The Kid with the Dog

Last Thursday, I attended a meeting at work without my cell phone. The one hour meeting ended up lasting two hours. When I got back to my office, I had missed two calls — one from Austin and one from the school nurse. They were trying to reach me because Austin's blood sugar was 500 and he had small ketones.

In his condition, he couldn't walk home from school as planned, so he needed to be picked up. With me unreachable and his typical ride home out of town, Austin called our neighbors — Syl and Gil. And, as they've done so many times before, they swooped in and saved the day for our family. Syl was there to answer Austin's call and Gil was there to pick him up at school and bring him home. When I finally returned the missed calls, Austin was home and his blood sugar was on a downward trend.

Later that evening as I reflected on the incident, I couldn't help but think how Bo could have prevented the dangerous high and ketones, if he had been at school with Austin. I have no doubt Bo would have alerted in time to treat the rise in blood sugar before it got to an unsafe number. He also would have continued to alert, leading Austin to re-check. Bo wasn't at school because Austin has not wanted to resume taking him to school since he stopped attending with him in December. Austin says he wants to bring Bo back to school but so far he has not.

During a recent appointment with Austin's endocrinologist, Austin shared his feelings about bringing Bo to school expressing the extra work involved with being responsible for a dog at school. Later in an unrelated conversation with me, he made a reference to 'being the kid with the dog' at school. I know taking a dog to school is a big responsibility. I also know having a dog at school draws a lot of unwanted attention. I've chosen to leave the decision of whether or not to take Bo to school up to Austin. When we are going out in public, I always ask him if he wants to bring Bo or leave him home. Lately, he's opted to leave him home. Today, Austin had a medical appointment for an acute illness. Like I always do, I asked him if he wanted to take Bo to the appointment. I expected him to say, no. To my surprise, he said yes.

What It's Like Working Bo at School

Bo and Austin during free time.

Guest post from Austin: 
Bo as many of you know has been attending school with me for a bit over a month now and let me say it has been one of the best months in my life. Bo is up there with some of the best things to come into my life. He works everyday all day, he get few breaks and still alerts and performs exceptionally. As I grow older and older the feeling I get when high or low fade and I find it increasingly harder to tell the difference between normal and low. However the scent signature will not change and that’s where Bo comes in he has caught thousands of high and low blood sugars through his life and it does not stop in school. Even with the constant flow of questions like “how old is he” or “what does he do”, “You’re not blind” and the most annoying “can I pet him” Bo stays calm and works through it. Bo works 6 hours through a school day and most of that is very boring to him, sitting or lying at my feet scenting for the slightest smell of a low or high. Bo is the best he is everything I could imagine and more. It makes me and my mother so proud to see him succeed in school.

Bo under desk at school

Bo napping after being picked-up from school.

Subject: Physical Science, Austin and Bo

When I drop Austin and Bo off at school in the morning, I always stay to watch them make their way from the sidewalk to the school entrance. As they disappear behind the glass doors, I wish I could see what they look like navigating the corridors and classrooms. This weekend I received an email from Austin’s science teacher that was the next best thing to being able to see boy and pup working on their own. Her words filled my eyes with tears of happiness and my heart with pride for the team my boy and his dog have become.

Subject: Physical Science, Austin and Bo

Hi Jennifer

Just a quick note to let you know how well things are going in Physical Science class with Bo.

We are in a very noisy part of the curriculum, with the students (a full class of 24) setting up cars and ramps, then running these noisy cars down the ramps throughout the class to collect data. Throughout it all, (3 class periods so far) Bo has been composed and settled. Austin does an amazing job of keeping an eye on him and keeping up with all the work expected at the same time.

I have been very impressed with both of them and thought you should know what a great job they are doing in class together.

Have a great weekend.

Setting Boy and Pup Up for Success

Setting Austin and Bo up for success has been my first priority in all the training I've done with them. This is no more evident than in the hundreds of hours I've spent over the course of our journey preparing them for the day they would attend school together. We've trained for years in schools and places that mimic school environments — spaces like gymnasiums, libraries, cafeterias and even our church's education classrooms. We've created mock classrooms and simulated busy locker corridors to prepare boy and pup for the cachophany of distractions school presents. We've practiced walking in sync up and down stairwells, resisting the temptation of dozens of tennis balls on the feet of classroom chairs, and placing under desks and tables. We've had short training sessions at the end of the day in school and on the busy school campus. Most recently, Austin has worked Bo in school at the end of the day while I've waited outside. 

Taking a service dog to school is a big responsibility for a child; working with a child at school is challenging for a service dog. The team's success is dependent on one thing that cannot be taught or trained — the maturity that comes from experiences, mistakes and understanding. And so, as I've waited for them to mature I've fielded questions from friends, strangers, family and Austin about when the two would attend school together. Often times fielding the questions with the tenacity of a defendant under cross examination.  


"When is Bo going to school?" friends asked. 

"Do they go to school together?" strangers wanted to know. 

"Isn't Bo old enough to work with Austin in school?" family members probed.


And of course there were the seemingly endless questions from Austin as to when he could take Bo to school, without me. 

Despite the questions, that sometimes carried an undertone of disappointment, I maintained my commitment to giving boy and pup the best chance for success no matter how long it took for 'the one day' to arrive when they were capable of handling the responsibility and challenge of working in school.

I'm so happy I was patient because the perfect opportunity has presented itself for boy and pup to trial working together at high school this summer. Austin is taking a writing class that meets four days a week through the month of July. Because it's summer session the classes are only half days and the school is not at full capacity. They'll have the chance to find their rhythm in a shorter day and under less crowded conditions than what they'd encounter if school was in full session. While I don't have a crystal ball, I'm cautiously optimistic that they are capable of success under these modified conditions. 

Last week, I met with representatives from Austin's school to revise his 504 Plan to include Bo this summer. We are fortunate to live within a school district that is supportive of our family's use of a service dog to help manage Austin's Type 1 Diabetes. Together, Austin's guidance counselors and I identified the accommodations that would be most helpful to ensure Austin and Bo's safety at school. I left the meeting filled with hope for what lies ahead on what has been one of the most wonderful journeys I've ever taken.