Nov 3, 2009 1:42 pm US/Pacific
Dogs Recruited To Fight War On Allergies
Specifically Trained Animals A Godsend To Small Children
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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For people with severe food allergies even the slightest exposure can mean a trip to the hospital.
AP
For people with severe food allergies even the slightest exposure can mean a trip to the hospital. Peanut allergies can be lethal, especially for children. But now there's a new weapon to help sniff out danger, CBS station WCBS-TV reports.
Sherry Mers founded Angel Service Dogs Academy in Colorado earlier this year after training a dog to help protect her own highly allergic daughter, Riley.
"As a mom who been there I couldn't say no. I know what it's like," Mers said. "This is a constant stress on the family, a constant stress on the child. They don't socialize the way normal kids do."
"Whenever he does a good job, I say 'Good Boy!'" Riley said.
In one drill, peanuts and wheat bread are hidden. When the dog detects their scent he sits. It looks like play, but this is serious business.
"Dogs classify odors kind of like the way we classify things through our eyes with vision," dog trainer Sean Hartley said. "They walk through the world recognizing millions of odors every day and they classify them appropriately."
"If it was peanuts I would have swelled up. Once my lip swelled up and it pushed my nose up," Riley said. "It's kind of scary trusting your life with a dog."
Even with the extra protection the dogs provide, these moms must remain vigilant.
"We're not supposed to be changing the way we're actually living our life. We're still going to be in a bubble. It's just hopefully going to expand the bubble a little bit," Jessie Rines said.
Training these dogs doesn't come cheaply. Non-profit Angel Service dogs help families with fundraising. But the cost starts at about $10,000.
So far they've received more than 2,000 applications.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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