This is the first time that a hospital in France has a full-time dog in a care unit. Other countries, such as the United States or Canada, make greater use of these "therapeutic" or "mediation" animals, mainly cats and dogs.

We discover Snoopy, a two-year-old black and white English setter, adopted at the SPA, comfortably installed in the office of the "Research, Wounds and Healing Unit" of the Parisian anti-cancer center, at the origin of the project.

The whole team is very caring, not stingy with caresses and always quick to throw him a kibble.

The dog Snoopy in the premises of the Institut Curie, on March 20, 2023 in Paris © STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP

Arrived in mid-December, their new "work colleague", as they like to call him, seems to have quickly integrated.

Isabelle Fromantin, the head of the team, insists: "it was a project imagined by all the members of the department". "We wondered how to create a link between caregivers and patients," explains the nurse-researcher. "In a place where you often have to go fast, he brings in a kind of humanity."

"Cancer is a considerable ordeal for patients and their loved ones," she continues. "It puts a smile on their faces."

Different studies indicate that during therapy, the presence of an animal increases the participation of the patient.

It is enough to note the reactions of patients in the waiting room when they see him disembark, eager for hugs: his arrival breaks the silence, triggering spontaneous conversations.

The dog Snoopy meets patients in the waiting room of the Institut Curie, on March 20, 2023 in Paris © STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP

At 75, Laurette Duponchel, treated in Curie for a foot carcinoma, does not hide her joy to find him: "seeing him brings me a lot of well-being, comfort," she enlightens. "It can also be beneficial to those who have no family, or few visits," she said.

Among Snoopy's future missions: to be at the side of patients who wish it shortly before an anxiety-provoking treatment, especially children.

"Shared custody"

For reasons of hygiene and safety, he never enters the treatment rooms and does not visit patients who are too fragile.

Every two or three weeks, education sessions are held within the hospital to teach him certain skills. "We teach him to interact with a patient, to lie in front of him, to put his paws on the bed or to put his muzzle to be caressed," explains Aurélie Nuzillard, canine educator.

The dog Snoopy meets a patient at the Institut Curie, on March 20, 2023 in Paris © STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP

Each mastered exercise will be a good opportunity to win kibble.

Its official owner, Marguerite Nicodeme, an advanced practice nurse, chose it according to very specific criteria: "we wanted a medium-sized dog so that it would not be too impressive, with drooping ears for the +reassuring + side and who is sociable, who can interact with patients of any age," she lists.

"Since it was a team project, we decided that he would live in +shared custody+, sleeping alternately with several members of the department," she adds.

If the arrival of Snoopy delighted many patients, it also made it possible to bring together caregivers who sometimes crossed paths in the corridors without knowing each other.

(l-r) Caregivers Isabelle Fromantin, Maxime Chéron, Elodie Labedade and Marguerite Nicodème, official owner of the dog Snoopy (c), on March 20, 2023 at the Institut Curie in Paris © STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP

The adoption of this dog is also part of a study to evaluate its benefit in the hospital setting.

"We want to be able to measure the well-being brought to a patient by a four-legged companion and see if he really improves the quality of life at work in the hospital," says Professor Steven Le Gouill, director of the Institute's hospital complex.

© 2023 AFP