...and my own little bloodsugar reader.
True story.....have my husband as a witness
My cats have been acting as my low blood sugar alarms for years. My tortoiseshell cat, Calli, will wake me up if I go low when I'm asleep. She'll start by patting my face with her paw. If that doesn't work, she progresses to licking my face. If that doesn't work, then she bites my nose!
My black-and-white cat, Chaya, will start meowing at me and poking me with her paw if I get too focused on using the computer to notice that my blood sugar is low. The only problem with that is that her meowing and poking me is her all-purpose attention-getting mechanism, so it often takes a while for me to figure out what she wants from me.
My dearly departed orange tabby, Puff, was the original low-blood-sugar monitor. She would follow me around and meow at me if I was low without realizing it, and she was the first one to start waking me up at night. I don't know if she trained Calli or if Calli figured it out on her own.
I have a sneaking suspicion that the reason they wake me up when my blood sugar is low is that I will often feed them after I've finished feeding myself.
Once when we were staying at my brothers for a few days, I had bolused for a meal that was then delayed for some time. Instead of eating something, I felt I could wait. 15 minutes became an hour, so of course my bs was dropping. As I was sitting, their Bichon Friese(?) started jumping up on me and would not stop, which I really didn't care for. After my extreme low, we realized that the dog was sensing my low. we had explored the possibilty of getting a dog after that but have not done it yet. Trained dogs for the purpose of sensing blood sugars is a great discovery.
I feel that animals that regularly interact with you on a personal basis most definitely have a sense of your state of being, even to the extent of making sure you realize what's going on. Animals have an awareness that extends to both emotional and physical disaster even without training.
That's awesome to hear that animals are being used specifically for this purpose, and that some of us have had incidents where their animals have been there for them!
My pit-bull always sleeps in my room, and one time when I was having a bad low day, I dropped in my sleep. Needless to say I was drowned in dog drool and she was drowned in thanks. It's happened on other occasions, but I just remember this time the best because she looked so... scared! I love my dog, and I don't think anyone loves me more than she does! :)
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Animals have an awareness that extends to both emotional and physical disaster even without training.
That's awesome to hear that animals are being used specifically for this purpose, and that some of us have had incidents where their animals have been there for them!
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Agreed! Yet another reason why pets are such a good idea(besides the social/companion aspect, and the training young kids to be responsible!). I think a trained cat or dog would be a great idea, especially for young children and adults who are recently diagnosed! Or just anyone who has an extreme history of spontaneous lows during the night, etc.
My cat has yet to alert me, from what I'm aware of, but we didn't get her until I was 13 and my body had long since been able to wake itself up when I start going low. I remember waking up and if I was too low to get out of bed or felt like I was, I usually shouted "MOM!" until she came in(didn't take too long..she's a heavy sleeper but if one of her kids is out of bed at night or calling her..she would wake up instantly..and that's why she always made us keep the bedroom doors open)...my cat would always come right away(sometimes before my mom got to my room!) and would sit on my lap and snuggle with me/lick my face if i was so low i was crying. I'd wake up with her in the exact same position snuggled as close as possible to my chest and face every morning that happened. haha. I don't live at home anymore(it's too hard to rent with pets in this city and she's better off with my mom and her daughter)..but when I move back between rentals or even stay the weekend while the 'rents are away, or I'm there getting babied cuz I'm really sick..she always does that.
She may not have alerted me, but she was always there within minutes of me waking up low to give me love!