Live Interview with Mark Ruefenacht, founder of Dogs 4 Diabetics

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlOwDW3Flg8

The Mission of Dogs for Diabetics is to:

Provide quality medical alert assistance dogs to insulin-dependent diabetics through programs of training, placement, and follow-up services; and to,
Develop, promote and advocate standards of quality, performance, support and disclosure for all medical assistance dog teams.

Mark Ruefenacht is an insulin-dependent diabetic, with a family history of blindness due to diabetic retinopathy and non age-related advanced macular degeneration. With this strong motivation, Mark began his work with assistance dogs in 1995, raising puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind (GDB) of San Rafael, California. He continues this volunteer service today as a regional Guide Dog Puppy Raising Group Leader and also leads a Research Si Development Puppy Raising program under the direction of GDB.

ln 1999, Mark was able to couple his professional experience in forensic science with his guide dog experience to
develop innovative new training protocols for dogs to detect hypoglycemia (acute low blood sugar) in insulin-dependent
diabetics. In 2004, he founded Dogs for Diabetics (D4D), the first-of-its-kind assistance dog organization fully accredited with Assistance Dogs International (ADI) for the training, placement, and follow-up services of dogs to assist type 1
diabetics. Over 100 dogs have been placed with diabetics to assist in the detection and prevention of hypoglycemia.
These dogs now safeguard lives as well as help prevent diabetes-related disabilities such as blindness, amputations and other severe medical complications.

As a pioneer in the medical assistance dog industry, Mark continues to champion minimum training standards and ethics for all medical assistance dog organizations; as well as access rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act; and continued research into the training and use of dogs to assist in the mitigation of different medical conditions.

Mark has had the opportunity to share his story about his work with GDB and D4D as a speaker at numerous
international conferences. in 2010, he was recognized by Bark Magazine as one of the 100 most innovative dog trainers in the world. He has traveled around the world, working directly with numerous assistance and guide dog organizations to further the life-saving skills assistance dogs can provide to people with disabilities.

In 2012, Mark was awarded the Bronze medal and, in 2013, the Silver medal for the Jefferson Award to recognize his
work in promoting volunteerism in the community with GDB and D4D. He was a contributor on the revisions to the
American’s With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 2011 and also served on the Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
Disability Coalition to ensure thorough, but equitable, screening of persons with disabilities and assistance dogs.

He consults with corporations and government entities on the ADA and assistance dogs in the work place. Additionally, he
has served as an expert Witness on topics of assistance dog training and the ADA in the California court system.

Category: Nonprofits & Activism
Uploaded by: Diabetes Hands Foundation
Hosted: youtube

TuDiabetes Live Interview with Mary McNeight, founder of Diabetic Alert Dog Academy

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gj4ea1cR1s

Mary McNeight is the founder of a unique program called Diabetic Alert Dog University. She is a professional member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, holds a CPDT-KA (certified pet dog trainer — knowledge assessed) granted by the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, and is certified by the American Red Cross in pet first aid. With more than 5 years of training experience, she has had multiple requests nationwide for her services and to speak on behalf of dog training.
Using only methods approved by the American Humane Association and positive reinforcement techniques, Mary gives private training sessions and offers small group classes for both service and pet dog training in order to provide the best possible service that caters to your needs. Mary is also dedicated toward providing low-cost service dog training for people with disabilities ever since she had to become the resource she needed to train her own dog for service work. Currently, Mary is owned by her yellow lab who is a certified diabetic alert dog.
A certified dog trainer who has experienced life before a service dog, and life with a service dog, Mary McNeight is a fantastic resource to help train your pet or service dog. She can be found teaching at The Service Dog Academy at her dog training studio in the heart of West Seattle.

Category: Nonprofits & Activism
Uploaded by: Diabetes Hands Foundation
Hosted: youtube