Every thing may have been perfect and our volunteers were full of enthusiasm and hope. Even the early morning storm clouds had departed to give our Event the advantage of New Mexico's amazing blue skies and gentle breezes. But attendance was, sadly, sparse.
We tried not to be disappointed and were very grateful for those who did turn out, participate and ask lots of great questions. White Dog made a point of regularly making the rounds to bolster the spirits of our volunteers and of enthusiastically greeting our guests with an elegant "Welcome" and bow.
I consoled the troops with the fact that we just have to keep going out and doing what we do; we ARE making a difference but it takes time and many repeats to deliver our message. Some speculated the Sunday football season kept folks away. Others thought that we needed to be cuter in our approach. We had plenty of time for analysis. The location was good for this park is usually full of families, and renaissance role players, and joggers and people out with their pups...but for some unknown reason yesterday you could look down its 1/4 mile length and not see a single creature stirring, just lush green grass under inviting blue skies. The Event was free and offered activities and prizes. We had distributed fliers, posted on the local dog sites, and socially networked...the pre-interest and response was great but...
We know that these things will happen and we cannot let them discourage us too much. As White Dog reminded ME after all the others had been encouraged and soothed and thanked, "It was a good plan, Momma, and was executed beautifully. All we can do is provide that and get the word out, we cannot kidnap people and bring them." She saw the thoughtful look in my eye. "No, really momma! They will come, but not hog-tied!"
Here are some photos of our My Dog & Me Diabetes Awareness Day...
1. A dog suffering from untreated diabetes typically:
__X_Drinks a lot, urinates often,
eats a lot, and is generally lethargic.
2. TRUE. In
humans and cats with Type 2 diabetes sometimes weight-loss and a high-protein,
low-carb diet are all the treatment that is needed.
3. During
digestion for both humans and pets carbohydrates are converted to
_X__Sugars
4. 1
in 500 dogs may develop diabetes.
5. FALSE. Type
2 Diabetes among 10-19-year old humans has increased almost 75% in ten years. It has risen 25% which is still a HUGE jump!
6. In the U.S.,
diabetes is NOT a leading cause of which condition in humans.
___Blindness ___Kidney disease _X__Hearing loss
7. What is the
expected lifespan of a treated diabetic dog? A
treated diabetic dog can live a normal life.
8. The number
of people in the United States with diabetes has doubled in the last 15 years.
9. FALSE. High
glycemic foods are better because they lead to faster digestion. They are harder to process.
10. Which dog
breed is on the list of being at high-risk for developing diabetes? Siberian Huskies
11. One out of
three human adults have pre-diabetes
12. The typical
canine diabetes patient is NOT
__X_Male ___Middle aged ___Overweight
And just because the number staggered me: In New
Mexico the total medical and indirect societal cost of human diabetes is $1.83
billion. THIS is why we spent a Sunday at the Park trying to raise awareness!
3 comments:
Never give up, it is tough to get something new off the ground. On paw at a time!
we are sorry there wasn't more attendance.... it can be so frustrating. but we are glad you are continuing to fight the fight!
As you know, Sallie has diabetes, so this is a cause near and dear to my heart. Keep up the good work!
Yours,
Alien
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