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Everything Broad Ripple HomearrowRandom Ripplings Homearrow2016 04 01arrowColumn

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Converted from paper version of the Broad Ripple Gazette (v13n07)
Gettin' Ripped in Ripple - Service Dogs: "Mo" not Less - by Walt Alfred - by Laura Minor
posted: Apr. 01, 2016

Gettin' Ripped in Ripple header

Service Dogs: "Mo" not Less

The article below is written by a very loyal, and might I say So.Be.Fit.'s "class clown" Walt Alfred. Walt has been coming to us for a couple of years now and is always goofing around and making everyone laugh at classes. We LOVE having him. Unfortunately, Walt has type 1 diabetes and, as I learned recently, his varying blood sugar levels are harder to detect with age. About three months ago, Walt adopted a service dog that alerts him when he needs to attend to a low/high blood sugar. Amazing, right? Here is some more information about these astounding animals, the journey they embark on (pardon the pun), and the journey of Walt and Mo specifically. . .
Moravia (Mo) is a 32-month-old white Labrador retriever trained to be a diabetic alert dog. Walt got him last December through the Indiana Canine Assistance Network (ICAN), the only accredited service dog training program in Indiana. ICAN service dog training takes place primarily inside of Indiana correctional facilities, where carefully selected and trained offender-handlers work with their assigned dog from early in the morning to late in the evening 7 days a week. Training begins shortly after the pups are born. At 3 weeks, the pups and their mother are transferred to the Pendleton Men's Prison to begin training. Here they learn the basic skills of an assistance dog such as sit, down, touch, under, tug, lap, visit, drop, etc. Every 6 weeks the dogs come out of the prison for 3 weeks to live with an ICAN furlough volunteer whose job it is to socialize the dog to the outside world in their home, work environment, and public places. At about 18 months the dogs are transferred to the Indiana Women's Prison where they are taught the most advanced tasks and client specific skills, like opening doors/drawers, retrieving dropped items, providing balance, operating lights, alerting to low or high blood sugar, finding help, retrieving an item out of a cabinet or refrigerator, interrupting a repetitive motion of a child with autism or the panic attack of a veteran with PTSD. At about the age of 2, the dogs "graduate" from the program and are placed with a "client" based on a careful assessment of the client's needs and circumstances and the personality and temperament of the dog.
Due to the rigorous requirements of a service dog, not all dogs make it through the program. Mo almost flunked out because of his rambunctiousness and obsession with squirrels. They "extended his sentence" for an extra 6 months with the hope that in this time they could "rehabilitate" him and find a good client match for his energy level. Then along comes Walt, equally in need of rehabilitation and a service dog and the match was made.
Walt was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 40. Type 1 diabetics cannot control their blood sugars with just diet and exercise. Because their pancreas' either don't produce enough insulin or none at all, their blood sugars can vary dramatically throughout the day. Both High and Low blood sugar levels can be very dangerous and can cause heart attacks, strokes, and diabetic comas. Over time, poor control of blood sugars can lead to circulatory problems, neuropathy, and blindness.
As a diabetic alert dog, Mo is trained to detect low and high blood sugar levels by scent. When his nose tells him that Walt's blood sugar is not within the normal range, he is trained to nudge Walt very aggressively and persistently with his snout until Walt acknowledges that "he's got it". At the gym, Walt typically tethers Mo to something so he doesn't get in the way, but will periodically check in with Mo during his workout. Mo's sense of smell is so acute, that he can detect an extremely low blood sugar level from across the room. If he can't reach Walt to nudge him when this happens he'll bark instead. But a bark doesn't always mean low blood sugar. Sometimes Mo and Walt just bark to get attention.



Laura Minor owner and operator of So.Be.Fit. Personal Training and Fitness studio located at 54th and the Monon. She is passionate about teaching others how to "FIT" exercise and physical activity into their daily lives, and have fun while doing so! Visit her website at www.sobefitindy.com or e-mail laura@BroadRippleGazette.com




laura@broadripplegazette.com
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