With Scentinel at her side, diabetes can't stop rodeo queen

ATHOL - Most people have a strong bond with their dog, but Hayven Chase, Bonner County’s reigning rodeo queen, has a unique connection with 6-month-old pup Scentinel.

Hayven, of Athol, has Type 1 diabetes. When her blood sugars are low, the service dog lets his young owner know so she can take care of the matter.

“I wear a continuous blood sugar monitor on my arm. He can catch it about 15 to 20 seconds before my monitor does,” said the 16-year-old daughter of Reed and Roxanne Chase.

The golden labradoodle is devoted to Hayven. During the nighttime while she’s sleeping, Scentinel has been known to awaken Hayven to tell her she needs to take care of her sugar levels, the teen said.

Scentinel’s mother was a Goldendoodle and her father was a lab. Goldendoodles are friendly, quick to learn and loving, and labs are an athletic breed that is happiest when they're working.

“The breeder bred Scentinel’s mother with a lab — for a little more drive,” she said.

Scentinel’s training began early. As young as one month, Scentinel started his training with Hayven at Lily Grace Service Dogs in Sandpoint, learning to detect low blood sugar through the breath and through saliva samples in little tins with holes in them. One saliva sample would be a normal blood sugar reading and the other one a saliva sample taken when Hayven’s blood sugar was low.

When Scentinel chose the “low” sample, he received a treat. He associates the “low” smell with a reward and is now able to detect Hayden’s blood sugar levels even when he's many feet away from her.

Training is now underway for detection of high blood sugars, Hayven said.

When Scentinel detects a “live low,” he sits and paws her to get her attention.

A service dog is expensive; Hayven’s family and Bonner County’s horse community held fundraisers to assist with costs.

Hayven is a busy young person. To earn her title as 2020 Bonner County Rodeo queen, she competed in horsemanship competitions, participated in opportunities for public speaking, attended a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association queen clinic, and attended clinics with Miss Rodeo Idaho and Miss Rodeo America. She had to demonstrate an extensive knowledge of rodeo and model fashionable western attire. Multiple judges, some with strong horsemanship backgrounds and some with strong rodeo backgrounds, were on the judging panel.

Hayven, who lives with her family on 10 acres, where they have a few cows and horses, will attend Timberlake High School as a junior. She’s an active member of Future Farmers of America and enjoys barrel racing, learning to rope, O-mok-see racing — a timed pattern racing event — running flags, and leathercraft. She is an instructor for the Mica Creek Horse Club and has earned several championships for O-mok-see racing.

“I am passionate about agriculture, the western way of life, the sport of rodeo, and advocating for people like myself — with hidden disabilities," she wrote in an online report on the Bonner County Fair website.

“Having been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 8 years old, I’ve never let it stop me from attaining my goals. Instead, I have turned it into motivation to help and hopefully inspire others,” she wrote.

And now she has the support of a best friend “who also knows when I need help,” she said about her beloved service dog, Scentinel.