Radar the Labrador Retriever’s story started with a hockey team named the New York Islanders.
The team helped the dog with socializing with people so that he could become a good guide dog. The pooch got used to interacting with huge crowds because of being with the team during their games. The experiences with the team helped Radar finish his guide dog training with a lot of ease.
After completing the training, the service dog was then paired with a professional swimmer — Anastasia Pagonis. Radar is helping the 16-year-old swimmer to compete in the Paralympics and achieve her goals.
Anastasia used to play soccer, but when she was 11, she started losing some of her eye-eight because of a genetic disease. She started getting hurt during her soccer games because of having a blind spot and regularly falling while playing. It was then that the talented girl decided to switch to some other sport and finally chose swimming.
Anastasia told reporters that when she went into a swimming pool, she fell in love with the water because it made her feel free.
When Anastasia reached the age of 14 years, she lost her full vision, and her dreams to pursue her swimming goals were almost shattered. She still kept on trying to get someone to coach and help her but did not have much luck. But then she found Marc Danin of Islander Aquatics, who decided to help her.
Anastasia got back to swimming again, but she was not very comfortable because she had to ask people for help during her training. And then, Radar came into the picture, and things became much easier for the ambitious swimmer.
Radar now accompanies Anastasia everywhere — especially the swimming pool. The dog waits for her to finish her training in the pool, and once she comes out, the canine helps her navigating back home.
Image source: anastasia_k_p via Instagram
