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A 6-year-old Michigan boy with type 1 diabetes wanted an assistance dog so he could take the school bus and visit friends. Instead of asking his parents to buy him a puppy, he started selling pumpkins that he grew – and now his parents say he's already sold them.
Ian Unger of Sand Lake, Michigan, started kindergarten this year and was "ready to school" last year, but was never able to take the bus with other children of his age, said his mother, Katrina Christensen, at CBS News.
Ian needs to be constantly monitored to monitor his insulin pump and his blood sugar. It is therefore too dangerous for him not to have help or to have someone trained in the use of the device.
The Ian School District Nurse recommended Ian to seek help and the District stated that Ian could not take the unguarded bus this fall, so his parents drove him daily at school, according to Christensen.
Help does not have to be human – a well-trained person diabetic alert dog can accompany Ian to school.
Dogs can "feel the changes in blood sugar before the blood test reveals it," said Christensen. Puppies can also pick up snacks or things that diabetics may need if they are in danger.
"Ian just wanted one of the dogs because he could not do anything.He knew that he could not take the bus last year," Christensen said.
However, the family thought it would take a few years to be able to afford the dog because they can go up to $ 25,000, according to Christensen.
Ian had a great idea to raise money: pumpkins.
Christensen and Ian planted the seeds in June – and their harvest took off.
"He put some pumpkin seeds in the ground and did not care, but let me tell you that he has grown a lot," said Ian's father, Jeff Unger, at CBS News. 150. "
On September 26, Christensen posted on Facebook the announcement "Ian's pumpkins are ready!" and that his son "was raising money for a diabetic alert assistance dog". The message has now been shared more than 700 times.
The pumpkins were exhausted in a few weeks. Unger said people had even started bringing their own pumpkins and giving them to the gardener for sale.
"We did not know it was going to explode," Unger told CBS News.
In addition to pumpkin sales, Christensen has created a fundraiser on Facebook for his son. So far, they have raised more than $ 21,000 on a stated goal of $ 20,000.
Christensen said Ian was hoping for a German Shepherd. "He thinks they're so cool, because the police have them," she said.
Unger said the family would give all the extra money, once they'd bought a dog, to JDRF. "If it takes off, maybe someone else will get one," said Unger. "It could help another child."
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