An association surprised a diabetic teenager by gifting her a specially trained dog to assist her with her illness.
The presence of the animal by her side will reassure her and allow her to be more independent. Until this Monday and this meeting with a young Goldendoodle named Penny, Grace Pilo had no idea that her life would change radically in the face of the disease.
Fifteen-year-old Grace Pilo lives in Seattle, in the northwest of the United States. When she was 10 years old, she learned that she had type 1 diabetes.
This form of the disease is characterized by poor or absent insulin production. As a result, if her blood sugar drops, the teenager could faint, which is her greatest fear. She admits to falling asleep every night with the fear of not waking up in the morning.
Now, thanks to Penny, she won’t have to live with that terror anymore. She was the one who chose this name for her new 4-legged friend.
The 10-month-old dog completed its basic training provided by 4E Healing Hearts, an organization based in Las Vegas, which surprised her.
Penny must now familiarize herself with the olfactory signals emitted by the girl’s body to recognize dangerous blood sugar highs and lows.
When these occur, the dog will alert her young owner, wake her up if she’s sleeping, and may even seek help, as she has learned.
This final training phase will end in December, when Penny will be considered fully operational.
Penny is able to detect changes in blood sugar levels from 20 to 60 minutes before the current device used by Grace.
This will be a big change for Grace Pilo,
who will be reassured about her health and will be able to act long enough before possible crises during her treatments.
Jeanette Forrey, founder of 4E Healing Hearts, states that with her powerful talent and training, Penny will be able to detect dangerous changes in blood sugar much earlier than the device the teenager is currently wearing.
A difference of 20 minutes to an hour. Jeanette Forrey also expresses her admiration for Grace Pilo: “She’s so active in the community. She’s really a role model for younger kids with type 1 diabetes.”
The mother doesn’t hide her emotions, thinking that her daughter will finally be able to lead a normal life, study, and overcome her fears.
