Dogs have long been man’s best friend, but for one Whitefish boy, his new pooch might be a lifesaver.

Isaac Jensen, 10, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes three years ago, and he is learning to live with the disability. But as with many children dealing with the highs and lows of blood sugar, the roller coaster becomes routine and they notice dangerous levels less.

Chris Jensen, Isaac’s father, said this is a concern.

“The older they get, the less they notice when their blood sugar is too low,” he said. “He gets used to lows and his numbers drop into the 40s or 50s when he used to notice it higher.”

That’s where Oshie comes in.

A 9-month-old yellow Lab named after Isaac’s favorite hockey player, St. Louis Blues wing T.J. Oshie, the dog will smell when Isaac’s sugar drops too low or rise too high and alert him.

The Diabetic Alert Dogs of America is training Oshie, using an interesting method to prep the pup for his job.

“When Isaac would test high or low, we’d take a cotton ball and swab it on his cheek,” said Diaun, Isaac’s mother. “We’d freeze them and send them off to train Oshie.”

The dog is trained by smelling the swabs. He is rewarded if he alerts the trainer if one of the swabs is at too high or too low a level, but not rewarded if he alerts at a normal level of blood sugar.

Some people can even notice when blood sugar gets too high since the breath becomes sweet and fruity. Isaac got this “dragon breath” when he was first diagnosed.

For the 10-year-old, dealing with the disability has been a whirlwind, but it has become routine. His diagnosis hit the Jensens hard.

“I really didn’t know what was happening,” Isaac said. “They pricked my finger and I had to go to the hospital to get an I.V. They told me I had diabetes and told us how to do everything.”

In just three days, the Jensens were back at home with a vague notion of how to keep Isaac healthy and a lot of research to do. He currently wears an insulin pump and a glucose monitor, making him the “bionic boy” of the house.

“It was pretty scary as a parent,” Chris said. “We were turned loose back at home with insulin and needles.”

As an active boy — a left wing in hockey and shortstop and centerfielder in baseball — Isaac has to be very careful about remembering his sugar.

“When I do sports or any type of activity, I have to check,” he said. “In hockey I check after every period and baseball it’s not every time I go to the dugout but every two or three innings.”

When Oshie arrives in September from Diabetic Alert Dogs of America in Las Vegas, he will be able to lick or place his paw on Isaac when he smells a fluctuation in blood sugar levels.

But the dog doesn’t come cheap.

The Jensens have placed a deposit, but the kindness of community members is propelling further fundraising.

Sean Busby, a professional snowboarder and Type 1 diabetic, has helped support Isaac with advice and his nonprofit organization Riding on Insulin.

“It’s nice being in a community such as Whitefish where we can treat someone like an extension of our family,” he said. “[Isaac] doesn’t let Type 1 stop him. He’s able to brush it off after a spike or a low and just keep going.”

Busby, who runs action sports camps for children with diabetes, said some of his other campers have dogs like Oshie.

“The dogs can actually alert on other people as well,” he said. “Like when my sugar is low it can alert me. So at a camp with 50 kids with diabetes, the alert dog is just overwhelmed.”

To help raise money for Oshie, Bonsai Brewing Project, Sweet Peaks and Piggyback BBQ helped run an event at Bonsai on May 26. The food and a dollar of each beer went to raise more than $2,400 for the trained dog. The Jensens are more than three-fourths of the way to their fundraising goal of $12,500.

“Oshie will help me,” Isaac said in a speech to the throngs of people gathered at the brewery.

Isaac’s older sister Rhiley, 17, helped promote the event by drawing an adorable picture of Isaac and Oshie watching the sun set from a paddleboard, because Isaac wants to teach his dog to go out on the water with him.

But through all the struggles from the disease, Chris said his son is still just a kid.

“It’s tough to be a normal kid, but he still does it every day,” he said. “If he gets snacks at school he has to take them home to eat them. He’s become a little bit more independent because of diabetes. He’s become an advocate for Type 1 diabetes at his school.”

To donate to the Jensen family for Oshie and to read more about Isaac’s struggles and triumphs, visit www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/help-bring-a-superhero-home-for-isaac-jensen-/323623.

Reporter Ryan Murray may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at rmurray@dailyinterlake.com.