Super Sniffers: Diabetic Service Dogs

Aired on Lifetime Television
May 11 and June 22, 2008
Show 512

When their noses are in the air, some dogs are hard at work, sniffing out medical problems... literally. Lawton is a trained diabetic service dog. He can detect very subtle changes in scent and body chemistry when a person's blood sugar drops. That comes in handy for families like the Schuhmachers, who have three boys with diabetes, all under the age of 10. Lawton can detect the drops in blood sugar early enough so the boys' parents can assist them before they hit dangerously low blood sugar levels. A "Dogs for Diabetics" training center in California gives additional training to dogs that already serve as guide dogs for the blind. They become trained not just to guide people but to smell certain chemicals that alert them to blood sugar drops—in doing so, they literally save lives. Another dog, Sulley, is a trained psychiatric service dog who serves as a sort of living and breathing Prozac for owner Robin Bergman. Robin's depression and anxiety is often countered by Sulley's efforts to get her out of the house and keep her on a routine. "We've developed a list of 30 tasks a dog can be trained to perform but tasks are only part of the picture there are also therapeutic functions," says Joan Esnayra, President of the Psychiatric Service Dog Society. Psychiatric service dogs have helped people with mood disorders anxiety disorders even some people with personality disorders. Turns out "man's best friend" may also be one of our best helpers.