MACON, Ga. — Jordan Beck's lived with type one diabetes since 2009. She said a common misconception people have about it is that she did something to cause the disease.
"My immune system essentially attacked itself, and my pancreas quit producing the beta cells, which is the ones that make insulin," Beck said.
She struggled with feeling nauseous and throwing up a lot from diabetes, until she got her diabetic alert dog, Mocha.
"A lot of my high school career, from freshman year until I got Mocha consisted of me being in and out of the hospital," Beck said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 38 million Americans have been diagnosed with diabetes. In Georgia, about 12% of the population have the condition.
When Beck's symptoms weren't getting better in high school, she decided she help from more than just a glucose monitor.
"We figured where technology would fail, the dog would prevail," Beck said.
Mocha is trained to detect low and high sugar levels, through the scent of saliva. Because Beck's levels change very quickly, Mocha alerts Beck when something is off by putting her paw on Beck's knee.
Mocha was trained by the nonprofit organization, M.D. Dogs Inc. which is where Libby Rockaway works.
"For a full diabetic alert dog, training lasts anywhere from one to two years," Rockaway said.
She said it's not magic, but a lot of hard work through rigorous training.
"It's all science-based. It's all evidence-based, it's all based on reinforcement," Rockaway said.
Dogs are trained not only to distinguish blood sugar levels but they're also trained to do their job in every type of environment- no matter how distracting.
"One thing that I've had to get used to throughout my years of utilizing the service dog is the constant looks that you may get," Beck said.
No matter where Mocha tags along to, her top priority is keeping Beck safe, like she's done for the past decade.
"She was in my wedding with me, so she's been through all the big life events with me," Beck said.
Trained diabetic alert dogs can cost about $10,000 to $20,0000 or higher. Beck had help fundraising from her church, high school, friends, and family to afford Mocha.
Since Mocha is retiring soon, Beck is getting a new diabetic-alert dog, Blaze. Beck said Mocha will live out the rest of her days being spoiled at home and getting a much-deserved break after constantly working hard for the past decade.
