Family hopes service dog will help 4-year-old manage type 1 diabetes
By Darryl Forges
Click here for updates on this story
NW ORLEANS (WDSU) — Hudsyn Blackwell, known as Huddy, is a spirited 4-year-old girl who loves performing in her living room and hosting pep rallies for her family.
As the youngest of three siblings, Huddy brings energy and excitement to her home, but her life changed two years ago when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.
“She wears a monitor that tells us what her blood sugar is 24 hours a day. Some days we have really good days, and some days we have really bad days,” her mother Victoria Blackwell said.
The bad days can be especially challenging, sometimes leading to hospital visits.
“She’s had some rough numbers. We’ve been in the hospital with DKA, just rough, rough blood sugar numbers that’s just really hard to control sometimes,” her family said.
To help manage these difficulties, Huddy’s family is working to bring home a service dog named Emma, a 2 1/2-year-old Labrador trained to monitor blood sugar levels. Emma can alert the family if Huddy’s levels fall below 90 or rise above 180.
“It would be another set of eyes, well a nose rather, that would help us just keep eyes on her, because I swear some nights it feels like I’m watching your monitor, and when I can’t hold my eyes open, I’m passing off to my husband,” her family said.
According to the National Institute of Health, children ages three to five with type 1 diabetes make up a small proportion of those with the disorder, but diabetes rates in toddlers are increasing.
For Huddy’s family, the support of their community and loved ones has been a source of strength.
“I get chills, and I get teary-eyed every time I talk about it, but our community and our family and our friends, and surroundings. There are so many good people in this world. So many good people,” her mother said.
The family shared the cost of purchasing Emma is close to $30,000, and they are raising funds to bring her home. If you would like to help visit their GoFundMe page.
Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.