Canton service dog ‘O’Hara’ honored at Fenway Park

The Boston Red Sox honored a special Canton resident last week in a ceremony at home plate prior to their July 25 series opener against the New York Yankees. O’Hara, a yellow Labrador retriever who originally hails from Yorktown Heights, New York, was named the Service Dog of the Game. The Red Sox honor a service dog before each Thursday evening home game.

Bella Scott and her dog O’Hara with Wally the Green Monster, her brother Austin, and Red Sox player Michael Chavis

Isabella (Bella) Scott, who grew up in Canton, is O’Hara’s owner. Ten years ago, when Scott was 9 years old and a student at the Hansen School, she was diagnosed with a juvenile form of macular degeneration called Stargardt disease. She explained that the disease affects the central vision of the eye and that typically patients do not become completely blind. “Mine happened pretty quickly,” she said.

Doctors explained to her parents that their daughter’s vision experience was like trying to see through a thin layer of Vaseline. Scott is now legally blind.

She continued her education at the Hansen and later the Galvin Middle School before moving on to the Perkins School for the Blind, where she completed a curriculum for Canton High School. In March of 2018, Scott became O’Hara’s owner through Guiding Eyes for the Blind. Scott and O’Hara trained together for three weeks and then started to work together. Guide dogs have specific feeding schedules and bathroom times, and Scott learned how to clean up after her teammate. She also learned to use specific commands with O’Hara and how the dog will respond to those commands.

“I tell her where to go and she tells me, A, it’s a bad idea, or B, to go around obstacles,” Scott said.

If O’Hara feels that it’s a bad idea for Scott to go in the direction that she’s indicated, she will stop and look up at Scott until she reaches out and touches or notices what has caused O’Hara to stop moving. If there is an obstacle, O’Hara guides Scott around it. “I can feel her movements through the harness,” she said. If the situation is safe for Scott, O’Hara will guide her to her destination.

Scott began college studies last fall at Curry College in Milton, where she is majoring in biology, and O’Hara was at her side. She is both classmate and roommate to Scott. On a typical day, Scott gets up to let O’Hara outside; the two get ready for class and then O’Hara waits for Scott to give her commands to start their walk to class. Once inside a classroom, O’Hara is quiet.

“She’ll tuck under the desk and rest her head on my foot,” Scott said.

Guide dogs are taught to complete tasks with their owner. Resting with the owner is not one of the tasks. “It definitely is a bonus,” Scott said. “She relaxes me.”

At Curry, Scott and a fellow classmate started the Curry Canine Club, which gives them a chance to educate the public about the fact that when a guide dog is with their human, both of them are working, and working together to make sure that they are in safe situations.

“I have struggled with people talking to my dog while she’s working without asking me first,” Scott said. She went on to say that O’Hara is still a dog first. If distracted by friendly people without checking with Scott first, she may miss an obstacle or upcoming stairs.

“She’s my lifeline and my eyes,” Scott said. “They’re always helping their person. It’s really important to ask if they can interact with the dog. Please don’t take offense.”

Two people who knew to ask permission first before getting to know O’Hara were Red Sox infielder Michael Chavis and the team’s mascot, Wally the Green Monster, when O’Hara was honored last week. “They asked us so nicely,” Scott said. “It was really cool that they asked. They came out and posed with me. I could feel all the energy.”

Scott’s brother, Austin, accompanied his sister to the game and to home plate, fulfilling his dream to walk on to the field at Fenway Park.

Scott has learned some strategies to get to new locations with O’Hara. She reminds herself to stay calm if she feels unsure about where she is or how to get somewhere. At times, people will give commands to O’Hara instead of directing them to her. She also makes use of a free app called Be My Eyes. It functions like FaceTime and connects her with volunteers who can ask what she needs and see where she is going. The volunteer can then provide her with more direction. Scott encourages others to ask if someone with a guide dog needs help before assuming they do.

“Sometimes we may look lost, but we’re not,” she said.

Her best support is O’Hara.“She’s the best,” Scott said. “Emotionally she helped me find the confidence in myself. She allows me to be comfortable, to be myself. I always had that independence, but she brought it to the surface. Most people wouldn’t talk to me when they saw my cane. She makes it more socially comfortable. People come up to me. It helps me to educate them about service dogs and disabilities. People with disabilities aren’t different. They just do things differently, as everyone does.”

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Posted by Mary Ann Price on Aug 2 2019. Filed under Features. Both comments and pings are currently closed.