Step 1:

The Number 1 factor you should consider is that a Diabetes Alert Dog is NOT a replacement for testing and you cannot rely on it as your primary blood glucose level monitoring tool. At the same time, it is NOT a machine and it can make errors in smelling the change in your blood glucose level. Sometimes it may alert you when there is no change in your blood sugar level and sometimes it may miss your change. How efficient your service animal depends on his innate ability to decipher your smell as well as various environment distractions (For example, it may miss the change in your scent because you are at a food court where many smells throw off its sense of smell).

Step 2

  • Are You Allergic to Dogs?

Even though these animals can be a great help to you, it poses a big problem if you are allergic to dogs. So before you decide to get a service dog, take an allergy test. And if you are allergic to dogs, how severe is the condition? The reason behind this question is because there may be a solution to your problem. Having a great keen sense of smell, poodles and labradoodles are known to hypoallergenic and are becoming some of the popular breeds being picked to be service dogs.

With very low shedding coats, these two breeds of dogs are also known to be highly intelligent and has calm temperaments. If your allergy symptoms is relatively low, you may acquire a hypoallergenic breed as your service animal.

With very low shedding coats, these two breeds of dogs are also known to be highly intelligent and has calm temperaments. If your allergy symptoms is relatively low, you may acquire a hypoallergenic breed as your service animal.

Step 3

  • Do You Have the Time and Commitment?

Having a diabetes alert dog is a real commitment as it is a living being and requires attention and care. Although the service has already provided appropriate training for the animal, you still need to continue reinforcing training in order for the dog to fulfill its tasks and behave properly in public areas.

The “training” can be anything from praising it of doing a great job of detecting your symptoms or performing a certain task in getting you help. It can also be a daily 15 minutes to 1 hour behavior training.

In a sense you two are partners; your dog gets feedback from your reactions. The more interaction you have with it, the more it will learn to help you in your daily activities.

Aside from the training, there are the health maintenance tasks of brushing and washing its fur, brushing its teeth, clipping its nails, and bringing it to regular health checkups and vaccination shots.

If you neglect these important grooming duties, your diabetes alert dog will live a much shorter lifespan than a well-cared-for service dog. At the same time, just like a pet, you need to walk and exercise the dog so that it can work off its extra energy and behave properly.

Last but not least, you need to bond with the dog so that he will take your health as his priority. As research studies have found that positive reinforcement works much better in dog training than negative reinforcement, it will take command much better when you show a lot of positive attention.

It is true that it is a lot of work to take care of your service dog. But the reward is that you will not only receive a warning about your blood glucose level fluctuation but also get a devoted companion and exercise buddy as a whole package. As recent studies have shown, owning a dog can add 10 years to your life.

Step 4

  • Hidden Costs

Some obvious costs are food, grooming, license, and regular health checkup and vaccination fees. But as a living animal, diseases, illnesses, and accidents can occur. If veterinary care is needed, you may need to pay a hefty fee to bring your service dog back to health. If you wish to avoid such costs, you would have to get pet insurance that will cover your service dog’s medical fees.

Depending on your needs, the monthly subscription may vary (the lowest cost plan starts as little as $10 a month). In worst case, your diabetes alert dog faces a life-threatening incident where it has to be put down. If such event occurs, your investment in your service dog will be totally lost.

However, there are ways you can be reimbursed. If the dog has a heredity or birth defect problem that has been detected by your vet early on, you can request a replacement for another service dog or a part reimbursement from the organization. If it has no such conditions, you can purchase secure your “investment” by purchasing a pet life insurance. At the same time, if you travel frequently with your service dog, it is a good idea to ask your insurance company if there is a pet policy that you can add to your plan. Although these are all worthwhile investment, the costs can certainly add up over the years.