Julia was on a two year waitlist and during that time she raised funds and asked for support from her community.ĭiabetic Alert Dogs are costly and range between $5k-10k, and unfortunately insurance does not cover it. The process of getting a diabetic alert dog took great patience, but something that Julia is really grateful for. She sleeps on my bed every night, she actually sleeps with me and my cat which is the cutest thing ever,” said Duprey. “Yea, no, she is just like in addition to her being like my lifeline, she is also like a built in best friend and companion. A sweet or fruity scent indicate that Julia’s levels are high, and a sweaty scent indicates her levels are low. These particular scents are what allow Pretzel to detect Julia’s levels and alert her. Diabetic Alert Dogs are trained to be able to decipher and detect glucose levels by the scents that are expelled from their owner’s breath and palms. “Diabetic alert dogs are trained mostly by scent” said Duprey.
November is Diabetes Awareness month and Julia spoke to 22News about her story to spread awareness. This causes her not to be able to control her blood sugar levels which can be life threatening. In 2004 at the age of six Julia was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, which means that Julia’s body is unable to produce insulin or produces very little. Pretzel is a 14-month-old diabetic alert dog, which is a type of service dog that helps people with diabetes detect dangerously low or high blood sugar levels. In October Julia Duprey was introduced to a new best friend named Pretzel. Christmas tree festival being held at the senior center in Chicopee