This weekend is going to bring some major rewards for a few Calgarians and their dogs.
They’ll be taking steps together that could lead to some lives being saved as a veteran scent detection expert offers an introductory training session.
Carla Simon, who runs Calgary-based Hunter’s Heart Scent Detection Canines and Service Dog Training, said the training can be valuable for people with a wide range of medical conditions.
“There’s a whole bunch of things that dogs can detect, like cancer, migraines, epilepsy, PTSD,” Simon said. “Pretty much anything you’d want to train for.”
Sheila Watson says she’s benefitted from the training she and her dog Tilley have received from Simon.
“Because of the complications of my diabetes, my eyesight is not very good any more and a lot of time if I drop something I can’t see where it is,” Watson said. “So Tilley will find things for me.”
Tilley’s training has also turned out to be important in more serious situations.
“I’ve had low blood sugar at night and not woken up, and she just paws at my arm, nudges me with her nose,” Watson said. “If she didn’t wake me up I would probably go into a diabetic coma and I could die very easily.”
The training session Simon is offering happens from 2:15 to 5:15 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24 at the Beast Boutique, a dog daycare and grooming facility in southeast Calgary.
“Before I had Tilley it was always a worry: going to sleep and not waking up,” Watson said. “She’s my life-saver.”
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