Vancouver Island woman searching for missing dog who's trained to help with her diabetes
A Vancouver Island woman is desperately searching for her missing dog, who can help with her diabetes in an emergency.
Ciara Cownden has been living with diabetes for 19 years. "I have type 1 diabetes," she told CTV News. "I’ve had a couple of close calls before."
If Cownden’s blood sugar were to suddenly drop, she could be in big trouble, especially without her companion.
"So having that dog there to bring you what you need immediately, especially if you’re alone, it can be a life saver," she said.
Ciara Cownden is shown. (CTV News)
Cownden's dog, Daisy, has been trained to help by completing tasks like fetching her a juice box if her blood sugar levels suddenly drop. Cownden's dog has also been trained to bring her blood sugar monitoring device.
"When your blood sugar drops, your ability to think clearly isn’t there," said the dog owner.
In an emergency, the ten-month-old pup calms her down, preventing her from panicking. But now, Daisy is missing.
LAST SEEN DAYS AGO
While out for a walk on May 12 near Shawnigan Lake, Daisy slipped out of her GPS collar. Then, something startled her and she ran into the bushes.
The following day, Daisy was spotted on the other side of the lake, a good 20 kilometres away near the Village of Shawnigan Lake.
"She hasn’t been spotted in about three and half days now," said Cownden on Friday.
More than 200 posters have been put up around the area. Search parties have also gone out with no luck.
A missing poster is shown in the Shawnigan Lake area. (CTV News)On Friday, animal recovery group FLED launched a drone in the hopes that Daisy could be found.
"There's a bear we’ve found on the other side of the swamp here that’s been hanging around," said Gary Shade, co-owner of FLED.
Shade thinks the bear may have sent Daisy into the nearby hills.
"She’ll eventually come out," he said. "She may not find anymore rabbits to eat and she’ll work her way down."
"Someone will be walking and just stumble across her, but we just need that one sighting, that’s all it takes," he said.
Daisy is roughly 25 to 30 pounds. She's white with brown spots and has blue eyes.
If you happen to see Daisy, you are asked not to approach the pooch and instead call FLED at 250-479-0911 or 250-213-1420 with a description of the direction that the dog was travelling.
"Don’t try to chase her, she’ll run away because she’s too scared," said Cownden. "Normally she’s a very social dog with other dogs, people, with everybody. But at this point she’s too scared."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A man was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'I may have some nightmares:' Man survives being bitten by 2 sharks in Bahamas
A man who was bitten by two sharks in the Bahamas said Thursday he's 'thankful that I'm here' while sharing his story of survival.
Here's how much more Canadian landlords are asking for now, according to a just-released report
A new report says the average asking rent for a home in Canada in April was up 9.3 per cent compared with a year ago, while a slight month-over-month increase was also recorded for the first time since January.