A 17-year-old girl named Kimberly living in Monroe, CT, received a very special delivery of her very own Diabetic Alert Service Dog from SDWR.

MONROE, CT, USA, May 28, 2019 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Kimberly, a 17-year-old girl in Monroe, CT, received a very special delivery of her very own Diabetic Alert Service Dog from Service Dogs by SDWR. Based in Madison, Virginia, Service Dogs by SDWR, or “SDWR,” has a mission to provide specially-bred and trained dogs for people of all ages that struggle with living with invisible disabilities such as Autism, PTSD, Seizure Disorders, or in the case of Kimberly—Type 1 Diabetes. SDWR has hundreds of working service dogs placed around the globe and is currently serving approximately 1,000 families.

Baron, a labrador retriever Diabetic Alert Dog, has already received countless hours of training through SDWR’s service dog raiser program where volunteers raise puppies in training for approximately one year. The dogs and raisers must follow through the foundation and skill set training provided through SDWR trainers at the facility in Virginia.

Baron is also an honored graduate of the SDWR Fallen Officer Puppy Program. The Fallen Officer Puppy Program, also known as “FOPP,” is an initiative by SDWR to pay respect to the legacy of service by fallen American police who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty. Baron is named in honor of fallen hero Sergeant Robert W. Baron of the Sandoval County Sheriff's Office in New Mexico who succumbed to injuries sustained the previous day when she was struck by a vehicle on I-25, near San Felipe Pueblo. Baron’s work as a Diabetic Alert Service Dog with Kimberly will carry on in memoriam of Sergeant Robert W. Baron’s life of service before self.

Kimberly was diagnosed with Diabetes when she was 27-months-old. Kimberly hopes that a service dog will be able to alert her when she is sleeping and in between checks. Type 1 diabetes can sometimes affect Kimberly's everyday life. When her blood sugars are too high or too low, she feels very sick and will get headaches and stomach aches. Over the past few years her ability to sense her lows and highs have decreased. several hospitalizations this year for DKA due to stubborn blood sugars. Kimberly is optimistic that with the addition of a service dog it will help make her life a little easier and provide a sense of independence and security.

SDWR uses a proprietary scent training method to teach Diabetic Alert Dogs to detect fluctuations in blood sugar that fall outside of a handler’s healthy range. Since Baron is a service dog and covered under laws in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, she will be able to accompany Kimberly everywhere—from school, to the grocery store, and even restaurants.

During the upcoming 18 months, SDWR will return to Kimberly’s home every 3-4 months to continue working on Baron’s customized training, follow up training and training the human to make a successful team and public access certification. This certification can only be given to Kimberly after a progression of hard work and dedication to the SDWR training program. This training program is what sets SDWR apart from other nonprofit service dog organizations.

Service Dogs by SDWR is a nonprofit organization based in Madison, Virginia, and relies on donations to help the organization in its mission, “Until there’s a cure…there’s a dog.” To make a donation or learn more about SDWR, please visit the website, www.sdwr.org. To learn more about Diabetic Alert Service Dogs visit www.sdwr.org/service-dogs/diabetic-alert/. To learn more about SDWR’s Fallen Officer Puppy Program visit www.sdwr.org/fallen-officer-puppy-program/.

Beau Warren
Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers
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